Streaming issues with Apple Content only

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Level 1

21 points

Streaming issues with Apple Content only

For about a week I’ve had fairly major streaming quality issues only with content directly from Apple. Shows from AppleTV+, movie rentals, and movies in my Library are all buffering and dipping in and out of 4K and HD. Content from my other apps and channels (Shudder, HBO Max, Hulu, Prime, YouTube etc.) is all streaming perfectly. No problems with my wifi or anything on my end as far as I can tell. I’ve been running this AppleTV in 4K just fine for over a year up until now.

Apple TV 4K, tvOS 14

Posted on Mar 15, 2021 7:04 AM

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Answer 1

rkaufmann87

Level 10

149,068 points

Mar 15, 2021 7:38 AM in response to Skelmo89

Please do the following:

First, ensure the Apple TV is up-to-date and running the most current version of TV OS.
Reset your modem
Reset your router
Unplug Apple TV from power for 2-3 minutes and then plug it back in and retest.

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Answer 2

vazandrew

Level 8

41,028 points

Mar 15, 2021 11:34 AM in response to Skelmo89

Those other services will adapt to the connection whereas Apple uses a fixed rate and also streams at a higher quality. In order to verify the connection you would need to check the speedtest app as well as run diagnostics for the local network. Using ethernet would also be recommended for verification.

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Answer 3

Mar 16, 2021 1:27 PM in response to Skelmo89

Based on the suggestion here, I tired removing power from the AppleTV 4K for 5+ minutes. Since then I have not had the frequent reduced picture quality, although I have only watched a few hours of content.

Could be Apple coincidentally fixed server/network problems, or pulling the power for an extended period could have helped.

If the problem returns I will reach out to Apple support.

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Answer 4

Skelmo89 Author

Level 1

21 points

Mar 15, 2021 2:35 PM in response to Ted Peters

Mine seems to have slowly fixed itself over the course of today. It started with a rental of Doctor Sleep a week ago. It buffered and got super pixelated throughout the whole movie. Everything else streamed fine, my wifi speed test came back as a fast as usual, no slowness on my phone or computer. So I tested with a purchased iTunes movie and it ended up quite pixelated and had to buffer as well. Same day YouTube and my other apps streamed fine. Then a couple days ago started watching Tehran on AppleTV+ and same thing, poor picture quality that occasionally bumped up to HD, but soon would go back to standard def or worse. Still no issues with the internet on any other device in the house or streaming service. Was watching my show this morning and had minimal quality issues, and tested with a 4K movie in my library this afternoon and had flawless perfect picture. I tired powering on and off throughout the week and restarting my router and whatnot, and it never helped but it seems to be fixed now, which makes me think it was something on their end, since it was only ever content directly related to Apple.

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Answer 5

Mar 15, 2021 11:44 AM in response to Skelmo89

I am having the same or similar problem as you. I only notice the picture quality (and occasional buffering) issues on shows I watch via subscribed AppleTV channels (Paramount+, Showtime), not via other Apps (Netflix, HBOMax).

I have Gigabit Fiber, and my AppleTV 4K is hard-wired via Gigabit Ethernet. I have tried all the suggestions here other than removing power from the AppleTV for several minutes. Trying that now.

Please post here if you find a solution, and I will do the same.

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Answer 6

vazandrew

Level 8

41,028 points

Mar 15, 2021 3:17 PM in response to Skelmo89

Other devices working do not rule out a network issue. Those issues can come at any time and also be intermittent. If there is an issue on Apple's end it is easy to replicate and the spike in reports would also be noted. If the issue reappears I would suggest doing further investigation.

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Streaming issues with Apple Content only

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