Netflix quality HORRID after update

Why use Apple TV?

Well I have a Samsung Smart TV and it does have built-in Netflix but the image quality is pure crap compared to the crisp image of the Apple TV. Apple TV also has quite a few apps including iTunes if that's your type of thing, the use of the Remote app on my iphone/ipad to control the Apple TV (much easier to type with), Airplay (I have multiple apple devices and airplay is just awesome).

But the biggest reason I use Apple TV:

Plex Media Server

Even though Plex is on quite a few devices including my TV you just can't beat the picture quality of the Apple TV. I use my dekstop as a server to stream all my content to the apple TV via PlexConnect (no jailbreak needed).

About to go watch Gravity on the couch 😉.

Straight up!

I guess we are considered "old schoolers" since we have AV receivers and stuff. I consider it a lost core appreciation. Most of all-in-one stuff that everybody uses now is of a quality that is inferior to using separate higher end consoles for everything. We live in an age of acceptable low quality... MP3s... cheap DACs (Airport Express, etc.). It's kind of sad! I have a friend who thinks he has all the latest most awesome stuff... Sonos, etc. When he comes over to my place, he doesn't understand why my old equipment and speakers sound so much better, and have more "depth" and 3D sound. It's called understanding audio. 😉

engelgrafik wrote:

Straight up!

I guess we are considered "old schoolers" since we have AV receivers and stuff. 😉

Not really - why do you think that?

I am pretty sure there are many in this thread using AV receivers - that is why I would like Netflix to fix this issue with Apple TV.

My Chromecast works great (though my AV receiver) but isn't family friendly. With the Apple TV (also through the AV receiver) everything can be controlled from our Harmony remote - not so with the Chromecast. That said the Chromecast does DD+ vs DD on the Apple TV.

zachfishman wrote:

To bodosom:

I was informed by the Netflix tech that a Apple writes the APTV app.

Very unlikely. Apple told me that Netflix app for the Apple TV comes from Netflix and Netflix decides the schedule for updates.

My interaction with Netflix support (levels 1 & 2) left me underwhelmed - basically they are reading from a script (understand for level 1) but even level 2 was unengaged and incompetant.

The Apple tech support was very different - level 1 quickly understood to stop going through script and pass me to level 2 who seemed to understand what I was saying and confirmed a known Netflix App issue.

Just want to add my complaint to the pile. After tinkering around with IPV6 tunnels, I finally found the Netflix example video that displays the bitrate. On my laptop, I get a sustained 3000 kpbs, but only 750 kbps on my apple TV.

Therefore, it's not comcast (my ISP), it's the Apple TV.

Thank you for your commitment to getting this problem on the powers-that-be radar and working towards resoliving the issue.

I'm not sure from your most recent post what this means in terms of who is most likely going to fix this snafu. As a elementary tech user, I'm just grateful the problem is shared by you wise guys in the tech world so I can tell my children it's not their mom's tech IQ!

I will contact Apple and Netflix to relay the problem as I have all the same issues. I use Comcast as ISP, but can airplay from my Mac with really good picture quality, which is not true with the ATV.

The link for the Example Short movie was cool - started playing at 2350 Kbps on my ATV with Res of 1280 x 720 and deteriated within seconds to 235 Kbps with Res of 320 x 240. The picture quality made me wonder if this is what advanced glaucoma looks like!

All of this of course started with the update. Live and learn. No more automatic updates!

Have a great day!

After contactng Apple Support and speaking with Amanda who insisted Apple is not aware of any known issue with this, I gave up and called Netflix.

Robert with Netflix was great. I explained what has been going on, directed him to this discussion (and Vandergraff specifically) and after he reviewed it, he reported it to the resource team and then came back to me and asked if I'd be willing to try a couple things. I told him all that I had tried to date (reset, unplug everything, restarting, praying...) and he offered up one more thing - which for the last hour has worked.

With both devices off, unplug the HDMI cable from your ATV and TV, turn the cable around and plug it back in (so the end that was in the ATV is now in your TV and vice versa). I held back from scoffing when he suggested it and I'm grateful I did. So far, it's a fix.

I ran the Example Short movie, now 5800 kbps, res 1920 x 1080, 1:1. 🙂

The HD movie I've been running for more than 45 minutes (which is the longest and most beautiful picture I've had since mid-November) is pure perfection.

Makes me want to skip work today as the temp is frigid in MN, but alas, I've wasted hours on the problem and will keep my fingers crossed that Robert is an angel and prayers do work!

Good luck to all.

One has to wonder how much of the "fix" is due to rebooting the ATV and nothing else. Keep us up to date on how well it continues to work!

I watched quite a bit of Netflix during off-hours yesterday with no quality problems at all, and didn't even touch the HDMI cable.

I rebooted ATV multiple times with no luck and have also had the problem during non-peak hours so this is the most progress I've made to date. I will keep you updated!

That is an interesting solution. I will give it a try when I get home from work. Please keep us posted on how this is working for you. Thanks.

dvanhou wrote:

With both devices off, unplug the HDMI cable from your ATV and TV, turn the cable around and plug it back in (so the end that was in the ATV is now in your TV and vice versa). I held back from scoffing when he suggested it and I'm grateful I did. So far, it's a fix.

Thanks for sharing this. Perhaps it gives us all some insight into how seriously Netflix reps view this problem.

Does this mean after I do this to see Netflix properly, I have to reverse the cable again to receive all the other stuff on my Apple TV I've been watching for the last three years with beautiful results? Are you sure there wasn't some hee-heeing going on at the Netflix end of the line when they told you to do this? Perhaps they also had a bridge for sale?

(Your post indicates you may be having these wonderful reversed-HDMI results first thing in the morning. I think nearly everyone has that result, and the problem only happens at times of higher use.)

Please, it pains me to see this discussion of reversing cables making a difference.

I'm having to work very hard to avoid sarcasm.

Power cycling the Apple TV, maybe. Time of day, maybe. Reversing cables, no.

boylan wrote:

Please, it pains me to see this discussion of reversing cables making a difference.

I'm having to work very hard to avoid sarcasm.

Power cycling the Apple TV, maybe. Time of day, maybe. Reversing cables, no.

I put a "The Magician" tarot card on my Apple TV and now I am streaming 1080p!

(Sorry I could not resist...)

Netflix reps will say anything to get you off their backs. It's what their job is about.

Sarcasm aside - I do see 5800 kbps right now and I haven't reversed the cable, my playback settings are on "Auto" (instead of on "High", as some Netflix reps keep suggesting) and my Apple TV video is set to 1080p.

There is nothing we can do but wait for a fix on their end. We can keep calling Apple and Neflix but we have to tell them to stop trying to calm us down with nonsense placebo-advice.

I called Netflix too ... and they had me unplug my Apple TV box and go out to the yard and hold it straight in front of me ... and perform some back flips.

Now everything is spinning around me really fast ... Fast is what I was after. So I say it works!

My problem turns out is the comcast-netflix conflict as I'm getting the same 235kbps garbage on any device and computer and have been since around 11/11 which I believe is the date of the Netflix OpenConnect roll-out.

Of course, I can stream everything else from Amazon to PBS at HD.