Q: Netflix quality HORRID after update

This thread is about what people make it about.  ATV is not the only device where Netflix is persistently failing as that and many articles point out.  Therefore other devices are relevant to the problem.

And yet

1-Some people report the same sort of problem with Roku.

2-Some people experienced the problem with ATV, and the problem subsequently went away or

3-got fixed.

I myself did something that appeard to fix poor NF quality after the AT software update that started this thread. At my request, NF "deauthorized" my ATV box. When I reauthorized it (signed in), the NF performance improved dramatically. I can't provide quantitive information, but it looks good and there is no pixelation.

It seems to me (I have read far more than ten posts on this) that a number of factors combine to make this issue hard to understand and pinpoint. One of the more telling pieces of information was, to my mind, that NF has servers that are not all alike. When I found this out, it suggested a possible explanation for why the de- and re-authorizing process cured the problem for me. My ATV box was now pointing to a server that was more friendly.

Obviously, your mileage may vary.

How did you contact Netflix? Whenever I click on the 'contact' button it just shows a code I'm supposed to quote but no phone number or email or anything!

1-866-658-3608

This shows up on my browser when I click on "do you want to speak to us?"

Agreed that this thread is what people make it about --- I wanted it to be about what the starters of this thread were talking about. That ended up being a specific issue with getting content from the wrong CDN and it has been fixed for most people.

If you think that complaining about your PC or Roku or any of that on an Apple board is going to lead to a solution... best of luck to you on that. In fact best of luck to all of you... I'm tired of seeing this thread having been diluted to discuss every single possible netflix problem with no likelihood that it will help document the problem.

Steve Gabel wrote:

 

And yet

 

1-Some people report the same sort of problem with Roku.

2-Some people experienced the problem with ATV ... and the problem  went away

Yes there are many reports of performance problems on all platforms.  This neither new nor Apple specific.  You can look for complicated explanations or simple ones.  The people who have looked at the network traffic have a set of observations that correcspond the ATV "fix".

Steve Gabel wrote:

 

One of the more telling pieces of information was, to my mind, that NF has servers that are not all alike. When I found this out, it suggested a possible explanation for why the de- and re-authorizing process cured the problem for me. My ATV box was now pointing to a server that was more friendly.

It doesn't work like that.  The stream source is  dynamic and while there's source affinity it can change and at my house frequently does.

All someone has to do is present network traces that support their hypothesis.  So far those proposing that this problem is not simply an (extremely aggravating) error on the part of Apple or Netflix have failed to present any supporting data.

Middle Aged Hack wrote:

 

That ended up being a specific issue with getting content from the wrong CDN and it has been fixed for most people.

I wonder if that's true or if people have simply moved on -- it's simpler to just to get an alternate device that works.  I don't use my ATV to "watch" Netflix, I only use it to check if the problem has been fixed at my house.  It still only rarely connects to Limelight and rarely gets superHD beyond the initial burst.

I don't have data, and I am not a technically sophisticated person. I don't pretend to be. I don't know whose error created the problem.

I wanted to share one anecdote about what worked for me (and has been stable for at least a month), and I repeated one report about servers that appeared earlier in this thread. If "it does not work that way," fine. I know what apparently worked for me. Maybe it was a sheer coincidence. However, right now, I have no complaints.

Others will decide whether it is worth it to them to try what -- apparently -- has worked for me. Perhaps they will be fortunate, even if they cannot explain why.

The ATV is the worst streamer ever.  In the afternoons it is fine but come around 7 PM EST after multiple reloads it might go up to 720p.  If I can get it to play at Super HD it even sometimes drops down to SD then only up to 720p.  Now the PS3 and Roku 3 are not perfect as they sometimes do this too but most of the time I can maintain a Super HD stream.

Also all my devices including the ATV connect to that POS congested Netflix Streaming Services CDN just because it is closer everytime.

I think the problem is with the ATV and not so much Netflix. I have been having consistent problems streaming anything from my ATV without massive wait times for my rented and purchased movies, and Netflix as well. Netflix on my other devices, Xbox 360 and TiVo, are working quite well.

Restarting the Apple TV seems to help quite a bit, at least in the short term. This should never be necessary.     

I'm continuing to believe that the video quality issue is not hardware related nor software related. The media is reporting that peering agreements between Netflix and the ISPs aren't adequate to satisfy the demands that Netflix customers are making of the system.  Time magazine has an excellent article on the subject:

http://business.time.com/2014/02/19/netflix-verizon-peering/

Get you wallets out. The ISPs want both the content provider and the subscriber to pay for the ISP's infrastructure investment. Ultimately, we'll pay the entire bill whether we pay more for our internet service or if we pay more for the content.

_Ty Cox_ wrote:

 

I'm continuing to believe that the video quality issue is not hardware related nor software related.

How do you explain the facts that contradict this? RogenJoensson just posted about not getting better than 1050 on an ATV even while other devices were simultaneously running faster.  I just ran separately and simultaneously ran a Roku and my ATV.  Both devices were sourcing from the same address.  The Roku ran at 3000 while the ATV peaked at 1750.  I switched the Roku for a Tivo which immediately jumped to 5800 with the ATV simultaneously running at 2350.  When I stopped the TiVo the ATV dropped to 750.

Perhaps that means the answer is to run an ATV with another device.

Or just use a device that runs at full speed until the ATV issue(s) are resolved.

I can't. Nor can anyone here explain why the issue is intermittent. Yesterday, for example, I watched a Super HD movie without a glitch. Immediately afterwards, I resumed watching a Super HD TV episode that streamed flawlessly earlier but streamed poorly when I revisited it. If the Apple TV has a flaw that interferes with streaming, why is it schizophrenic?

You get over 2000kbps?

Luxury!

Mine maxes out at 1050 every time though I once got 3000 when connecting my mac directly to the router.

I'm on a 100mbps cable line.

Maybe Netflix is throttling the speed to ATV devices?

Although one weird thing I've noticed is that I actually get a better picture when watching a program on Netflix than I do from watching the test stream.

_Ty Cox_ wrote:

 

I can't. Nor can anyone here explain why the issue is intermittent. Yesterday, for example, I watched a Super HD movie without a glitch. ... If the Apple TV has a flaw that interferes with streaming, why is it schizophrenic?

We don't need to explain we just need to present the facts.  It can readily be shown that , for those of us with this issue, for a statistically significant portion of the time the ATV fails to run at rated speed while other devices nearly always run at rated speed.  Either within seconds alternating or simultaneously. 

This is basic trouble shooting.   However -- there is an explanation for intermittent performance in this thread.

But that's beside the point.  Unless you can measure your traffic the only  test you can  perform is watching the display on the test clip or the info display on your client -- which is not available on the ATV.