Why does Apple TV buffer so much?

Question

Level 1

16 points

Why does Apple TV buffer so much?

I'm so sick of trying to watch a show we bought on iTunes via Apple TV and it come up 'Ready to play in 45 mins' when we have a great internet connection, and something stream off Netflix, streams, games, online sports, all of it streams instantly with no buffering or lag, so don't tell me it's something to do with my set up or my computer or connection or equipment.

The iTunes servers are bad, they buffer too much, and I have to pay $35 for a season of something which is so overpriced.

Apple TV 4K, tvOS 11.2.1

Posted on Mar 3, 2018 5:06 AM

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Answer 1

vazandrew

Level 8

40,348 points

Mar 3, 2018 6:16 AM in response to bsolah

That would be based on the network. Netflix adapts to the connection where iTunes is at a fixed rate, higher quality and needs to load a portion before playback begins.

As you have not said how you’ve verified the network will need to know the following

What is your current connection via speedtest

Is DNS on auto (settings - network)

Are you on wifi? Have you tried Ethernet?

Did you run a diagnostic report? This would be done from istumbler, netstumbler or similar. Look for signal strength, noise, nearby networks

Test on another network

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Answer 2

bsolah Author

Level 1

16 points

Mar 3, 2018 6:08 PM in response to vazandrew

My current speed, is 94mb/s down, 37 mb/s up, 3 ping. I've tested it when we've had problems and the speed hasn't dropped then either.

DNS settings haven't been changed, we use ethernet, we've tested it without, it doesn't seem to make a difference.

The network is fine, like I said everything else is fine, I live stream on Twitch with this network, there's no issues but with Apple TV.

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Answer 3

vazandrew

Level 8

40,348 points

Mar 3, 2018 6:42 PM in response to bsolah

DNS may not have been changed, but I asked to make sure it was in auto. If it was set manually then that is going to cause issues.

Have you tried at different times? Does it seem to occur during specific periods?

Which model Apple TV and firmware?

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Answer 4

bsolah Author

Level 1

16 points

Mar 3, 2018 7:03 PM in response to vazandrew

It's pretty impractical to try a different network...the network is fine, like I've told you and we have used it at different times.

The problem is Apple's network. One day a tech company will stop trying to make users do a million things before admitting maybe they're at fault, and it's not worth charging them $35 for a season that barely loads some days. Maybe sell the rights to someone who can do it properly, like Netflix.

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Answer 5

vazandrew

Level 8

40,348 points

Mar 3, 2018 8:39 PM in response to bsolah

There is nothing wrong with their server, it’s working just fine on my system (within a few seconds), the poster above and the majority of users. Again, Netflix adapts to the connection where iTunes is higher quality and fixed rate. If it’s taking time to load it’s due to something within your environment and if you took it to another location, especially a controlled network like Apple, it would work just fine. You can believe what you want.

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