Do you suffer from buffering issues, cuts, very slow channel loading, and slow response when you swap or try to go back to groups or zap between channels?
When IPTV devices keep buffering it is one of the most annoying things that you can face when trying to enjoy your favorite shows.
The first thing you need to know is that when you are using the IPTV, the video stream isn’t sent to your device directly. Instead, it’s sent in bite-size ‘packets’.
If there’s any delay that might be caused by a slow network, your show pauses while it waits for the next packet. This is known as buffering.
Luckily, there are many solutions that you can use to minimize or stop your device (Smart TV, Smartphone, Android Box, Firestick..) from buffering while watching streaming videos on it.
Before heading into the solutions, here are a few reasons,
WHY YOU MIGHT EXPERIENCE BUFFERING ISSUES OR SLOW LOADING:
- Slow connection speed
- Network connectivity problems
- Limited bandwidth from the streaming source
- Unsuitable device cache settings
- Internet service provider (ISP) throttling connection speeds.
- Slow WIFI connection
- Too many WIFI Devices on cheaper routers
As with any other technical problem, you have first to find the source of your issue. Therefore, we will give you some tips on how to solve it:
DAILY TASKS YOU SHOULD DO:
- Restart your streaming device
- Restart your router
- Clear cache on streaming devices
MAKE SURE YOU DO NOT RUN MULTIPLE DEVICES FULLY:
Having multiple devices on your internet network can slow down connection. If you are using a game console, mobile phone, tablet, or PC while watching a stream, it can cause severe issues. Disconnecting them should help speed up your streaming.
Please keep in mind that if large numbers of people are accessing a single streaming source at the same time. This will create a bottleneck.
TEST INTERNET CONNECTION SPEED:
Streaming content requires a powerful internet connection. Those are the following recommendations for streaming IPTV content:
- Minimum required speed: 10 Mbps
- Recommended broadband connection speed: 50 Mbps
- Speed recommended for SD quality content: 20-25 Mbps
- Speed recommended for HD quality content: 25-50 Mbps
- Speed recommended for Ultra HD quality content: 50+ Mbps
From what we mentioned previously. It’s probably a good idea to have at least a 25 to 50 Mb/s connection to stream content through any device.
If you have a connection speed lower than this. Then it is fair to expect some interruptions when streaming HD content. Using a higher connection would be always better. As this would give you a little leeway in case of any fluctuations in connection speed.
If your connection speed matches or exceeds 25 to 50 Mbps and you are still experiencing issues. Then your first step should be running an internet speed test to see what your numbers look like.
You can check your speed using one of these
Websites:
Android/FireTV Apps:
iOS Apps:
OPTIMIZE YOUR CACHE SETTINGS!
Sometimes the cause of slow streaming and buffering may be due to insufficient RAM storage or a cache problem, the most recommended solution is to have an Android BOX with 2GB or more RAM space.
In addition, older Firesticks and Android Boxes from very cheap Chips which are known for caching problems and build up cache.
Its always recommended that app caches and unused apps are cleared from the devices for better performance.
POWERCYCLE YOUR ROUTER!
Routers especially the cheaper versions sent out from your Internet Service provider are prone to run into caching issues or so-called Backplane switching issues, especially when many Wifi and ethernet Devices are connected at the same time and online.
Every Device which is online in the network, even it does not stream, broadcasts permanently into the network packets, or is even more active and downloads updates, uploads, or simply keep the router busy with broadcast requests, which can cause on cheaper routers fast a cache built up.
To solve this, disconnect your router from the power source for at least 5 minutes, this ensures the router forgets all caching and the endpoint on your ISP has meanwhile dropped any buffer cache.
USE HARDWIRED OR OPTIMIZE YOUR WIFI ON DUAL BAND ROUTERS!
WiFi is a good thing, but it has many caveats, especially on 5Ghz Band if your router is too close ( directly beside ) or too far, as the 5Ghz band has only a very short reach due to its high speed.
As a solution you can move your streaming devices to the 2.4Ghz band and move all other Devices to the 5Ghz band, you can also try the other way around by moving other devices to 2.4Ghz band on your router and your streaming Devices to the 5Ghz.
Hardwire your streaming Device is the best you can do, with the exception of a faulty cable, hardwired devices usually do not experience similar Issues as devices on Wifi.
ESCAPE ISP THROTTLING!
It is very well known that a lot of Internet Service Providers ( ISPs ) often throttle or sometimes even block streams from sources they do not have a contract with the ISP.
While the Big Brothers such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Google Movies, Disney+, etc often have agreements with ISPs worldwide and therefore even receive priority traffic, this is not true for nearly all IPTV Services.
So it is very common that ISPs throttle streams, heavy large downloads, torrents etc, to protect their Network integrity and reduce traffic on their Internet uplinks.
What you can do? Honestly not very much
- Try VPN: often VPN can help with that, as long the ISP does not also throttle VPN connections.
- Call the ISP: While you should not tell him that you experience buffering with IPTV, you can tell the ISP that you constantly experience buffering when streaming from sources other then the big brothers named above, make a case by monitoring it for a few days and note down specific times and dates where you experience buffering while also run a speed test which shows your connection is good enough.
- Switch ISP: not always possible, but if an ISP is throttling you and you also get throttling on VPN then your ISP is dictating your Internet and how you use it and it is a good reason to switch to another ISP, the Google Video Speed Quality report ( if available in your region ) has often good recommendations!
FIRE TV / STICK SPECIFIC SOLUTIONS!
Fire TV / Sticks are one of the most used devices, while we do not recommend using any of the older models, the 4K Firestick is a quite capable streaming device when you follow the tips below:
Tweak System Settings:
- Go to Settings -- Notifications -- Manage. Turn off notifications for the apps you don't care about. I turned off All except my VPN
- Go back to Settings --- Applications --- Silk --- Privacy and turn on "Do not track"
- Go into Gamecircle and turn off (unless you want to sync your scores/game saves)
- Go into Amazon Photos and turn both options to off
- Go into Appstore and turn *off automatic updates (only affects Amazon apps)
- Turn *off Appstore notifications
- Go into "Managed installed applications" and remove any app that you are not using anymore
- Go to Preferences --- Privacy settings and turn all 3 things off
- Go into Data monitoring and turn that to off
General rule of thumb is the more background processes/monitoring/logging you can stop, the more CPU/ram you will have for your device.
Install USB Gigabit Ethernet:
Wifi signals can be very temperamental. Distance from your device to the router, channel interface, the number of walls the signal has to travel through - all these and more can affect the quality of your wifi signal.
The more issues you have with your Wifi connection the more chance of buffering on streams.
Take wifi out of the equation by purchasing an OTG cable and a USB Ethernet adaptor. I used one from Ugreen which has gigabit Ethernet and 3 x USB 3.0 ports.
Cool your device:
• Firesticks (especially 2nd gen) tend to get hot. The hotter the device gets the more chance of CPU throttling and device reboots. You can keep your device cool by
• Regularly put the device to sleep e.g. once you have finished your streaming session, don't just switch off the TV but put the Firestick in to sleep first.
• Keep the device as ventilated as possible.
Shutdown background apps:
Lots of 3rd party applications leave components running in the background which can hog up memory and consume cpu cycles. Using an app like "Developer tools menu" You can see all of the things running in the background and shut them down.
