# The dreaded Netflix 25% buffer



## paully65 (Feb 20, 2002)

Sooooo...I am trying out Netflix streaming free for a month and it was working great for the first few days. But then when we are watching at night, every movie we play will eventually hit the 25% and freeze. No error codes. I have the Tivo on ethernet and my FIOS speed test always shows 100/100. So I am on the phone with Netflix and the 25% happens. They have me check the network connection in Netflix streaming and it is at 40MBS so that is really good. So then she has me unplug the Tivo for two minutes and when it comes back up, it works! Surprise. Well, I know this I tell her because I did this the night before and the next day it does the same thing. She says I should reboot the Tivo when this happens. BAD TECH. I am not rebooting the Tivo every time. So then she says that the problem will be fixed when Verizon does a DNS refresh and then I wont see the 25% anymore. I was watching a streaming movie this afternoon and it was fine 25% so is it a bandwidth issue at night or???

Has anyone else experienced this? It is very annoying.


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## cwerdna (Feb 22, 2001)

I don't use my Bolt+ for Netflix so I can't help there.

The worst case is you buy something cheap to watch Netflix on your TV like a $35 Chromecast which you can control via your iOS, Android device or (worst case) a computer. I don't do the last case (at least w/Netflix) but have definitely used iOS and Android devices running the Netflix app to control Chromecasts.

Roku also has some cheap devices which support Netflix.

(At home, I have an old Chromecast, Apple TV 4K and an old Roku 3.)


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## scandia101 (Oct 20, 2007)

Tivo has a long history of having nothing but sub-par streaming apps. Things have improved a bit, but I have never and will never depend on Tivo's streaming apps when there are better options out there - Roku, Appletv, Firetv and Chromecast are probably the most popular but there are others available.


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## chicagobrownblue (May 29, 2008)

I've been streaming Netflix on my ethernet connected Roamio basic for at least a month with no problems. I'm on RCN get 25Mbps over a 16-channel down cable modem and a Linksys 10/100 router.


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## paully65 (Feb 20, 2002)

Thanks. I am going to call Verizon and have them look at it and if they do not find anything, I will try Roku.


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## jth tv (Nov 15, 2014)

paully65 said:


> I have the Tivo on ethernet


How about trying WiFi ?


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## dcborn61 (Dec 9, 2002)

I have the exact same experience from time to time on my Mini, but it stalls at 5%. I always know if it stays there for more than a second, I have a reboot in my immediate future. Worst part is, when the TiVo reboots, the apps aren't available for at least an additional 5 minutes.


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

"The"? You make it appear this is something that is common, with is just spreading FUD.

Did you reboot all of the network components? That's the second most common fix to tivo networking problems.


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## paully65 (Feb 20, 2002)

Yes, I rebooted the network components and the Tivo and I even had Verizon troubleshoot it and still doing it. I also tried Wifi and the same thing happens. Sooo... I bought a Roku that plugs directly in to my surround sound system (I have an older system) and it works great! No buffering at all and I like all the apps on it. It is very stable. The Tivo I have could have a hardware issue or a component issue that may be causing it. Definitely not my network.


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## JoeKustra (Dec 7, 2012)

jrtroo said:


> Did you reboot all of the network components? That's the second most common fix to tivo networking problems.


What's the most common fix?


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## jrtroo (Feb 4, 2008)

JoeKustra said:


> What's the most common fix?


Rebooting the tivo itself!


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## Sparky1234 (May 8, 2006)

paully65 said:


> Yes, I rebooted the network components and the Tivo and I even had Verizon troubleshoot it and still doing it. I also tried Wifi and the same thing happens. Sooo... I bought a Roku that plugs directly in to my surround sound system (I have an older system) and it works great! No buffering at all and I like all the apps on it. It is very stable. The Tivo I have could have a hardware issue or a component issue that may be causing it. Definitely not my network.


Buy a Firestick on sale and save yourself the hassle of TiVo apps. They work ok but a $29 Firestick is a way better experience.


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## Sparky1234 (May 8, 2006)

Sparky1234 said:


> Buy a Firestick on sale and save yourself the hassle of TiVo apps. They work ok but a $29 Firestick is a way better experience.


Comment was meant for OP.


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## paully65 (Feb 20, 2002)

Sparky1234 said:


> Comment was meant for OP.


If you read my post, I bought a Roku...


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## Johnny Dancing (Sep 3, 2000)

Sparky1234 said:


> Buy a Firestick on sale and save yourself the hassle of TiVo apps. They work ok but a $29 Firestick is a way better experience.


I had an amazon Fire and Netflix would stutter and buffer once in a while. The fix was to go in to Amazon fire App settings and clear the netflix cache. Problem solved. Maybe Tivo has a similar option. Rebooting probably clears the Netflix cache.


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## leiff (Aug 24, 2005)

My experience with Netflix on TiVo has always been fine across TiVo generational platforms. I don't use the minis very often but they seem fine for Netflix to me. I'm curious if the buffering problem is really that much worse than other platforms


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## HerronScott (Jan 1, 2002)

Sparky1234 said:


> Comment was meant for OP.


Note that you can just type in the reply box at the bottom of the screen without hitting reply in a message and getting a quote (unless you want to go back and quote/reply to the OP's post).

Scott


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## Sparky1234 (May 8, 2006)

HerronScott said:


> Note that you can just type in the reply box at the bottom of the screen without hitting reply in a message and getting a quote (unless you want to go back and quote/reply to the OP's post).
> 
> Scott


Thanks.


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## Sparky1234 (May 8, 2006)

leiff said:


> My experience with Netflix on TiVo has always been fine across TiVo generational platforms. I don't use the minis very often but they seem fine for Netflix to me. I'm curious if the buffering problem is really that much worse than other platforms


Apps work ok on TiVo but I find the streaming experience better / smoother on other devices.


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