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Old 03-31-2018, 11:52 AM
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Default Comcast question

I have a smart TV and have been watching shows on Netflix and Amazon Prime for 6 years with no issues. In the last two weeks it is only working about half the time. It will try to download a show and hang up with a message "Insufficient Bandwidth" It will sometimes hang up so bad that I can't even exit or power down the TV.

Is anyone else having these problems?
Is this a Comcast or Netflix/Amazon problem?
Comcast just announced giga bit speed is now available. Have they slowed down existing customers in order to sell this new service?
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Old 03-31-2018, 12:12 PM
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Comcast has an app to check your internet speed. Have you tried this to find your download speed?
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Old 03-31-2018, 12:30 PM
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Default Not a comcast fan

Quote:
Originally Posted by l2ridehd View Post
I have a smart TV and have been watching shows on Netflix and Amazon Prime for 6 years with no issues. In the last two weeks it is only working about half the time. It will try to download a show and hang up with a message "Insufficient Bandwidth" It will sometimes hang up so bad that I can't even exit or power down the TV.

Is anyone else having these problems?
Is this a Comcast or Netflix/Amazon problem?
Comcast just announced giga bit speed is now available. Have they slowed down existing customers in order to sell this new service?
Having declared my anti-comcast prejudice, we had the same problem. I believe the issue is too many customers slowing down you available data. In our case our neighbor changed to spectrum and our problem resolved itself,

If, I am correct see if all works well at odd times. Comcast can check your signal and perhaps boost it remotely.

Whose on first whose on second-I DO NOT KNOW. The only reason comcast is still in business is because Spectrum is just as bad. I've discovered from my experience that Comcast uses contractors to do their repair work-they are usually not comcast employees,
I discovered from comcast contractors that the wiring THAT IS BURIED. BLACK IN COLOR, is not supposed to be buried. The wire designed to be buried is BROWN IN COLOR.

SUGGESTION-call comcast, no pour yourself a cup of coffee, then call comcast, you will have time to drink several cups before you get through their ANNOYING COMPUTER. As for a HUMAN and the computer will start all over again. Far as I know their computer will not be fooled by any of the usual tricks-pound oooo or mumbling.

NOT FOOLING-comcast has hired a new manager out of their Pennsylvania office. HE STARTS APRIL FIRST-NOT A JOKE-APRIL FOOLS DAY.
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Old 03-31-2018, 01:24 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by l2ridehd View Post
I have a smart TV and have been watching shows on Netflix and Amazon Prime for 6 years with no issues. In the last two weeks it is only working about half the time. It will try to download a show and hang up with a message "Insufficient Bandwidth" It will sometimes hang up so bad that I can't even exit or power down the TV.

Is anyone else having these problems?
Is this a Comcast or Netflix/Amazon problem?
Comcast just announced giga bit speed is now available. Have they slowed down existing customers in order to sell this new service?
We have Comcast and have not experienced the issue you described. Request a service call, and have the tech check the line coming into your house. We had them out last year to install a new jack in another room. Before even knocking on the door, the tech check the signal, and noticed it was lacking. Bottom line, at no cost to us, he worked tirelessly installing a new supply line from the box on the corner of our lot. The new line is a larger diameter, and because of the distance to our house, it didn't lose its strength. We could not be happier with Comcast.
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Old 03-31-2018, 01:30 PM
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OP, check to see if you exceeded your "allowed" download limit, if so Comcast may be throttling your speed. You can get the amount of data you downloaded by signing into your account. Also, as stated above, you can check you connection speed, I like Speedtest by Ookla - The Global Broadband Speed Test for this test, use a hardwired connection to your computer for an accurate test, THEN do the test again using your WIRELESS connection ( I am assuming the TV is wireless). The wireless will be lower than the hardwired. If it is significantly below 30 meg try rebooting your modem and see if that fixes the problem. If not, go online with comcast, choose CHAT, and tery to have them fix remotely.
Hope this helps.
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Old 03-31-2018, 01:33 PM
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Haven't had a problem yet, but on occasion, an "insufficient bandwith" message sometimes appears at the top of my YouTube TV streaming program. No issues yet, but I suspect that a lot of my neighbors are draining the signal at that moment.
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Old 03-31-2018, 01:43 PM
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Default Comcast Netflix

I also have Comcast and have had similar problems with Netflix for the past two weeks after 7:30pm. Although the last two night were okay. The Netflix show will run for a few minutes and then an error message appears saying, Unable to access program, select a different program or try again later. I can click on OKAY or MORE DETAILS. More details allows me to check the internet speed which is usually at 20mps (?). Netflix help desk said the speed needs to be at a consistent 25mps or the connection will drop. I can move to the bedroom and have no problems with Netflix but then it is also next to the router.

No problems with Amazon so far.
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Old 03-31-2018, 01:58 PM
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I am not sure why someone at Netflix would tell you that you need a consistent 25 megabits per second bandwidth because that is just not true. Netflix is adaptive - it will adjust the resolution it sends based on the realized bandwidth. 1080p Hi-Def requires about 5 megabits per second of bandwidth. In the event you have the required hardware (TV and streaming hardware) and you were trying to view some 4K material you would require about 20 megabits per second but, again, Netflix will adjust the resolution based on the realized bandwidth. If you are using Wi-Fi and the results are better close to the router then you may have a Wi-Fi issue.

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Originally Posted by tejas View Post
I also have Comcast and have had similar problems with Netflix for the past two weeks after 7:30pm. Although the last two night were okay. The Netflix show will run for a few minutes and then an error message appears saying, Unable to access program, select a different program or try again later. I can click on OKAY or MORE DETAILS. More details allows me to check the internet speed which is usually at 20mps (?). Netflix help desk said the speed needs to be at a consistent 25mps or the connection will drop. I can move to the bedroom and have no problems with Netflix but then it is also next to the router.

No problems with Amazon so far.

Last edited by biker1; 03-31-2018 at 02:50 PM.
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Old 03-31-2018, 02:18 PM
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Thanks for the suggestions. The TV in question is actually hard wired to the receiver via a fiber optic cable and the receiver is hard wired via an HDMI gold cable so I would guess that is not the issue. I will give Comcast a call soon as I have an idle couple hours to deal with them via phone.

I did run the speed test and I think it is lower then in the past. I did write down the results someplace from about two years ago and need to find that to compare.

It just seems strange that for 6 years I have never seen that message and now for two weeks see it most every time I try to use NetFlix or Amazon. I actually see it more with Amazon then NetFlix.
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Old 03-31-2018, 02:29 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by l2ridehd View Post
Thanks for the suggestions. The TV in question is actually hard wired to the receiver via a fiber optic cable and the receiver is hard wired via an HDMI gold cable so I would guess that is not the issue. I will give Comcast a call soon as I have an idle couple hours to deal with them via phone.

I did run the speed test and I think it is lower then in the past. I did write down the results someplace from about two years ago and need to find that to compare.

It just seems strange that for 6 years I have never seen that message and now for two weeks see it most every time I try to use NetFlix or Amazon. I actually see it more with Amazon then NetFlix.
As a side note, you could run a Speed Test 20 times a day, and get different results each time. It depends on the server the test is pinging. In addition, Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections now days aren't a whole lot different than one another like a few years ago. Point is, you should able to watch Netflix and Amazon just fine from your TV, either using wifi or ethernet.
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Old 03-31-2018, 03:47 PM
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If you have Comcast and a smart TV, there are 2 ways to use Netflix. Comcast has a Netflix app on their system, accessed with the Xfinity button on your remote. If you use the Comcast app, you are not using your wifi to view the Netflix content. You don't even need to have a router. You are receiving the Netflix content directly through the Comcast cable. But, if you use the smart TV hub, then you are using your wifi signal to receive the Netflix content. This also applies to Youtube, but not to Amazon Video. There is no Comcast app for Amazon Video.
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Old 03-31-2018, 05:10 PM
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The 25 meg for Netflix is required if you want to view in 4K. I think hd only requires 4-5 meg.
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Old 03-31-2018, 05:20 PM
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Comcrap is The Devil. That being said I had no other option than to make a deal with The Devil when we moved in here because no other available provider (only other was C.L.) in my area could provide more then 25megs. I bought 75megs from The Devil, got a free upgrade to 100megs a few months ago and consistently get 100-120megs from The Devil and haven't had a problem since I moved in. <KNOCK WOOD, KNOCK PLASTIC and knock any other material I can knock>. It even held up during IRMA. Do I ever miss Verizon Fios from up in NJ.

The problem with dealing with The Devil is that he is wonderful until you need him ESPECIALLY FOR BILLING ISSUES. He will then make you burn in Hell.
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Old 03-31-2018, 05:22 PM
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Quote:
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The 25 meg for Netflix is required if you want to view in 4K. I think hd only requires 4-5 meg.
True, but it auto adjusts res downward depending on available bandwidth,
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Old 03-31-2018, 06:27 PM
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If you use the Comcast app for Netflix, you are not using your home wifi signal, so your internet speed is irrelevant. In fact, you don't even need to have any internet service to watch Netflix on the Comcast Netflix app. So, are you saying that the Comcast Netflix app does not provide enough bandwidth to play or download a movie? Also, I understand that you need to get a special 4K cable box from Comcast to access 4K content. I have the new box, but have not watched anything in 4K yet.

Last edited by retiredguy123; 03-31-2018 at 06:32 PM.
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