YouTube app and buffering

**the block** · 02-15-2013, 09:24 AM

I have had this problem since the beginning, and was hoping upgrading to JDQ39 would fix it, but it didn't.

Whenever I try and watch videos in the YouTube app, they will stop and buffer from what ranges to about every 20-30 seconds, to every 5 seconds. It is absolutely maddening, especially when I'm on a 20Mb connection and have zero issues playing YouTube videos on any computer. It does it at work too, and we have a 100Mb connection there. Sometimes switching from the HD version to the lower quality version helps if the video has the option, sometimes it doesn't help at all.

From searching around the internet it seems have this same problem. I've tried some of the fixes like clearing YouTube's data and cache and restarting, but it did not fix it.

Anyone have any ideas? I don't have Netflix or Hulu, I do have Amazon Prime with Instant Video but there's no app for it, so really YouTube is the only place I want to go to watch videos, and it makes me mental when it does this buffering crap.

Any help is appreciated! Thanks.

**SubjectSigma** · 02-15-2013, 11:06 AM

What worked for me on my N7, go to wifi>settings>turn off wifi optimization
hope I helped

**Funduro** · 02-15-2013, 12:07 PM

I dont know if this has anything to do with the update but my notification light now works..... till now. Will need at least 24 hours on this coz its been driving me bananas, now it works now it doesnt, now it works.....you get my drift

(Oooops sorry wrong thread :-)

**the block** · 02-15-2013, 01:40 PM

Originally Posted by SubjectSigma

What worked for me on my N7, go to wifi>settings>turn off wifi optimization
hope I helped

I'll try it out when I get home. What does the wifi optimization do anyway? Any impact on battery life?

**schulzjt** · 02-22-2013, 10:04 AM

Originally Posted by SubjectSigma

What worked for me on my N7, go to wifi>settings>turn off wifi optimization
hope I helped

I was having the same issue with buffering in the YouTube app. This fixed the problem. Too early to tell what effect it will have on the battery though, if any. Thanks for the tip!!!

**Catherine McAteer** · 02-23-2013, 06:41 PM

I have the same problem tablet is 25 days old. It is only on the video which are streamed via you tube or web embedded. Google says to go to the lowest quality available & to start & pause video so that you can watch it buffer out and then you can watch it uninterrupted. Such BS Why did I pay for the best resolution screen on the market if I am to watch videos at 240.

I heard of a fix relating to an upgrade on your router but I haven't tried it because Google doesn't know what is the real problem.

tt

**CynicX** · 02-25-2013, 08:38 PM

Isn't news. YouTube app sucks. I have an iPhone and frequent Apple forums quite often and its preferred to use the YouTube web app or 3rd party app over the actual app. Just getting throttled. My biggest gripe with Androids YouTube app is there is no way for it to use SD as the default resolution.

I just tried the WiFi optimization with no effect. If I wait a couple hours it will stream HD no problem once network traffic slows down. I have a 30 mbs home connection which I can get those speeds easily, usually much higher, but not to a YouTube server between 3pm - 11pm.

Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk HD

**always_black** · 02-26-2013, 05:48 AM

I agree. This is not a Nexus 10 problem. It's a Youtube app problem on Android regardless of hardware. Realy anoying.

**njb52** · 02-26-2013, 07:25 AM

Glad someone started this thread because it is aggravating, whether using Youtube app or browser. Looking forward to a solution when someone finds success.

**the block** · 02-27-2013, 09:36 AM

Looks like I forgot to update the thread. Turning off wifi optimization mostly fixed the problem, but there are still a few hiccups here and there.

**CynicX** · 02-27-2013, 05:07 PM

If you can speed test at 10 MBS or better with WiFi optimization on then turning it off will have no effect. Any noticed will be coincidence or in your head.

4 billion hours of video are watched each mouth, 72 hours of videos are uploaded every MINUTE. Don't be surprised if their servers get slow. And yes that buffering every 5 seconds annoys the crap out of me.

There used to be a time that you could pause the video and let it load the entire thing but they fixed that. Lol...

Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk HD

**Xertion3** · 02-28-2013, 06:23 PM

And me to that list as frustrated!

Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk HD

**Zyeox** · 02-28-2013, 08:27 PM

I have the same issue usually I just view it from chrome and it loads just fine.

**andygold** · 05-11-2013, 04:40 PM

Glad I found this thread! I've been looking at switching over to Android from iOS, and was wondering if there was some issue with YouTube on Android.
A coworker's HTC Evo 4G (on Sprint, with full signal bars) was always buffering or not connecting properly while at work, while my iPhone 3GS (from 2009) had no issues on YouTube and AT&T (or while both were on the same WiFi network). So, while lusting over a Galaxy Note 2 at AT&T the other day, I tried YT on the Note 2 which was on their WiFi network in their store. At the same time I queued up the same video on my iPhone, also connected to the store's WiFi network. My phone ran fine while the Note 2 kept buffering and stuttering.

As an asides, after playing with the Note 2 I can't get past the dull, bluish, very little white AMOLED screen. Maxed out brightness and with the color temp set to the brightest white, it's still no match for the brightness and sharpness of my old iPhone.
So, thinking that maybe the Note 2's screen was maybe defective or lost some of its pizazz over its life as a demo phone, I headed off to Verizon across the street, just to see if their Note 2 would have a brighter screen than the one over at AT&T. While over at Verizon, I tried my 3GS connected to AT&T's cellular network versus Verizon's Note 2 on the store's WiFi network on YouTube. I queued up the same video on both phones and let them play. The Note 2 started playing a few seconds sooner than the iPhone, but within a few seconds, the Note 2 started buffering, starting and stopping throughout, and just before the end of the video, it crashed to a black screen (maybe the demo phone turned off, but I don't know). The iPhone played the video without issue. I tried the same test, but with the the Note 2, and the iPhone 5 nearby. The Note 2 had issues while the iPhone had none.

So, that 's 3 Android phones (1 EVO and 2 Note 2's) that cannot seem to play YT videos without buffering multiple times. I did raise the question to a saleslady at Verizon about the YT issues I was seeing, and she said that was typical because all of the phones in the store are sharing the same network. Maybe so, but why wouldn't their iPhone have the same issues as their Note 2 since both were on the same router?

As another asides...the Note 2's screen at Verizon was just as disappointing as the one at AT&T. I've now decided that an AMOLED screen is not for me. I had truly wanted the Note 2 due to the S-pen (and the 5.5" screen), but I think I might end up getting the LG Optimus G Pro now. 5.5" screen, gorgeous, very bright, very high def IPS LED screen, but alas no S-Pen, and battery life not nearly as good as the Note 2. I gotta back and check out the YT on that phone now. Hopefully it works!!! I truly don't want to get an iPhone 5 as even with its larger screen, its still tooo small for my aging eyes.