Today, many US households have at least one streaming media device like Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV or Apple TV. To enjoy your favorite TV shows without pauses or slowdowns – aka buffering – you need to make sure your Wi-Fi signal quality and streaming TV setup are operating at peak performance.
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The Critical Last Mile = Your Local Network
Consumers pay a lot of attention to the speed of the package they buy from their internet service provider (ISP), but your router and streaming device are just as important.
Why? Each video you stream — whether it’s from an internet-based service or across your local area network (LAN) from something like a Tablo DVR — is sliced up into tiny files called packets.
When you press PLAY on your Roku, Fire TV, Android TV or Apple TV, the device will wait until it has the first few batches of packets (called segments) of video before it starts playing on your TV screen.
If your network is fast enough, the pieces of the video will get to your device in time for playback to be smooth.
If your network is too slow, the next batch of segments may not arrive in time. In this case, the video will pause and wait until they're received. That’s called buffering.
If your Wi-Fi network is weak, some packets or even whole segments can be lost between your router and your streaming media device.
This can cause your video to jump forward suddenly or stop playing altogether.
How To Check the Wi-Fi Signal Quality on Your Streaming Device
If your TV viewing experience is frequently interrupted by stuttering video and/or buffering, here’s how to check the Wi-Fi signal quality on your favorite streaming media box or stick.
On Roku
Press the HOME button. Then select SETTINGS > NETWORK > ABOUT. The wireless signal strength will be reported as Poor, Fair, Good or Excellent. If it says poor or fair, go here for advice on how to fix this.
On Amazon Fire TV
Press the HOME button. Then select SETTINGS > NETWORK > PLAY (to check network status). The wireless signal strength will be reported as Marginal, Fair, Good or Very Good. If it says marginal or fair, go here for advice on how to fix this.
On Android TV
From the home screen, go to SETTINGS > NETWORK > then select your network’s name from the list. The wireless signal will be reported as excellent, good, fair or poor. If it says fair or poor, go here for advice on how to fix this.
On Apple TV
Press the MENU button. Then navigate to SETTINGS > NETWORK. The wireless signal strength should be reported as five filled dots. If you see three or fewer dots, go here for advice on how to fix this.