Is Netflix on Wii supposed to suck?

Sir Carcass

After years of being holdouts, my wife and I signed up for Netflix streaming this weekend. About all I have that I can use it on (other than my desktop on the other side of the house) is my Wii and my Xbox 360, and, well, I'm not paying another $8 a month for the privilege of using the 360.

So that leaves the Wii.

In a few days of using it, I've noticed that it kind of sucks. We tried watching Breaking Bad Saturday and Sunday night. It would basically stop to load every 2 or 3 minutes, sometimes loading for 4 or 5 minutes, or more. On Sunday it took us 1.5 hours to get through half of a 45 minute show (we really like Breaking Bad) before we gave up.

I used it some during the day yesterday and it worked awesomely. Never stopped to load at all. Then at about 6:30pm it started sucking ass again. There seems to be no in-between.

Am I missing something? I did a speed test and got like 6.5 Mb/s, so it's not my connection. I can watch things fine on my computer at all times of day. It's just the Wii that sucks. I've forwarded ports, reduced quality level, anything I can think of. I can find tons of posts online about this problem but no solutions. Did we just waste $8 (well, not technically since we're in our free month, but you get the idea)? Anything I can do to make this work?

RadicalTurnip

I use it on my Wii and it does just fine. Every now and then we'll have an off time, but I think that's my internet more than anything. You're certain your internet speeds aren't getting choked by the increased traffic in your area around that time?

Also, I haven't checked into this (you will have to) but I hear that there is a free version of XBL basically just for viewing Netflix. My information could be wrong, though...but I'm pretty sure there is a very limited free version now.

bowen

Let me guess, you use cable internet and live in a relatively highly populated area?

Sir Carcass

RadicalTurnip wrote:

I use it on my Wii and it does just fine. Every now and then we'll have an off time, but I think that's my internet more than anything. You're certain your internet speeds aren't getting choked by the increased traffic in your area around that time?

Also, I haven't checked into this (you will have to) but I hear that there is a free version of XBL basically just for viewing Netflix. My information could be wrong, though...but I'm pretty sure there is a very limited free version now.

I'm pretty sure I did that speed test when it was choking, but I can try it again.

That free version of XBL would be very cool. I'll have to check into it.

bowen wrote:

Let me guess, you use cable internet and live in a relatively highly populated area?

I knew it

First I see a car the other day with a license plate that says "BOWEN", now you know where I live.

Erm, yes, to both.

Edit: True story, by the way

bowen

Haha. Your local node (pardon my not knowing the exact terminology here) is probably over saturated, and you're probably hitting the throughput limits on the neighborhood watching netflix at like... 7-9pm at night (pretty much when everyone else is getting on checking mail/playing wow/ watching netflix themselves)

This is the point where I plug verizon FiOS if you can get it in your area. But that's likely what the issue is.

I hate cable companies. Any chance you use TWC? You may opt for the speed boosted/high band (I think they call it wide-band) connections you pay an extra $20 a month for.

mts

actually, I think there was some network issues on saturday and sunday night, i had slow streams then too, when i normally have 0 issues

i too was watching breaking bad, mine wasn't as bad as yours, but i have fios

Sir Carcass

Yeah, we use TWC, but an extra $20 a month isn't really an option (we held out this long because $8 a month is too much for us, but I cancelled my Gamefly subscription). Last time I checked, FiOS wasn't in our area.

I also got the issues last night. I guess I'll keep trying.

The only thing I can find about using it free on the 360 is setting it up as a Media Center extension and using a plugin. I'll look into it.

Djeet

Haven't streamed Netflix on a WII (just PS3, LG tv app, blu-ray player app, iPads, and various computers), but that's not what should happen. My old 3 mbit uverse was sufficient to stream NetFlix, with very few hiccups beside initial bufferring. To test out your ISP w/r/to streaming, try streaming from the web (Hulu, dailyshow.com, colbertnation.com). Uverse offered me their 12 mbit for the same price as their 3 mbit ($30-ish, 12 month, no contract). Much as I dislike AT&T, their uverse internet has been bulletproof for me for over a year, central Austin. You also might check and see if Grande is available in your area.

mts

yea give it some time, i normally have 0 issues with streaming on my wii. this weekend was kind of rough but it was fine yesterday

Sir Carcass

Djeet wrote:

Haven't streamed Netflix on a WII (just PS3, LG tv app, blu-ray player app, iPads, and various computers), but that's not what should happen. My old 3 mbit uverse was sufficient to stream NetFlix, with very few hiccups beside initial bufferring. To test out your ISP w/r/to streaming, try streaming from the web (Hulu, dailyshow.com, colbertnation.com). Uverse offered me their 12 mbit for the same price as their 3 mbit ($30-ish, 12 month, no contract). Much as I dislike AT&T, their uverse internet has been bulletproof for me for over a year, central Austin. You also might check and see if Grande is available in your area.

Switching ISPs isn't really an option because we currently have everything bundled with Time Warner. My wife has a bunch of stuff on our DVR that she won't want to get rid of without a very good reason, and anything that raises our monthly cost isn't really an option. I can see about maybe some kind of free upgrade, but I'm pretty sure we currently have something around 7 to 10Mb. My downloads from Steam usually top out at around 900kB/s (sustained), for example. I don't think it's my connection specifically.

Djeet

Ah, just trying to throw out some cheaper ISP options. TWC isn't very competitive unless you bundle or are on the line with retention/cancellation. FYI, you can get good average throughput, but still have connectivity issues which renders video streaming unwatchable; an occasional half second or second drop won't register much on a data download avg rate or even a speedtest, but may cause NetFlix to rebuffer. That only needs to happen once or twice in 30 minutes to piss me off.

Basically I've found NetFlix streaming to be the most robust of the video streaming providers; their buildout is serious business, and earlier this year it was estimated their streaming content represents 30% of internet traffic during peak time.

If you're sure it's not your ISP I'd look at removing other variables, go wired, kill any other downloads while streaming, etc.

Sir Carcass

I was thinking it could maybe be my wireless AP, but it wouldn't make sense for it to work fine all afternoon and then start crapping out in the evenings. Does it? We don't have anything else going on connection-wise when trying to watch. I don't have the strongest signal on the Wii because it's on the other side of the house. I could look into getting a repeater, but... money. I know my laptop drops signal constantly, but it's old and crappy and I figured it was the problem, when I can stay connected to XBL all day long. Is there a way to test if my AP is dropping signal? It's an ASUS multi-purpose thingy.

illig

The wii isn't really a good video platform - it's wireless only and barely HD (480p only)

do yourself a favor and purchase a dedicated streaming device - the Roku can be had for like $40 if you find a deal on a used/older model (here for example)... then make sure you run a network cable to it to ensure the fastest connection.

I had the same issues when i tried streaming Netflix and Hulu over Wi-Fi 802.11G (didn't feel like upgrading to N) and switching to wired fixed my issues.

And if money is tight, I wanted to mention that Roku allowed us to cancel cable - went from a $150 cable bill to $50 internet only + $8/Netflix and $8(?) Hulu.

mts

yea the nice thing abut hte wii is it is super convenient right now. I have a mini set up as a media box, but it is connected wirelessly and has a slow connection. i have a new card to put in but i need to crack it open. doing a wireless bridge just seems easier.

Djeet

It could be the WiFi, didn't know Wii was wifi only; my main client for streaming is hardwired, though I haven't had too much problem streaming over wifi (ipads & desktop). The problem with wifi connectivity issues are that they are an utter bitch to troubleshoot. If you're not rocking an open source (DD-WRT or tomato) firmware I'd definitely look into that (no moneys required) before going with a repeater.

Laptop connectivity issues could be related to the wifi card in laptop or the antenna being somewhat fouled, so I wouldn't think that to be conclusive evidence your wifi is the issue.

And timing could be a factor. There's a huge shift in internet traffic from business lines to residential starting in the late afternoon, also everyone coming home means there's lots more residential wifi activity as well.


Edit: Is the Wii multiband, or A or B or G only? If it's only on a certain band you might configure your access point to only operate on that band, and select a channel that your neighbors aren't using (1,6, or 11, but as far away number-wise from your strongest neighbor's AP's channel).

finalflight89

You should try streaming on a PC during the problem times, and see if the same issue happens.

shadowane

I've never had any issues with streaming on my Wii so it's probably related in some way to your setup.

Sir Carcass

Unfortunately wiring anything for my TV just isn't an option. All of our internet and computer related stuff is on the other side of the house, and there's no way my wife is letting me run a cable across the house (and we rent, so not a lot of options there). She'll just cancel Netflix first.

I guess if I get desperate enough I can try a month of XBL gold and see how it works, but I really hate paying for it when all I'll be using it for is Netflix.

Sir Carcass

finalflight89 wrote:

You should try streaming on a PC during the problem times, and see if the same issue happens.

I have streamed on my PC and it worked great. Like, "this sucks" and getting up to go get on my computer. I've watched maybe 3 hour+ documentaries on it during peak times and it never stopped to load, and the amount loaded was always a good bit in front of the current location.

I'm pretty sure there's some problem specific to me and my Wii because there's no way anyone would use it in the state I've seen.

bowen

That would make me suspect it's the wireless, but try during the problem hours too.

Count Funkula

The Wii can be wired if you purchase the LAN adapter for it. It attaches to one of the USB ports on the back. I have mine connected this way to my router, and I have no problems streaming anything on the Wii, no matter what time of day, on DSL. I would look into your wireless setup, maybe moving it closer to the Wii, or getting some kind of repeater. (money, I know)

Hewn

bowen wrote:

That would make me suspect it's the wireless, but try during the problem hours too.

Sounds like it. Wireless is a fickle beast. Is the computer also wireless? Are other wireless devices clipping along?

My Macbook started dropping signals and the wireless is basically useless at times. Other times the wireless works great on that computer. All I know is it's isolated only to that machine, so hey, you might be lucky and have a Wii with wireless that's failing like my Macbook.

Sir Carcass

Both of our desktops are wired. Pretty much the only thing we use wireless for are my consoles and occasionally the laptop.

Raif Severance

I have this problem with my PS3 and pc periodically. For me it was a wifi problem. My router/cable modem are in my bedroom and my PC and PS3 are in the study. Every night the bandwidth would slow to a trickle with my 15 Mbit connection, like 2-3. I fixed it by changing the channel that the router broadcasts on. I bounce back and forth between 1, 10, and 11. Now whenever I notice a slowdown I change the channel which I have to do like every other day. I think since I live in an apartment there's a lot of competition/interference for radio signals. It's annoying, but at least it's fixable.

Sir Carcass

I usually see about 4 or 5 other signals when searching for mine. I'm not sure what channel I'm on, but I'll try changing that.

bowen

Invest in a cisco aeronet refurbished for a few hundred dollars then laugh as everyone else has to change their channels because of you.

EggyToast

You have a laptop; try watching Netflix in the same room on the laptop using wireless. If it works better, you know it's the Wii.

Sir Carcass

I'm not sure if I can since we don't have the disc option (supposedly you can only stream to 1 device at a time in that case), but it's worth a shot.

illig

Sir Carcass wrote:

I'm not sure if I can since we don't have the disc option (supposedly you can only stream to 1 device at a time in that case), but it's worth a shot.

Nope, you can stream to multiple devices at the same time - in my house we often have two Roku boxes going (living room, bed room) at the same time as an iPad (a.k.a kitchen TV).

mts

i wouldn't do it at the same time. they will just kill any wireless bandwith you get.

EggyToast

Sir Carcass wrote:

I'm not sure if I can since we don't have the disc option (supposedly you can only stream to 1 device at a time in that case), but it's worth a shot.

That's fine; I was thinking more in the "Well, the Wii really sucks right now. Let's try the laptop. Well, laptop seems to work great. Let's try the Wii again. OK, it's the Wii" sense.

MegaMan001

RadicalTurnip wrote:

Also, I haven't checked into this (you will have to) but I hear that there is a free version of XBL basically just for viewing Netflix. My information could be wrong, though...but I'm pretty sure there is a very limited free version now.

Uh, if someone wants to elaborate on this gem, I'd appreciate it.

Sir Carcass

MegaMan001 wrote:

RadicalTurnip wrote:

Also, I haven't checked into this (you will have to) but I hear that there is a free version of XBL basically just for viewing Netflix. My information could be wrong, though...but I'm pretty sure there is a very limited free version now.

Uh, if someone wants to elaborate on this gem, I'd appreciate it.

I googled a bit but everything I found said "Gold account required", including Netflix and Microsoft's websites. The only I found was setting your 360 up as a Media Center extension and using an open source plugin to stream from your computer, but I haven't tried that yet.

EggyToast wrote:

Sir Carcass wrote:

I'm not sure if I can since we don't have the disc option (supposedly you can only stream to 1 device at a time in that case), but it's worth a shot.

That's fine; I was thinking more in the "Well, the Wii really sucks right now. Let's try the laptop. Well, laptop seems to work great. Let's try the Wii again. OK, it's the Wii" sense.

Yeah, I thought about that after the fact, and I may give it a shot.

Last night I updated the firmware on my AP and switched channels. I tried watching something around 8pm and watched for about 30 minutes with no problems. I guess this weekend will be the real test, but so far so good.

Magus`

I've noticed that Netflix (especially the GUI) is EXTREMELY laggy after the most recent update. Sure, it looks snazzier but it runs like 24 carat ass.

Feral

FWIW, I watch Netflix on Wii pretty frequently, and it works fine.

That said, when it was first set up, it had major problems, and we determined that it was due to a weak wifi signal. Moving the router helped a lot.

I think the wifi hardware in the Wii kind of sucks. Low power or sensitivity maybe.

Magus`

Is it still running fine for you? The GUI (for me) is slow as shit and Google is telling me I'm not nearly the only one. Have you updated the software at all recently?

Sir Carcass

Well, we watched several shows from about 9pm until about 11pm last night and it never stopped to load once. I'm hoping that was just a fluke weekend that we signed up.

Tofystedeth

If you do continue to have issues, and you suspect WiFi causes, there are things you can do to mitigate it. Since you basically only have the Wii as the primary user of the AP, adjust the positions of both as much as you can to make sure the signal between them passes through any walls/floors perpendicularly instead of obliquely.

Also, I'm not an RF engineer or anything, but the transmissions coming out the antennae basically have a shape that defines their signal strength going in different directions. i think they're generally toroidal? So they would be very weak on one axis. So you can try adjusting their orientation as well.

Actual engineers please correct me.

Sir Carcass

All weekend was loading free, so I guess this can be considered solved. I think they were just having problems that first weekend. Thanks for all of the help and suggestions!