Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video???

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Downeastah
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Joined: Sun Aug 26, 2007 9:39 am

Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video???

Post by Downeastah »

I stream Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon through my PlayStation 3 via DSL with a 6mb/s download speed. When streaming video, we do not use the internet for anything else.

I constantly experience very long buffering times with Amazon before the video even starts, and when it finally does, the picture quality is terrible for about 10 minutes. If we're lucky, it will eventually clear up, but we can never watch more than 2 hours before the re-buffering sets in, and then get a message to check our internet connection. The internet connection is fine, and we have zero issues streaming Netflix and Hulu.

I have also had some video quality issues with Amazon when trying to stream on my MacBook Pro and Windows PC.

We pay for Amazon Prime, so I would like to use the video service. Some have told me to ditch the PS3, as there have been some reported issues with Amazon streaming and PS3, but like everything else, others have no issues with Amazon/PS3. Should we try another streaming device like Roku/Amazon Fire?
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anonenigma
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Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2011 11:58 pm

Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by anonenigma »

Can you use your blu-ray player if you have one? That's what we do, and Amazon Prime generally works fine for us.
Acesalad
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Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by Acesalad »

I stream it on both the Fire Stick and my Wii an never have problems.
jebmke
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Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by jebmke »

We have similar DL speeds via cable (maybe a bit higher but not much). No problem with Amazon stream through our Roku. We stream SD, not HD.
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WHL
Posts: 789
Joined: Mon Dec 10, 2012 1:22 pm

Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by WHL »

I stream Prime on my PS3, iPad, two different laptops and rarely my iPhone. Never had any issue on my good quality home wifi.

Currently having issues (as we speak) with it, but this is due to the crappy hotel wifi, not Amazon.
mak1277
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Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by mak1277 »

I've recently been having issues streaming Amazon through my wii.
Jeff7
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Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by Jeff7 »

I use it mainly for Star Trek episodes, and a few movies here and there.

- 25Mbps TimeWarner connection, and I'm the only person using the connection.
- I rarely get HD quality, unless I happen to be watching at 2am or so. It typically says "Low" for the connection speed, so I get sub-480p resolution and visual artifacts.
- Typically, at around 20-22 minutes into a video, and then again at 40-44 minutes, I usually get "Buffering," then it says it can't contact the server. I have to force-reload the page and start the player again to get it to resume.


Speedtest.net shows normal speeds, usually 10-15Mbps+. (I believe the verbiage is "Up to 25Mbps," in much the same way that a budget sedan's speedometer goes "up to" 140mph.)

That's why I rarely use their movie service, because the quality is generally poor, or else it's going to start buffering or lose the connection partway through.

I don't know if TWC is quietly throttling it, or what's going on.
littlebird
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Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by littlebird »

I stream Amazon Prime thru my Roku 2 and don't have any buffering, but the picture has gotten very small, about 8 x 10, in the center of my screen.. I called Roku and they checked with Amazon. Amazon said that's what they're sending, to save bandwidth. Since we use it for foreign films, with sub-titles, it's not very useful to us any more.
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Flobes
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Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by Flobes »

I stream Amazon via a Roku2 to a 26" tv and a Roku3 to a 46" tv. No buffering or picture shrinkage. The only problem I've encountered is that it goes wacky or freezes if I try to rewind.
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TomatoTomahto
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Re: Anyone have issues streaming Amazon Prime instant video?

Post by TomatoTomahto »

I stream using a Roku 3, and there is no picture shrinkage.

For a brief period I used Amazon's Fire TV (the box, not the dongle) and the voice search, picture quality, and overall speed were stunning. Unfortunately, the software favors Amazon over Netflix, so I returned it and went back to my Roku.

The Fire box apparently pre-Loads video the software anticipates you will watch, and the Amazon video does start instantaneously and in high resolution.
I get the FI part but not the RE part of FIRE.
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