Discussions

[atc98092]

Not all routers report connected line speeds of WiFi devices either. My CenturyLink DSL modem has never reported such, and I have had several versions over the years. My Ubiquiti access point, on the other hand, has that sort of detail available. I have also used other brands of routers (usually configured as access points), and few have had that detail available. 

[OwnerofDevices]

By line speed I mean the actually speed of the wireless AC circuit from my router to my Roku devices. Not, speed test. 

[OwnerofDevices]

Nate,

Are you having a problem? Despite what I have found with a little tinkering around with Roku's Wireless AC weirdness on my devices. The weirdness that I found is not causing me any issues with my experience with my devices.

[NateTruth]

@OwnerofDevices 

Okay. I follow you now. Yeah I can check the line speed on my router. It's a sagecom from the cable company. Took a little digging (through the different menus), but I see what you are saying.

And yes, I am still having a problem with wifi. I have had a Roku TCL tv for a year and 2 months, and suddenly (since the cable company upped the wifi speed to 250) I cannot connect wirelessly. Tried  all the resets, and  clearing cache. Even tried running the Tv with Ethernet to clear the wifi "speed too low" error message. TV Won't go back to using WiFi. 

I found that some people have had success changing their wifi channel and another network "type"(from wifi g/n to wifi b/g/n) setting. I'm going to try this out tomorrow. 

I could see how the one change (wifi network type) might work because it may tell the chipset in the TV to acknowledge a lower speed... But I am not very hopeful.

We shall see...

[tage87]

I have the identical hassle. I have ATT Fiber and get six hundred/six hundred mouse speed however Roku TV is displaying 99mb. I expect this is why I am having troubles with sluggish Roku channels and freezing on Sling channel.

[OwnerofDevices]

You getting 99 megabits a second is by design Roku on all Roku wireless AC products. Roku puts a brake or governor on WIFI speeds. I own 3 Roku TVs and stream all of my channels buffer free, no freeze ups either. I don't subscribe to sling. You might want to contact Sling support. 

[zeitchap]

I'm also getting slow speed on my wired TCL (30 Mbps). I wonder if a USB to Fast Ethernet adapter would help. ??

[atc98092]

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@zeitchap wrote:

I'm also getting slow speed on my wired TCL (30 Mbps). I wonder if a USB to Fast Ethernet adapter would help. ??

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There's only a handful of USB adapters that will work with a Roku TV, and I personally have no idea which ones they are. And Fast Ethernet is what your TV already has. 

One comment: other than my Ultra 4800, none of my Roku devices report an accurate Internet connection speed. My Xfinity speed varies between 600-700 Mbps. My wired Ultra 4800 reports 93 Mbps (which would be accurate for a Fast Ethernet 100 Mbps connection), and moving it to wireless I have seen a bit over 200 Mbps. So a Roku device that supports 5 GHz is capable of speeds higher than Fast Ethernet. All my other Roku devices, wired or wireless, are down in the 30s-60s Mbps, all connected to the same wired Gigabit network and high speed wireless access points. 

Besides the reported low speeds, are you experiencing buffering or other problems while streaming? Remember, if you're streaming from the Internet, there's almost no content that streams much over 20 Mbps, so there's no limitation using Fast Ethernet. 

Finally, Roku doesn't build Roku TVs. In your case, TCL is the manufacturer. And it is the manufacturer that chooses the hardware to install in the TV. If there's a hardware issue with your network connection, that can only be addressed by TCL.

[zeitchap]

Besides the reported low speeds, are you experiencing buffering or other problems while streaming? Remember, if you're streaming from the Internet, there's almost no content that streams much over 20 Mbps, so there's no limitation using Fast Ethernet.

Yes actually, I AM experiencing problems like buffering and freezing quite often. When i said that my speed was 30, i meant that as a HIGHEST speed. And yes i know that the TV already has  "fast ethernet" but obviously 30 max is a long way from 100. I have a 1gig fiber internet connection and have no trouble with my other devices. when the tv was brand new i was getting 80 Mbps. 1 year later it is now down to 20 to 30  The point here is that while that may be good enough for YOU, it is not for me and others. I guess it would be ok with you if for example you purchased a new watch and every week, that watch lost 5min. According to your philosophy that's acceptable because hey, it still works, you just have to adjust it once a week. The point here is that yes, we know 20 to 30 Mbps should be adequate, but sometimes it's not and when it is not, then it degrades the streaming experience that we are PAYING for. Thus, just a LITTLE indignation on your part over this obvious snafu would be more warmly met rather than your "Hey, quit crying snowflake" attitude. 

[atc98092]

@zeitchap I believe you misunderstood my response. First, I don't work for Roku. I'm another user like yourself, but with a lot of experience with streaming, networking and computers. 

I'm in no way telling you to accept what you are getting. I'm saying that Roku doesn't build the TVs, so has no control over the hardware. I completely understand how annoying buffering is, and my questions were to try to help isolate possible problem areas. 

My comment about the speed reported in the Roku is also accurate. Not all devices report an accurate speed test. Years ago there was a private channel that used Speedtest.net that did a reasonable job of reporting actual speed. But whoever created it dropped it (possibly they didn't have permission from Speedtest to use their site), and there's been nothing since then that provided a very accurate speed test. The Ultra 4800 is the first Roku I've owned that provided a reasonably accurate speed test.

Now, back to your TV. If there's a defect in the network module on your TV, you need to talk with TCL about it. Your reported issues are certainly indicating an issue somewhere. Since I don't see wholesale complaints about Roku devices and slow speeds (yes, there are some reports here, but that's a minute number compared to the total users), it's likely not related to the Roku OS. Only TCL can address hardware issues in their TVs. 

I did a quick search online for a USB Ethernet adapter for a Roku TV and came up with this. It specifically says it supports a Roku TCL TV. However, it shows unavailable and no reported availability date. You might try some other search terms. I used: USB Ethernet adapter for "Roku TV"