Wi-Fi & connectivity

[bobade]

I'm new to Roku, but chose the platform because of the ability to connect via ethernet. Surprisingly, here are my connection speeds. The internet connection is gigabit Ziply fiber (though my routers don't support gigabit).I have an ASUS mesh system with 2 identical routers, the Roku Ultra is 4 unimpeded feet from the mesh unit. When connected by ethernet, there is about 75 feet of Cat 5 running on the outside of the house between the router and the mesh unit and then 4 feet to the Roku.

Ethernet (connected to router) - 90 Mbps reported by Roku, "good" connection speed.

Wifi (connected to mesh node, 5Ghz connection, Asus shows Tx speed 780 Mbps) - 232 Mbps reported by Roku, "good" connection speed.

Sorry to be complaining about a "good" connection, but why is it not better? Does Roku have a maximum download speed? Is there anything I can do to get a faster speed? I notice frequent, momentary breakup of YoutubeTV images, and wonder if a faster speed would improve the picture quality. 

Thank you, and Happy New Year!

[Strega2]

This page says the only adjectives used are: Good and Poor.

https://support.roku.com/article/115015678567

When I got my first Roku, I was using a 1Mbps ISP and there was a lot of breakup. When I switched to a 30Mbps ISP (about 8Mbps at the Roku) then my HD video streaming was great. Netflix recommends at least 5Mbps for HD and at least 15Mbps for 4K. (Roku has slightly different numbers on the page linked above.)

I have noticed since going from 30Mbps to 1Gbps (about 150Mbps on a Roku Express 4K) that random access is very snappy. That is, jumping around within a video feels fast like a local DVR. But I didn't notice much else.

[makaiguy]

@bobade-

Rokus with Ethernet ports still have 10/100 chips, not gigabit.  With overhead, best you can get on an Ethernet connection is about 90mbps.  This is plenty for Roku's intended primary purpose, i.e. displaying compressed streamed video received over the internet.  This can, however, be a limitation when streaming local ripped DVD source files needing more bandwidth.

As you've seen, depending on your router, you may achieve higher bandwidths over WiFi than Ethernet.

[bobade]

Strega2 and makaiguy, thanks for your replies. It seems that there is a Maximum Roku connection speed by Ethernet. I wonder if there is maximum connection speed by Wifi? Can anyone out there report a faster connection speed than the 232 Mbps I reported? Certainly one can get faster internet service than I have and use a higher Wifi protocol than Wifi 6.

My Roku Ultra is a 4802. The 4850 claims to be faster, but I wonder if that speed, related to a different CPU, can result in a faster connection speed?

I guess the important point is that 232 Mbps is much higher than is needed for a 4K picture. So why do I get momentary picture breakup? Is that the fault of YouTubeTV? Or is it caused by some other aspect of Roku performance than connection speed?

[atc98092]

The Fast Ethernet connection on your Ultra is 100 Mbps, so real world 92 Mbps is about the fastest you'll ever get. My Ultra 4800 sitting within 3 feet of my 802.11ac access point reported about 232 Mbps at the fastest. This is a hardware limit of the Roku, not my wireless network. I have Gigabit from Xfinity, and my more powerful WiFi devices can reach 6-800 Mbps. I did just get an Ultra 4850, and I placed it in the exact same spot my 4800 was in. The 4850 will reach about 270 Mbps, again a hardware restriction of the Roku.

I have also tested both my 4800 and 4850 with fixed bitrate test videos playing from the USB port. In both cases, the Roku begins stuttering with 180 Mbps video and cannot play 250 Mbps video. So in real world use there's simply no need for a faster network connection because the Roku will not play video at bitrates higher than that. 

[bobade]

Dan, those are interesting stats, and totally compatible with my experience.

Do you know; are there streaming devices (thinking about Apple TV or an Amazon Fire device) that can generate and optimally use a higher connection speed?

[atc98092]

I've only tested two other media players for local media playback: the Nvidia Shield and the Fire TV Cube. Both are the most recent versions (Shield Pro released in 2019 and 3rd gen Cube). Both will play back local media with lossless audio (including TrueHD/Atmos and DTS:X) and can display 4K/HDR/Dolby Vision at the proper refresh rate (using the correct player app). The Shield has a Gigabit Ethernet port, while the Cube supports WiFi 6e. Both devices can play my 250 Mbps test video without a problem. Using Kodi as the player, both will bitstream all audio formats from any of my ripped discs. They will also play image based captions, which Roku doesn't support. The Shield will report a network speed equal to my Internet connection (just shy of 1 Gig), while the Cube was a little slow over WiFi (it only has a Fast Ethernet connector).

I have not tested an Apple TV. I do have an Onn 4K media player, but it's no better than a Roku (no audio bitstreaming, has issues with the highest bitrate test videos). I have not tested any version of Chromecast. 

If you check AVSForums you will find some recommended Android based players. There are some pretty good ones out there, but prices can exceed $200. I would hesitate picking up a no-name Android based box found online, simply because there can be a huge difference in them, even if they have Gigabit Ethernet.

Even as old as the Shield is (now over 5 years old) it's still my primary home media player, simply because it supports everything I have without requiring transcoding, displays the captions from my rips, and supports my Dolby Vision TVs and the one AVR I have that supports Atmos.