Solving playback issues

Find troubleshooting tips and resources for Roku playback speed issues, HDCP messages, power issues, and more. Join the community discussion for assistance.
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atc98092
Community Streaming Expert

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

Thanks for that. That player should be working fine. I have the same player and don't notice any slowness with YouTube on it, or even my Premiere 3920, which is the second oldest/slowest player I have. My oldest player still in use is my Ultra 4640, but being an Ultra it doesn't have any problems with any current channel. Perhaps a removal, reboot (do NOT skip this step) and reinstallation of the channel might clear things up for you. 

Dan

Roku Community Streaming Expert

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CableBoy
Roku Guru

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

I have very similar problem. But it fails on non-YouTube channels also. 

I have a 4230X - Roku 3

Software Version: 12.5.5 

Build 4174-04

See:  https://community.roku.com/t5/Solving-playback-issues/Gray-screen-static-clicks-tapping-with-freezin...

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atc98092
Community Streaming Expert

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable


@CableBoy wrote:

I have very similar problem. But it fails on non-YouTube channels also. 

I have a 4230X - Roku 3

Software Version: 12.5.5 

Build 4174-04

See:  https://community.roku.com/t5/Solving-playback-issues/Gray-screen-static-clicks-tapping-with-freezin...


That's a completely different issue than this thread covers. The only similarity is you are using the same Roku player. But I again point out your player is now almost 10 years old, and while it was a fantastic player in its time it is no longer state of the art and with some channels it simply can't keep up. It's time to consider your $30-40 purchase that many years ago has met its requirements and you should consider a replacement. 

Dan

Roku Community Streaming Expert

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CableBoy
Roku Guru

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

The issue sounds very similar to me... And I am the one with the issue!

Just to set the record straight, I purchased my Roku 3 on 12/28/2015. So that makes it just a bit over 8 years  old.  The price paid (including shipping and tax) was $102.30.

And yes, I would like to get 10 years out of my TV and Roku before I replace them. Especially if the issue is related to a correctable software bug.

If you would like to help solve the problem, I would welcome the help. If you don't want to help, please just ignore my posts.

Thank you,

 

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atc98092
Community Streaming Expert

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable


@CableBoy wrote:

Just to set the record straight, I purchased my Roku 3 on 12/28/2015. So that makes it just a bit over 8 years  old.  The price paid (including shipping and tax) was $102.30.

And yes, I would like to get 10 years out of my TV and Roku before I replace them. Especially if the issue is related to a correctable software bug.


It's immaterial when you actually purchased your Roku. It was released in Apr 2015, so next month it's a 9 year old model. And I am trying to assist you by advising your player has very possibly reached its end of service with at least some channels.

Earlier in this thread I mentioned that Google does a terrible job with making their apps/channels work well on older devices. My first Roku was the model 2 XS, which was released in Jul 2011 and I had purchased sometime in 2012. It became useless with YouTube around 2015, so I updated to a Roku 4. Most other channels still worked OK, just a bit laggy, but YouTube was impossible to use. That was not the fault of Roku in any way, and there was nothing they could do to improve the performance of the YouTube channel, other than bringing out new, more powerful devices. Since the channel developers continue to design their apps for the newer, more powerful devices, it's a sad fact that older devices become unusable with some channels. There are some current channels that are not supported by your device, although I don't maintain any list for that. Once Roku decides a device is too old to support any longer, they move it into Legacy status and no longer provide updates. Sadly, your device will likely be in the next group that gets moved, as every device around it has already been moved there, including the Roku 4 that was released in 2015. 

Could your Roku 3 issues be resolved with a firmware update? It's possible, but it really depends on what the cause is, or if it's something within the channel programming. If it's within the channel, then Roku can do nothing to make it better. It would depend entirely on the developer of the channel in question. As for Google, they have already shown they have zero interest in maintaining support for older devices. Remember that Google sells a device that competes with Roku players, so it's entirely possible they will only put the minimum effort in supporting a competing device. 

Dan

Roku Community Streaming Expert

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CableBoy
Roku Guru

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

My YouTube app becomes unusable also. It goes to a gray screen, the buttons are greatly delayed in their actions.  I did capture some of my issues on video. Its at:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6tjN9dUsCs

 

It might be similar or not.hope this helps... A picture is worth 1,000 words.

 

Thanks

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atc98092
Community Streaming Expert

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

@CableBoy thanks for the video. This is similar to the issues I had with YouTube way back with my Roku 2 XS. Mine would often stop during playback and reload, and occasionally would freeze up the player as well.

As I stated before, this is all Google's responsibility. It's the way the app/channel is programmed and Roku can't do anything with the OS to make it better. Google wants you to buy a new device, hopefully one that they sell. But they simply ignore the older devices and really don't give a hoot about them. 

Dan

Roku Community Streaming Expert

Help others find this answer and click "Accept as Solution."
If you appreciate my answer, maybe give me a Kudo.

I am not a Roku employee, just another user.
Nickerz
Channel Surfer

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

Me too!

This happens on my Roku 3 device. YouTube has become worthless and it's the ONLY channel that is affected.  A restart helps clear the issue for maybe a few minutes and it starts back up again.  I tried removing the YouTube Channel and added it again but the problem came back.  I even did a Factory Reset and the issue came back within 20 minutes.

A week ago, I ended up swapping my Roku 3 with my Roku Express+ (which was in our other bedroom) and YouTube works perfectly fine now and I haven't had the issue since.

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Atscham
Reel Rookie

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

It’s been a disappointing experience using a fairly new Roku and not being able to view basic YouTube.  The reported fixes are still not solving the problem.  I’ll continue to look for a solution. But I think Roku should up its game on this matter. There are other devices out there and I’m tempted to switch to a Roku competitor device. 

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CableBoy
Roku Guru

Re: YouTube app slowly becoming unusable

Hello  atc98092. Thanks for your reply. Although the problem occurs mostly with YouTube, I have seen it with other channels.  So I am not convinced that Roku is completely innocent. 

Recently, I mostly am losing the audio... The picture keeps going, but no audio.  I restart the YouTube channel, but that does not fix the problem. Only doing a Roku restart will temporarily bring back the audio. 

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