Connection problems

[MacLilja]

I have a problem with my Apple TV 3 dissconnecting from my network. I start watching something and in about 5 min it says it has no network Connection but when I go into settings it has and if I then go back to the app and start again it will then again work for like 5 min and then it again says it has no network Connection.

I have had it at an Apple repair and they have tried it and was able to stream it for 24 hours without any problems.

So, I'm guessing it's me that has some issues with my network but my computer, iPhone and Ipad works without any problems and I don't know what to do next.

Anyone had similar problems? Any ideas of what to do next?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Is your TV connected by wire or wireless? If the former, test a different cable. If the latter, take your iPhone or iPad over as close as possible to the TV, connect to the very same wireless network and then play something on TV while monitoring on the iDevice. When TV disconnects, do you notice a loss in signal on the iDevice too?

Do you have slow broadband? Live with more than one person using Internet? Could others be hogging bandwidth at the same time you are trying to play something on TV? When TV loses network connection, run speedtest to verify that your network is not hogged by other things.

If you suspect your computer, can you test with a different computer? Try running a >5min vodcast (that doesn't rely on your computer). Does it also fail to play all the way through? Try airplaying a video from your iDevices (so that you cut your computer out of the equation); does the airplayed video play without problem?

Is the computer connecting to the network via wired or wireless connection? If wired, test a different cable. If wireless, is it perhaps going to sleep? Are other people sharing that computer with you? Maybe they are doing something with the computer that is causing a problem. Bring the computer closer to the TV to eliminate potential sources of interference between the two; does video play fine when they are closer?

Take your TV over to a friend's house. Put it in place of theirs and see if the problem occurs where everything else it might be has changed. If it plays just fine elsewhere (like it apparently did for Apple), steps like those referenced above can help you narrow in on the core issue.

 

[MacLilja]

It's connected with wifi and I tried to have my iPhone right beside the Apple TV and didn't notice any change in the signalstrength.

 

[MacLilja]

I also tried to run the same play channel on both my iPhone and Apple TV having them beside eachother and the Apple TV failed and the iPhone worked. This time it didn't say it was disconnected though and I could just start it again and it worked for a short time again.

 

[waw74]

It's connected with wifi and I tried to have my iPhone right beside the Apple TV and didn't notice any change in the signalstrength.

it's not the location of the iPhone, it's the location of your router.
On wi-fi all devices talk to the router/base station, not directly to each other.

try rebooting your router, as sometimes over time they get a little bogged down.
Google "router placement" to see if maybe you could make some changes and improve your signal.

you could also try resetting your aTV, hook it to a computer with a USB cable, and use iTunes to re-install the software.
one of mine would randomly drop the netflix log-in every day or 2, i reset it, and haven't had problems for a couple weeks.
I've also seen the network issue occasionally, but don't remember which of my 2 aTV it was on.

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Along with waw74's suggestion, unplug the TV, wait about 30 seconds, plug it back in. When it boots back up, try the same problematic video again. I've found that I sometimes have to cold (re)start my TV if I haven't done it in a while.

What do you mean by "playchannel" in post #4? The point in having the phone close to the same area was mostly to monitor the wifi signal strength. Depending on what you are trying to play on both, the phone has better hardware inside. Similarly, if "playchannel" might be something sourced from something like YouTube, the TV might be getting one version of a file and the phone another so I don't know that I would assume problem because the phone played it with no problem.

For your answer in post #3, the phone was also hooked up via wifi right? You were watching the wifi bars, right? If wifi dropped but LTE was also running, it could have picked up the slack.

After you try waw74's suggestion and my cold restart suggestion, if it's still not working right, just for testing purposes:

• can you get your router closer to the TV than wherever it is now?
• could you temporarily make a wired (ethernet) connection between your router and the TV and test again?
• try the airplay and/or vodcast ideas suggested in post #2. Did videos streamed that way play?
• try the other suggestions in post #2. What happened with each?
• what about the other possible issues asked in post #2? For instance, other people sharing your wifi could be hogging bandwidth and causing the TV to choke, etc

Run speedtest on your network: http://www.speedtest.net. Post your download speed so we can be sure you have enough bandwidth.

Do you always have this problem with all videos or is this something that only happens with some videos... or at certain times of day or night... etc. Does it lose connection at the same point every time you play a video? Or is it playing more or less of a video each time you try?

 

[MacLilja]

Thanks for all your suggestions. By playchannels I mean the play services that each channel have. The one where you can see their programs online.

And I thknk I have narrowed it down to my router. I used my iPhones 3G and connected the Apple TV to it and then it worked. So I'm thinking the signal from the router is to low...even though it works fine for my phone, ipad and computer. Is the Apple TV more sensitive when it comes to the connection or is it simplh because it require more to see video?

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Lots of possibilities. Maybe something is creating some periodic interference that is positioned between your router location and your TV? This could be lots of things like appliances or even building materials. You might try putting your router in a different location as a test, especially if it is fairly distant from your TV (and, again for testing purposes, see if you can get it in line of sight so that there are not tangible building materials (like walls) between it and TV.

Is it a router with more than one band in play (like Apple routers)? Maybe TV is using one band and your iDevices are using another? Maybe one band is problematic in your environment? It's odd that wifi feeding your other tech is working just fine but you have a wifi problem only with TV.

Is your wifi secure or could neighbors be using it at times? Change your password if you haven't done that in a while and then test your TV before giving the new password to anyone else.

If the router is even a few years old, a new one could make a big difference. That technology is always advancing. I've had good luck with Apple's routers even within a home with less-than-ideal (for wifi) building materials. You might want to pick one of those up, test it against this problem and then return it if a new one doesn't solve the problem.

 

[MacLilja]

Problem solved. I called my internet provider who changed something and now it works!!!

Thanks for all your help!