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Why do YouTube videos load so slowly lately?
- Thread starter TH55
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This has always been the case on advices for me, no matter where I am using wifi. Before we moved from bumf*** Iowa, I assumed our net was just slow. My current connection is 100+Mbps, so pretty sure it isn't that. I generally drop wifi to HSPA/LTE when I want to watch something on youtube.
It's only that way with YouTube for me. And it's not a new phenomenon. Been that way for years. Pretty stupid. Also, I am not alone.
Yeah, it's incredibly stupid and extremely irritating. It's one of the biggest sites on the Internet, how the hell can it be so slow? They have billions of dollars and unlimited resources at their disposal.
I am not sure if it's google sticking it to iOS, or what the deal is. I can say that years ago it was fine. In fact, I could use 3G unrestrictor, get a higher quality feed, and still not get stuck buffering (I do that now and it doesn't change a thing). The issue started before iOS dropped the youtube app from their preinstalled apps list, however I can't say how long before that. It's basically something I have come to accept. It also isn't something I use much, so it's a minor annoyance, at best.
Google uses Content Distribution Networks (CDN) for YouTube. The speed will depend on how overloaded the CDN you end up using is.
CDN choice is often determined by using DNS. This means using your ISP's DNS servers can actually result in faster YouTube performance because you get sent to a nearby CDN. Using Google's 4.4.4.4/8.8.8.8 can actually slow you down.
It's pretty much a roll of the dice. Also some ISPs have been known to throttle YouTube traffic. Ridiculous, I know. But they do it.
CDN choice is often determined by using DNS. This means using your ISP's DNS servers can actually result in faster YouTube performance because you get sent to a nearby CDN. Using Google's 4.4.4.4/8.8.8.8 can actually slow you down.
It's pretty much a roll of the dice. Also some ISPs have been known to throttle YouTube traffic. Ridiculous, I know. But they do it.
Same here, YouTube is basically unusable on wifi whether through the official app or through m.youtube.com. It is driving me nuts. Videos load perfectly on LTE and even 4G. My wifi performance otherwise is perfect, and YouTube works fine on my laptop connected to the same network.