How to Prevent Slow Buffering on Firestick

July 9, 2021 By Nick Anderson No Comments 5 minutes

One of the most annoying things while streaming a movie online is buffering. It means the hiccups that you encounter while playing through a video before it can continue playing. Buffering can happen for a lot of reasons. Fortunately, most of the issues are within your capability to fix. So, if you want to learn how to stop buffering on FireStick, follow us through the end of this blog.

Why Does Buffering Happen?

In computers, a buffer is a part of memory that temporarily holds data to optimize data flow. The concept applies to video streaming also, where the next bits of the video are loaded into the memory if you have a faster internet connection. Thus, it provides a seamless video streaming experience.

You must have noticed that playing videos on YouTube or other video streaming platforms, the player has already loaded the next couple of seconds beforehand. It is called buffering. Because the internet connection is allowing a faster download, the player is automatically loading the video. It will remain in the buffer until you reach that part of the video or close the player.

The word buffering, in the context of video streaming, has negative connotations. But, buffering is a function that improves upon the video streaming experience. So, in that respect, we need to talk about the performance of that function.

How to Fix Buffering

Buffering is part of a video streaming platforming; hence it is enabled by default. You do not have to adjust any setting in your device to enable it or make it faster. What you can do is fix or improve things that cause slow buffering.

Here’s how to stop slow buffering on FireStick.

• Sit Closer to the Wi-Fi 

Wireless connection strength fades as you move away and weakens further if there are walls between you and the Wi-Fi router. If the Wi-Fi router is on a different floor, you will not have an optimal experience. Modern wireless routers are capable enough to broadcast Wi-Fi over another floor, but the strength of the connection will not be ideal for a smooth streaming experience on your FireStick.

• Switch to 5GHz Frequency 

The 5GHz frequency has more bandwidth, though at the cost of range. The higher bandwidth is ideal for streaming high-definition movies. The more common 2.4GHz frequency is found on cheaper Wi-Fi routers. It gets the done job, but if you want to improve your streaming experience, get a dual-band router that supports both 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequency.

This way, the devices in your house that support 5GHz can utilize it while the rest stay at 2.4GHz.

• Connect to a Different VPN Server

VPN is popular for entertainment purposes. It lets you bypass geo-restrictions, enabling access to a service or its complete library in the case of Netflix. Some services are outright unavailable outside of the USA, like HBO Max. A VPN changes your virtual location so that it appears you are in the USA.

Wherever possible, choose a VPN server that’s near your present geographical location. Avoid using free VPN services. They do not have high-speed servers that can give you a flawless streaming experience, and you cannot access many regions of the world. FastestVPN has high-speed servers in more than 40+ locations worldwide.

• Kick Unknown Devices from Wi-Fi 

You may have shared your Wi-Fi password with other people or have an open connection. As a result, there may be other people on the network using the bandwidth, which could cause slow buffering on FireStick.

Set up a password immediately if you have an open network. A password will protect your Wi-Fi against potential bad actors who could intercept and read your internet traffic. If you have one, change the Wi-Fi password. It will kick unknown devices for your Wi-Fi network, and then you can reconnect your own devices with the new password. In addition, it is easier than navigating to the router’s settings and manually eject every device from the network.

• Upgrade Your Internet Connection

We saved the obvious one for the last. The cause behind slow buffering may be simply the internet speed, or the lack of it, to be exact. As you introduce more devices on the network, the demand for internet bandwidth increases. A 10Mbps internet connection will not suffice for multiple devices trying to stream Netflix simultaneously.

Recommendations vary from use cases and the number of users. However, 30Mbps should be plenty for multiple users.

It should be noted that internet speed is not everything. You can improve buffering to a certain degree if other aspects mentioned in the blog are not optimal. Latency is also a key factor. Latency refers to the distance data has to travel to the server and back to the user. Lower latency translates to a better streaming experience.

Services like Netflix install CDN (Content Delivery Network) around the world to make streaming better. Users are connected to the nearest CDN, thereby reducing latency. HBO Max, for example, is available in the United States only – at least for now. So if you are thousands of miles away from the USA, there is not anything you can do to make slow buffering go away. And adding VPN to the equation will introduce more latency as the data has to travel to the VPN server first.

Conclusion

But don’t let that deter you from enjoying your time streaming on FireStick. In most situations, fixing slow buffering should be achievable. If you haven’t tried streaming through a VPN, then sign-up for FastestVPN today and see what you have been missing out on. Netflix USA is a popular destination for entertainment enthusiasts because you get access to movies and TV shows that you otherwise might not due to geo-restrictions.

FastestVPN works flawlessly on FireStick. Simply download the app, connect to a VPN server, and start streaming your favorite content!

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