topic Re: Streaming services buffer in evenings in Broadband

Streaming services buffer in evenings

krismccloy — Tue, 04 Aug 2026 21:05:23 GMT

Hello all, I've noticed a pattern where my connection speed always checks out good, c.75mb/s however I can't watch iPlayer or Netflix after 9pm generally because it buffers and doesn't load, Friday - Sunday is definitely worse too.

I have been upgraded to fibre and I thought this would help, but the issue remains despite going from c.55mb/s - 75mb/s.

The TV is the only device streaming in the house at that time, no gaming, phones etc..

Is this a congestion or bandwidth issue do we think? And importantly how do I solve it without trying a different ISP? It is very frustrating considering since we don't watch much during other times.

Cheers

kris

Re: Streaming services buffer in evenings

Chrisee — Wed, 05 Aug 2026 06:05:14 GMT

@krismccloy most probable cause is a flaky WiFi connection to TV being affected by interference. Interference increaes at peak times as more people use their WiFi networks.

The Netflix app,contains a useful Network Test in its Get Help menu run that when conditions are bad. You need a decent steasdy signal to stream video around 10Mb/s for HD 20Mb/s for UHD. Restarting your hub while conditions are bad should cause it to find the least congested WiFi channel to use but better is improving the connection back to your hub. Ideally this can be achieved by using an Ethernet cable but ehere that is impractical consider upgrading by buying Sky's WiFi Max bundle which can get you up to 3 WiFi extenders. See https://www.sky.com/help/articles/sky-wifi-max

Re: Streaming services buffer in evenings

krismccloy — Wed, 05 Aug 2026 21:09:58 GMT

Hi Chrisee, thanks for your input. Plugged the TV in beside the router and it still buffered (from upstairs to downstairs), maybe not as much but still too annoying to watch.

I'll try different devices in different scenarios and see how we get on, haven't fully ruled out the TV itself yet.

Re: Streaming services buffer in evenings

Me134 — Thu, 06 Aug 2026 07:06:31 GMT

@krismccloy wrote:
Hi Chrisee, thanks for your input. Plugged the TV in beside the router and it still buffered (from upstairs to downstairs), maybe not as much but still too annoying to watch.

I'll try different devices in different scenarios and see how we get on, haven't fully ruled out the TV itself yet.

@Chrisee was referring to connecting the router and the Q box(?) together with an ethernet cable which bypasses the wifi signal issue.

Did you try the Netflix speedtest from within it's own Help menu?