Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

We don't use catchup TV or on demand services very often here, We're pretty good at recording what we want, but on the occasions that we do I find it utterly frustrating - which is one reason we don't rely on it I suppose.

Last week I wanted to see the Queen's coronation service which had been shown on BBC1 during the morning, a 2 hour programme.

So went to catch-up on tuesday evening, struggled to find it (but that is a separate issue), eventually found it thru iPlayer, clicked to play it and ......... black screen with circular thing ....... for aaaaaaages ......

After about 10 mins we canceled, and tried again to restart it. Got an "On-demand not currently available" type error.

Rebooted tivo (time to open a new wine box and pour a couple of glasses, and take dogs out while this went on).

Then we tried again. This time it took about 3 mins to actually start the programme. and dropped out after about 3 mins ! We managed to watch the first 3 to 5 minutes of the programme 4 ruddy times, and I was about to give up when it seemed to settle down and - Eureka - we were watching it. We got thru to 49 mins when .... it dropped out again.... At this point I got pee'd off and went to bed.

Tried again on Wednesday evening, it took 3 attempts to load the programme from iPlayer and successfully fast-forward to the point we had reached before. Then we did manage to see the whole thing.

This is fairly typical of my experience of using catch-up services on our Tivo, and husband and I are seriously thinking of reducing our costs and going over to freeview with our own recording device, as we just don't feel we are getting our money's worth out of what VM are offering.

Before we give up for good, I'd like to establish: -
Is this fairly standard for all Tivo users?
Or
Do we have a problem with our Tivo?
Or
Is there a problem with network capacity in our locality?

Anyone?

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Hi, this is not standard for TiVo - I have never had this problem (except for once last year when there was work on the box connected to the block of flats where I live) and I have had a TiVo box for over 2 years. In my opinion it sounds like a problem with your TiVo box or network capacity so It might be worth giving VM a call for them to run some online tests and arrange a tech if required. Hope this helps :)

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Thanks John, I might just do that when I have an hour to spare to give them a ring.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

I agree it could well be a network issue. I use catch up a lot and in my area it does work vary well.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

I use my PS3 for catchup

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Well bully for you !!

We don't have a PS3, don't want one either - just another thing to argue over with teenage son who is screen obsessed as it is.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

never really understood the point of the quoted post... the question was about watching Catch Up On Demand or a network issue

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

well that is a nice attitude , I was offering help I had no knowledge of your "screen obsessed son" it's not bully for me !!!

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Sorry to offend mate, it wasn't my intention.
But your post wasn't really helpful - it may come as a surprise to you, but not every house has a PS3
And in any case, as we're paying VM for this device which should offer the catch-up facility, I'd be pretty aggrieved to buy something else to do the job.

Of course, we COULD use our PC's to catch-up most things (what with iPlayer, ITVplayer & the like), but I wanted to find out why I can't sit on my sofa & watch on my TV, as I expected to.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

If you have picture breakup on normal channels then a fault on your line would be a possible suspect but from what you have said, its more likely congestion on the part of the network (simplified) the tivo uses, which is slightly different to what the broadband uses.

In either case you need to contact virgin for them to fix it.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

On demand, for the most part, never worked for me when I had VM. It was usually unpopulated and when it wasn't there were problems connecting, drop outs halfway through eps, FF not working etc, etc.

I gave up in the end and switched to sky. I find it to be ultra reliable and nowadays the on demand and catchup is second to none providing you have a decent BB.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

I have never had a problem with On Demand, with V, V+ and TiVo boxes. Your post is more like a advert for Sky and not really the information the OP was after...

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

His post shared his experience of also having problems with On Demand while with Virgin and showed that he had no problems when switching to Sky. Relevant info and if the OP was thinking of leaving VM, a thumbs up for an alternative provider based on experience can be useful.

I also had the same problems when I was with Virgin but have never had those issues with Sky. Sky is a lot more reliable for On demand viewing it seems.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

I don't use the on demand type services very much as the TiVo tends to grab most stuff anyway. However I have found BBC iPlayer on the TiVo to be rather unpredictable especially mid evening and suffering a lot of the buffered issues both on SD and HD transmissions. Didn't seem to affect other on demand services. My other TiVo and V+ services seemed OK so I suspect it's a problem with the BBC iplayer streaming capacity.

I'm in a different area to the OP and it's a while since I used it so I can't say we have the same issue.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Virgin have had more than their fair share of iPlayer and 4OD problems this year. They do deal with these streaming services separately which can explain why only one doesn't work well. Not sure if its a dedicated peering point that gets hot of if there is a VM hosted CDN for iPlayer.

The real problem is how long it takes VM to resolve these issues.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

I used to watch Catch Up TV on my lap top, as my wife, who is bed bound, always watches her own TV programs.

We recently got one of those Smart TVs, and catch up TV its also available there as well.

One day soon, I'm going to go into the menu of that TV and find out what it else its capable of, that's if I ever get the remote out of her hand? ;)

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

As per the thread title
"Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ? "

My post is on topic and illustrates that the OP is not the only one to have problems with VM catchup TV.

My post is as much an advert for sky as your post is an advert for VM, whose service unfortunately doesn't work very well for the OP. ;)

I'm sorry my post offended you but you must realise that unlike yourself not all members are here to promote VM :shrug:

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Your post has not offended me in any way but the point you seem to be missing that this is a VirginMedia cable forum, not a Sky satellite forum... anyway, going forward - the problem is probably a low signal level to the OP's TiVo box or network capacity is over-subscribed in her area which is what I said in post #2 of this thread...

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Thought I open up this post again as it is related.

So I had a V+ Box a few months back and it was fine with On Demand. I switch to a Tivo and I cannot get a constant picture.

The Tivo box has a dedicated 10MB connection which I presume the Tivo box is using... could it be the power levels on the connection causing the problems as I very doubt it is because it is over subscribed.

If it is power levels, is there a way to check? My normal BB is fine

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

It uses the 10mb for BBC iPlayer, otherwise it accesses catchup from the other channels in exactly the same way v+ does, so I can't answer your question but it would probably help those who can if you said what exactly it was you were trying to watch.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

If you are trying to watch BBC iPlayer, it is probably because it is oversubscribed in your area. If it's any other On Demand content, it's probably a signal fault.

Give Virgin a call. There can be other things wrong with the signal besides the power levels.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

I'm taking it this is the same if you have issues with Netflix and YouTube ? My parents regularly see buffering and freezing on YouTube and lower streams on Netflix , it is mainly at weekends though.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Yes

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Clearly, an unsatisfactory situation. Is Virgin doing anything to relieve the congestion, spiderplant?

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Yes, there is a continuous programme of upgrades.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Thank you, that is reassuring. This constant buffering and inaccessibility is what is putting people off VM, which is a shame. I think they need to act more quickly; some people have been reporting this kind of problem for a long, long time.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

But not the same people. As long as usage continues to grow, capacity issues will arise. They get addressed as and when they do.

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

catch up on TiVo slow in Rotherham
no problem on the ps3 or the desktop
also no problem on the v+box upstairs

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

It's pretty crap imo

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Language!!

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

It is mostly BBC iplayer.. I can just live with SD content, but when I view HD it is impossible. I never had an issue with my old V+ box...

The other content, like Ch4 are all SD and again they are like the SD content on the iPlayer and you can get away with it, but yeah I am quite surprised that the OD and iPlayer are being used by two different technology.

I will give VM a call over the weekend as I do not get a chance during the day (hence the late reply), but the way I am getting away with it is to Chromecast the content from my Android or PC to my TV and watch ondemand that way. Always super smooth in HD :)

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

You obviously live a very sheltered life, Dot! ;)

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Ooh I say

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Out of curiosity, is there any priority given to areas where there are particular volumes of complaints/congestion is worse? Or purely schedule uplifts depending on the practicalities involved...

Just wondered, that's all. Appreciate an answer may not be possible but no harm trying!! :-)

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Generally the worst-affected areas get priority

Re: Watching catchup tv is virtually impossible here - are we the only ones ?
 

Have your problems with the BBC i-Player been fixed now? I tried it yesterday and it's fine now, even in HD. :)