Forum Discussion
Finally got Gen5
Yea, mine usually defaults to 480 and lower. I freak when even 480, as 360 looks fine to me. And my stream is generally steady although the server can also send a video stream in chunks and it will be up and down. Like I said, even when my speed is sub 1 Mbps I still can stream Netflix. Maybe does have to do with beam loading but does seem strange. Maybe I'm special. :smileyhappy:
And I have had some very low nighttime speeds also.
That's pretty neat that you can use the Video Data Saver, too, though, like you said, you tend to watch things in lower definition, anyway.
I even tried lowering the definition of the videos I'd watch, and during the off peak usage periods it sometimes helped, but during peak usage periods NOTHING helped. It was awful. It would automatically lower to 144P, and even then I would get the popup notice about speed problems. Now, even when watching in 480P the progress bar, save for the initial buffer, which they all do for me, zips across until finished. It's fantastic.
But, if you like what you have and it works for you, why upgrade, right? And, you have the Ultra plan, to boot. If I had that and it was working for me, I probably wouldn't upgrade, either. For you there's really no advantage. For myself, I had the addition of the Microsoft updates taking hours upon hours, once even nearly 27 hours for a mid 400MB update, so I almost had to upgrade. And, for me, it's more data for a cheaper price, and will still be cheaper when the Next Plan Up promo price expires. I really couldn't say no.
Doesn't seem like many got Ultra back when it was offered and for the cost I see no reason to upgrade now. I can live with the periodic slowdowns at night and other random times. Can understand others moving to Gen5 who've had big problems. Maybe some beams on J1 are not functioning so well.
BirdDog wrote:Doesn't seem like many got Ultra back when it was offered and for the cost I see no reason to upgrade now.
I never had the option for Ultra, but I came to the Gen4 game late, so it may have been an option for my area earlier on. Heck, I only had Gen4 for a little under fourteen months when I upgraded to Gen5. Even with the Microsoft update problems and the issues with buffering, I was still glad I upgraded. Just the speed difference of 1.6Mbps vs 20Mbps, then, later, 30Mbps, was worth it. And the upgrade deal I got was worth it, as was the upgrade deal I got when upgrading to Gen5. I think the latter I got for being a long time customer and/or because it was such a simple upgrade. Just a radio flip, a repoint and a new modem hookup for the latter. Pretty simple.
- I was supposed to upgrade to Gen 5 today but the install tech was a no show! Really makes me mad since I had to take the afternoon off for nothing. I cancelled the upgrade and will stay with Gen 4 rather than spend more money with a company that takes my time for granted!
