I have a WDTV I love. The only problem (and it’s making using it almost impossible), is that if I fast forward through content (usually an MP4), or rewind, 8 times out of 10 it jumps way too far forward or back…
For example: I’m watching a show. I want to FF past something I"ve seen before…I FF, release the button, and the show jumps wway behind where I even started. I have to FF 5 min or so ahead of where I think I want to land…which is nearly impossible when you don’t know where you wanted to land…
My parents’ WDTV does the same thing. What can I do?
What can you do - nothing, this is a known issue. I have the same problem, usually when FF at high speed. It is as if the bufering cannot keep up or some key frame issue or networking issue. Some condecs seem worse than others. What codex are you seeing this on and how are you streaming?
Why would this make using it almost impossible? Why in heavens name do you need to FF through content?
If it’s a matter of resuming where you left off, use the 10 minute jump key (when in FF or RW mode, press the “Next” or “Back” button and you go by ten minutes). That should get you in enough of a ballpark for the few times you actually stop watching something in the middle.
(When I know I’m going to stop watching something in the middle I just make sure I’m around a 10 minute division somewhere to make it easier to resume next time. Takes all of a few seconds to get there).
Many people are used to the old VCR hold down your FF button. Even I still do that absent mindedly at times. This ten minute jumping whislt useful is not always the most appropraite option. Perhaps the original poster finds the visual feedback from FF useful, perhaps theyt are skipping passed TV adverts?
I’m not sure what kind of files they’d have as MP4s that would have TV ads in them – the Live ain’t a TiVO – but the ten minute skip is all you need for resuming viewing as he says his problem is. The absolute worse that will happen is you have to watch another five minutes or less again (based on halving algorhythms). As I said, to resume takes but a few seconds.
Yes, skipping TV ads. I use Tivo To Go. There are always reasons one might need or want to skip forward, even without ads, but ads is the biggest reason for me.
I have TiVO as well, but it doesn’t produce MP4 files (they are MPEG). I suggest using TiVO desktop and transferring the files as MPEG. They will fast forward MUCH better in that format (actually, in that format you’re better off converting to MKV using Handbrake but that’s a whole other discussion).
And besides of which – if you have TiVO, use THAT instead of the Live media player. That’s kind of the whole point. TiVO IS a media player, and it plays its own files far far better than the Live ever could (the reverse is also true – TiVO don’t play MKV files well at all. In fact, it can’t play them – it has to convert them first to its own format. Get the picture? :>)
