My 2 Wd on 2.01.86 are so stable and working well… Not a single freeze. I can’t believe this problem all around the world with 2.02.32 is not investigated by WD.
(WDTV LiveS) Rolled back to Fw 2.01.86 its back to normal for my device 
Playing from USB drives and sticks, not sure about network play.
Can finally access connected drives on my Win10 laptop - they no longer time-out
Got firmware from WD TV Live Hub Media Center, Streaming and Media Player: Rollback Firmware
I’ve been running 2.01.86 for months since the latest software wouldn’t play a lot of my MP4 files, and I’m experiencing the same issues as everyone else:
Lack of response from remote
Freezing when streaming Hulu, making it unwatchable
Box hangs and gives Out of Memory errors.
So, maybe it’s the act of upgrading/downgrading firmware that is helping, rather than the actual firmware?
Two units here, freezing up after 10 to 15 minutes. Reloaded firmware 2.02.32, after reload I reset to Factory Default. Both running fine now…it’s only be a two days since the firmware reload. BTW, I read that this only fixed some, not all.
I’m having problems also with my device… WD should really do something about this or alla the devices aroud the world are unusable! Guess I have to try the rollback…
Had the problem in france with 4 units here, rollback seems to do the job.
I think this is an issue comming from WD servers, a callback they removed or upgraded for new devices and not supported by our latest firmware.
Count me in. I have two G3’s. It feels very much like a memory issue, however, I’m taking care not to use any features of the box, other than for playing local network-located videos. In spite of that, video’s still hang randomly, or the interface suddenly becomes incredibly slow, or I get a message about low memory.
It seemed that the only “fix” was to unplug, and replug. However, I did noticed that if I left them unplugged for a couple of hours, it works fine for a day or two, and then goes back to hanging, etc.
Seems to indicate an over-heating issue, but whatever it is, it’s obviously caused externally (or by a coded “bomb”) since so many people are experiencing it.
So where is WD in all of this? They have had plenty of time to verify the issue. A statement would be nice.
Ok… here’s a “funny”… I got a call from WD today. It was some kind of error (old case file in the system) about my WD TV Gen 3.
I explained the same thing is happening with all 5 of the Gen 3 boxes I have and that I have been on THEIR WD Community forum about this issue and the LooooOOOOoooong list of same complaints from many users. As well as the utter lack of involvement or feedback from WD to get this resolved. The units are still being sold, maybe not produced, but sold today. I know I would be pissed if I just purchased a “turd in a box”…
I explained the Freezing in play back, as well as it throwing the “spinning circle of death” if paused or skipped, etc. He suggested rolling the firmware back… let him know “been there, done that”
He escalated me to a Level 2 tech where I explained the same issues. He said he had a similar experience with his PopCorn Hour, both have the Sigma chipset.
Described the “experiment” with loading movies onto a usb thumb drive (instead of playing via network and NAS boxes) and everything worked fine. He then said “well it must be a network issue”, I quickly pointed out that users have reported the same problems and they have a USB Hard Drive as their storage solution instead of networked sources. So the “network” is not the problem.
The problem is that WD had discontinued ongoing support for a product that is still being SOLD. Network protocols may change and storage formats will evolve, but that is why ongoing support is important… especially for on something that is still being SOLD.
He checked with the development teams. Supposedly the techs read the forums and they are aware that there is an ongoing problem. BUT, he was unable to say if or when a solution (firmware) would be made available.
I expressed my thanks for his time but made a strong suggestion that WD should be part of the conversation on this issue… especially on their OWN forum instead of remaining silent and ignore the situation.
Western Digital - you need to step up to the plate and support your products. The last firmware release was “buggy” from the release, then the support was dropped. I’m sure we could all understand if the hardware cannot support newer formats (ex H265 video) and that is why a product is “retired”. But that is NOT the situation here. The unit needs to WORK on the files/formats that it is supposed to work on, in the way it is supposed to work.
I do not know if the Gen 4 has similar issues, but if it does not, certainly there is some “base code” that can be applied to a new firmware that GIVES US OUR GEN3 UNITS BACK!
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The 2.01.86 rollback apparently solved all the recent freeze issues with my gen3 wdtv.
I’m quite sure it’s not the case of “planned obsolescence”, or silent update from wd, or hardware fault due to overheating.
Those issues IMHO are related to a new and more aggressive background activity of some service that overloads cpu or ram of our little box.
Just want to recall the flixster_lookup_cache files you can find in .backdrop folders of your family movies since 2.02.32
Definitely some services call home and someone has been recently updated to be more intrusive
PS… writing from Italy
It is incredible that WD is aware of this situation and yet stick their heads into the sand. I think they are legally obliged to support the products they sell…
What if every one of us having the same problem send a review to the Amazon site where this item is being sold warning possible buyers of the issue?
That won’t solve our but maybe it will prevent some people from buying this unit.
We need a solution from WD. They are aware of this problem, but till now no single reaction and that is a shame!
Nevertheless… I just wrote a review on Amazon, addressing the freezing problem… Perhaps this is a good idea after all…
I just sent another review in amazon spain. People should know what support they can expect from WD
Hello. I know this topic continues to be discussed. mp4s and the rollback. I have downloaded the rollback with the link joey smyth provided but to no avail. i updated the .ver file to 3.02.32. I follow the steps and it says the update was successful, it reboots and then it sits with a black/blank screen. (it does recognize there is an input connected). Any suggestions. I have 6 of these. I am trying to play an mp4 from a usb device.
a brand new thumb drive was used for the rollback files. (formatted to fat32) … i’m at loss… any help would be appreciated…
You shouldn’t have needed to modify any of the firmware files. I downloaded the 2.01.86 files from here:
http://support.wdc.com/KnowledgeBase/answer.aspx?ID=5860
Note: that firmware internally has a version number of 4.01.86, basically to fool the system into thinking they’re newer, but no changes should be needed on your end to rollback.
The downgrade was a no solution for me. My wife and the kids hate the old firmware. I bought a Roku 4 because if this and will not look back.
Check the power supply. The cheap power supplies that come with these only last so long and as they begin to fail they add a lot of noise to the input power which we all know isn’t great on something that is essentially a computer.
Be careful to check the plug polarity of the power on a replacement. (Which part of the plug is + and -)
Well, it’s back to freezing randomly again, with disappearing services. Frankly, at this point I’m going to muddle along for a while longer, and as soon as I can afford to I’ll replace the WD with something that will do the job…even if that means setting up a minicomputer in the living room.
