Suddenly, about Thursday off last week, my Amazon Prime Video stopped working. I successfully sign into Prime. I can scroll the menu of movies and series. However, when I click choose something, it spins for 10 or 14 seconds, and the screen turns black. The only way to escape that is to hit the “Home” button on my Roku controller, choose Prime Video, and start all over. Unfortunately, the same thing occurs over and over again.
My Direct TV works perfectly, and my Netflix works perfectly, so it isn’t my router and it isn’t my TV. Nevertheless, I have reset my router a couple of times. I have signed out of Prime and signed back in. I have reset the app. I have checked for updates and I am current. I have deleted the app all together and reinstalled. Nothing I’ve done has worked.
I’m hoping for a factual answer but, in the absence of one, I’ll take educated opinions.
Have you tried the phone app? If it’s working there, you’ll know that it is at least not an issue with your account. Ditto for trying it on your computer (I assume you are using a TV app). It may be an issue with the TV app, those are usually poorly supported. I switched to using a Roku for similar reasons.
I agree. The app may be the most current version as published for the specific combo of device and device OS, but that doesn’t mean it’s current enough to interact with the streaming mothership.
I once had a Vizio whose Netflix app couldn’t be updated beyond a certain ceiling version, for some obscure technical reason the manufacturer’s support function was unable to explain. Eventually Netflix was unable to stream to that old app, and that was it. The only remedy was to replace the TV.
You just gave me an idea. If the phone app works, I can load there and cast my phone to my TV. It’s a bit of a pain, but it’s better than a black screen.
I know smart TVs are inexpensive but if (likely) the TV has appropriate ports a Roku TV stick even with voice remote is much cheaper and normally better supported. And may be a more comfortable option than casting in the long term especially if other features/apps on he TV are aging out.
Yeah, I should have specifically said “the only remedy to getting a working TV app” was a new TV. Obviously there are other ways to get a streaming signal, and if apps are starting to be unsupported, that’s an argument for (annoying) general obsolescence.
My point was to respond to the assertion that “it’s not my TV” when other apps work. It might still be the TV. Or it might not. These things are complex and opaque.
I agree, my mother and father in law have been through this twice, each time having been with one of the now “legacy” SmartTV software suites. And even if you have one of the biggies (RokuTV, FireTV, Google) it’s amazing how underpowered those things are.
I literally have a fully functioning FireTV (last years model) and preemptively bought a Roku stick on a Prime Day sale because it’s a sooner, not later sort of thing.
And yes, my Prior TVs were old enough to not be really compatible (and 720p for that matter). I had been just watching all my streaming TV on my 29" computer monitor.
Depends entirely on your preferences. Seriously. So first, give yourself an earned pat on the back for doing everything right. You’ve checked your modem, your router, signed out and back in, checked the app, checked for updates. Boom, you’re 90% ahead of all the people I helped back in Tech support years ago.
If your casting from your phone works, and you’re comfortable with that (which will likely depend on how MUCH TV you watch in a day) it’s a zero dollar fix. If it were me (as I implied in my last post) I would go ahead and buy this as an example:
A 4K ready Roku streaming stick with remote on sale for $29 (normally $40) and plug it in, and just use it for all your services (yes, some faffing about with signing in to things again, but a once and done).
Depending on your personal set up, there might be a bit more customizing - does the TV have powered ports, do you use the TV’s speakers or a standalone set/bar, etc. but it should be a quick fix with good longevity and a minimum of additional work.
Not to mention if the TV itself dies down the line, and you buy a new one, you’ll likely just be able to unplug the stick and plug into a new model and ignore most of the new TV’s options.
The only way to escape that is to hit the “Home” button on my Roku controller,
So do you already have a Roku stick or set top box? Or is it a Roku-branded TV that you’re using? In either case, have you power cycled all the relevant devices (TV and any set top box if there is one)?
I have a Roku TV. My apps; Direct TV, Prime, and Netflix, are located at “Home” on the Roku controller. They are also located in the Direct TV menu. I’m going to try to access Prime directly from the app on my Direct TV controller and see if that makes any difference. Didn’t do anything last night because of the game.
I did a Roku TV reset last night, and I have my Prime back. It wasn’t the hard factory reset and setup. It took like ten seconds to do. I don’t know why it suddenly became a problem, and I don’t why a simple reset fixed it, but the story has a happy ending. LOL
We don’t use Prime (or Peacock, or others) much, but we did finish watching a series on the weekend. It took a long time to sign in, and I think there was a delay after choosing the show. But it did load. We just had to be patient.
I assume you mean Settings → System → System restart? That just reboots the TV, the same as if you had unplugged the power and plugged it back in. That should be the first step in attempting to fix any sudden weird problem, with a TV, computer, phone or whatever. Glad you got it fixed.
I have a similar but completely different problem on my LG OLED TV built-in apps: all of a sudden a video will stop playing; it just goes to loading and waits. In my case, it’s not just Hulu (which we watch more than anything else because of its DVR), it affects every other streaming app as well.
Everything is up to date, reboot doesn’t do anything, etc. I found the solution on a deep Google search that led me to a reddit forum, which had a fix that actually works. The fix: go to settings/general/location (or similar), change the country location from US to Canada, which restarts the tv. Then switch it back to US, and it works again (for a week or so). I suspect it has something to do with clearing a cache. Frustrating, but I haven’t gone to using a Roku stick yet.
Your answer is probably out there, but like me, you might have to dig for it.
I managed to solve my problem before I tried using the apps in Direct TV instead of the built in apps in my Roku. I don’t know if that would have worked or not. Do you have a streaming service that has channels that are gateways to Hulu and the others you mentioned?
