Thinking of watching Netflix via Contour? - a word of warning

I agree.  Nice addition, but very slow to load.  I can switch to Apple TV and load Netfilx quicker than waiting for the Cox app to load.

Always use the right tool for the job.  Meaning, if you want to stream, buy a dedicated streaming device.

Cable boxes are purposely designed with low-end technology:  cheap processors and unexceptional chipsets.  Service providers buy them cheap then profit with rental fees.  I wouldn't trust a cable box with digital data because it's not designed for digital data.  The Netflix add-on is an afterthought and a gimmick.

Roku and the like are designed to stream with faster processors and competitive chipsets.  Consumes get caught up with gimmicks and convenience that they forget about the "Intel inside."

I don't understand the Netflix add-on.  Doesn't Netflix make an app for your SmartTV?  Stream Netflix to your TV.  Why would you plop a cable box between the Internet and your TV?  You're just adding another layer of processing...an inferior layer of processing.

Bruce,  sorry to intrude on this thread.  I am glad you posted this explanation.  would it explain why the Pandora feature of my Contour 1 DVR works so poorly.  I can listen to Pandora on a computer and have zero problems.  When I listen on the DVR,  there are lots of problems.  For 2 days I have gotten the messages " we are sorry...." and "we had difficulties retrieving your playlists".  I have asked questions on this forum about the Pandora problems but received no response. I paid for.a service visit from a Cox Technician.  He was very nice but admitted that he was not aware that Cox offered Pandora.  The fee was waived. 

I think its great I have a tv  in my living room not used too much and for the little use it gets I not be worth while to buy a Blu-ray and with smart tv you have to type in Netflix what your looking for it least contour makes it more the faster also I was wondering the speed of loading does it go on the speed of internet like if you have ultimate you get faster load time as if you have a lower speed internet you load slower can someone answer this 

Searching for specific TV shows or movies may be faster with the Contour voice remote, but it sounds like you'll be watching your shows or movies faster with the SmartTV app or streaming device.  I'll take faster watching over faster searching.

I don't believe Internet speed (Internet Package) is a factor in these cases.  Both Chaloots and Pauldv recommend using a streaming device over Contour.  Meaning, they each have a dedicated streaming device and, as compared to their experience with Contour, don't have to wait for their programs to buffer and decode.  Their Internet speed is adequate for streaming but Contour still takes a long time to play.

In addition, Netflix recommends a download speed of 25 megabits per second to view their Ultra HD content...aka "4K"...which would be your highest glutton of bandwidth.  All but one Internet Package from Cox is below that recommendation (Cox Internet Starter 10 at 10 Mbps).  Even if you have the 10 Mbps package from Cox, that's more than enough bandwidth to stream HD content...aka "2K"...from Netflix.  That is, of course, if you don't have other devices on your network lowering your throughput.

The frustrating experiences I posted in attempting to view Netflix via Cox' Contour 2 may have some basis on the fact that in my case the TV used in this attempt is not, repeat not, connected to the internet. It relies solely on a Cox coax connection.

While this particular TV may in fact have WiFi capabilities I deliberately choose not to enable them for personal privacy and security reasons. The locations in my residence which do have TVs in them are networked back to the Cox gateway (modem/router combination) with cat5e ethernet cables in addition to coax. When viewing using my Roku the connection I choose is by ethernet and not WiFi. This provides a much more stable connection and signal than having to rely on WiFi. I might also add that my particular Roku model comes equipped with an ethernet port. Not all of them do; the Roku sticks (and, to my knowledge, all of the other brands of 'stick' and Chromecast) do not.

If you were streaming Netflix via Contour 2, I was assuming your TV wasn't connected to the Internet.  You use a Netflix app via Contour...you log into your Netflix account via Contour...and you search for Netflix content via the Contour on-screen guide.  Your TV didn't need to be networked because Contour was your streaming device.

I didn't know much about the Contour-Netflix functionality so I had to research.
 - Ultra HD content (4K) is not compatible.
 - HD content (2K) marked "Internet" in the guide will count toward your data usage.
 - You must have a compatible Contour 2 receiver...probably forcing you to purchase their DVR service.
 - You must have Cox Internet service...any level...to use the Contour 2 Netflix app.

I discovered there are Contour 2 receivers without DVR.  Meaning no $13 DVR service fee.  I didn't want to record so Cox issued me the awful Rovi with its SD IPG.  I should trade it in!

I agree a wired connection is more stable than a wireless.  Even if I had the Nighthawk X10 AD7200 router and a TV capable to beamform, I'd still go wired.

Merely as an aside, and nothing to do with viewing Netflix content using Contour 2, but a technical detail perhaps worthy of note nonetheless.

My Roku Ultra features a ethernet, USB & micro SD card ports. It's fed with a cat5e cable from a port on an Apple Airport Extreme router. The Airport Extreme data signal is provided by cat5e ethernet coming out of a port on the Cox gateway in another room. This setup not only provides the more stable, uniform signal to the Roku but the doubly added nicety as a WiFi bridge, or extender, or repeater, or whatever name you wish. Despite Cox' marketing as a silver bullet for whole-house WiFi, the Panoramic gateway leaves much to be desired. In my room with the Cox DVR and Roku I have recorded a drop in WiFi signal of more than 60%. Distance as well as interference from other devices takes its toll on WiFi. The addition of the Airport Extreme in bridge mode, a mere 10-11 feet away from where I use my laptop produces a minimum of 88% signal.

I wouldn't call it a bridge because you only have one network.  Perhaps an extender.

The only reason I included the word "bridge" is that according to Apple, when using an Airport Extreme in addition to an already existing router to extend an already existing WiFi network, the term they use is to put it in "bridge" mode.

Personally, I much prefer one syllable words.

I don't have experience with repeaters and extenders because I've never used them.  I've read about them but have no hands-on knowledge.  Lucky, I guess.

I guess it could be a WiFi bridge.  The Cox Gateway is one network.  Your Airport is connected to that network via a Cat-5 cable.

If the Airport assigns the IP address to the wireless card in your laptop, that's another network.  While you're using your laptop, you're wirelessly networking with the Airport.  If the Airport then transfers your wireless data to one of its LAN ports...the one connected to the network of your Cox Gateway...that's a bridge.  Your Airport is bridging a wireless network to a wired network.

That would make sense because an Airport-to-CoxGateway wired connection would be more stable, uniform and faster than an Airport-to-CoxGateway wireless connection.

Is it possible to run a cat cable from your TV to your router?  Probably not because you keep mentioning frequencies.

Older 4K TV?  I wouldn't think that would matter.  It should still have an 802.11n card, right?  That would be 600 Mbps on 5 GHz.

Can any other app on your SmartTV access the Internet, such as firmware updates or Angry Birds.  Sometimes users forget to update their devices with the same settings as their new routers.  I'm not saying that's you but never hurts to check.

300 Mbps is adequate bandwidth; however, if you have other users consuming bandwidth, your router may be just buffering your Ultra HD content.