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Even without data caps, a TV connected box shouldn't be pulling down hundreds of GB per month while idle. Without data caps the author of this post may not have

by kylec 12y ago

Even without data caps, a TV connected box shouldn't be pulling down hundreds of GB per month while idle. Without data caps the author of this post may not have had an issue, but that still doesn't make what Amazon's doing OK.

aroch 12y ago
It only has 8GB of onboard storage, what the hell is it downloading and what is is doing with all that downloaded data?
- rgbrgb 12y ago
  It's preemptively buffering video streams.
  - johansch 12y ago
    At 80 GB/day? It would have to fill the flash memory 10x over in a day.
    - danudey 12y ago
      It could easily be a software bug. 1. Pre-cache TV show A 2. Local store full 3. Delete TV show A 4. Pre-cache TV show B etc
      - adolph 12y ago
        Never ascribe to nefarious intent that which may be a software bug/feature.
      - Steko 12y ago
        It probably caches the first minute of hundreds of shows since those are the pain points in streaming services.
        Touche 12y ago
        I feel like this might be it. With the Fire TV when you select to watch something it starts instantly, no matter if it is a show that you watched the previous episode or a random movie you picked out on the spot. I think it's caching everything that is visible from the homescreen, at least.
      - amalag 12y ago
        Yes this has to be a bug, I don't think they planned on downloading 80Gb/day and the bandwidth cap is not relevant. Unless they have a terrabyte HD they plan on keeping full there is no reason to download that much.
    - mythealias 12y ago
      jun 7 and 8 happen to be sat & sun. so it is possible the author was browsing different shows and the tv trying to keep up with it.
AnthonyMouse 12y ago
> Even without data caps, a TV connected box shouldn't be pulling down hundreds of GB per month while idle. Without data caps the author of this post may not have had an issue, but that still doesn't make what Amazon's doing OK. Amazon is doing exactly what they should be doing. Especially if their box is doing the right thing and downloading the shows in the middle of the night. Comcast et al should be thanking them for this because it moves a huge amount of traffic from peak to off peak and reduces the amount of capacity upgrades they'll need. This is a prime example of why data caps are stupid.
- yoda_sl 12y ago
  I think both side can be argued. On one hand I really appreciate how quick movies start, and I was initially quite impressed, and like the OP I had to check yesterday my Comcast Internet setting for a different reason: I was quite surprise to see a big jump in my usage. I was planing to start looking at what could be using more bandwidth than usual but thank to the post I know what it is. At least Amazon should be offering a setting to disable that feature, and whenever someone want to play a movie and the setting is off, then warn the user that he can always turn it back on... At least in the USA where bandwidth is still limited Amazon should be offering the proper setting for the user to decide. [edit: fixing typo]
- karmajunkie 12y ago
  Ahhh, no. Amazon should not be downloading tens or hundreds of gigs a month without telling me or giving me a way to shut it off. Regardless of your feelings about bandwidth caps, there's plenty of situations that might present a problem with that—shared connections, metered connections, and half a dozen other things i'd rather be doing with my internet connection in the middle of the night than having it download shows my kid watches.
- bitJericho 12y ago
  Spotify allows me to cache what I like for future playback without streaming. It does that by placing me in control.

by kylec 12y ago

aroch 12y ago

It only has 8GB of onboard storage, what the hell is it downloading and what is is doing with all that downloaded data?

rgbrgb 12y ago
It's preemptively buffering video streams.
- johansch 12y ago
  At 80 GB/day? It would have to fill the flash memory 10x over in a day.
  - danudey 12y ago
    It could easily be a software bug. 1. Pre-cache TV show A 2. Local store full 3. Delete TV show A 4. Pre-cache TV show B etc
    - adolph 12y ago
      Never ascribe to nefarious intent that which may be a software bug/feature.
    - Steko 12y ago
      It probably caches the first minute of hundreds of shows since those are the pain points in streaming services.
      - Touche 12y ago
        I feel like this might be it. With the Fire TV when you select to watch something it starts instantly, no matter if it is a show that you watched the previous episode or a random movie you picked out on the spot. I think it's caching everything that is visible from the homescreen, at least.
    - amalag 12y ago
      Yes this has to be a bug, I don't think they planned on downloading 80Gb/day and the bandwidth cap is not relevant. Unless they have a terrabyte HD they plan on keeping full there is no reason to download that much.
  - mythealias 12y ago
    jun 7 and 8 happen to be sat & sun. so it is possible the author was browsing different shows and the tv trying to keep up with it.

AnthonyMouse 12y ago

> Even without data caps, a TV connected box shouldn't be pulling down hundreds of GB per month while idle. Without data caps the author of this post may not have had an issue, but that still doesn't make what Amazon's doing OK. Amazon is doing exactly what they should be doing. Especially if their box is doing the right thing and downloading the shows in the middle of the night. Comcast et al should be thanking them for this because it moves a huge amount of traffic from peak to off peak and reduces the amount of capacity upgrades they'll need. This is a prime example of why data caps are stupid.

yoda_sl 12y ago
I think both side can be argued. On one hand I really appreciate how quick movies start, and I was initially quite impressed, and like the OP I had to check yesterday my Comcast Internet setting for a different reason: I was quite surprise to see a big jump in my usage. I was planing to start looking at what could be using more bandwidth than usual but thank to the post I know what it is. At least Amazon should be offering a setting to disable that feature, and whenever someone want to play a movie and the setting is off, then warn the user that he can always turn it back on... At least in the USA where bandwidth is still limited Amazon should be offering the proper setting for the user to decide. [edit: fixing typo]
karmajunkie 12y ago
Ahhh, no. Amazon should not be downloading tens or hundreds of gigs a month without telling me or giving me a way to shut it off. Regardless of your feelings about bandwidth caps, there's plenty of situations that might present a problem with that—shared connections, metered connections, and half a dozen other things i'd rather be doing with my internet connection in the middle of the night than having it download shows my kid watches.
bitJericho 12y ago
Spotify allows me to cache what I like for future playback without streaming. It does that by placing me in control.