How to fix buffering and pausing problems when playing online videos

If you experience buffering or pausing while playing online videos on websites such as YouTube, here are a few times that can fix the problem.

– Pause the video to allow the playback to catch-up to the download. On YouTube, take notice of the playback bar on the bottom of the video. The circle on the right-side of the horizontal red bar signifies the current playback position of the video. The grey “loading” bar to the right of the red bar shows how much of the video has downloaded to your computer. If the red bar/circle catches up to the grey bar, you will experience buffering and pauses. To minimize that you can pause the video and allow the grey bar to move considerably ahead of the red bar.

– Choose a lower playback resolution. On the playback bar, notice the gear icon among other icons on the right side. Click the icon and choose a lower number than currently selected.

– Consider increasing your internet connection speed. If your internet connection speed is below approximately 2500-3000 Kbps, you will likely experience playback issues with higher quality video. Contact your internet service provider and see if a higher speed is available.

If the tips above don’t fix the problem, see the YouTube help for buffering and playback problems.