Youtube not playing on Droid?

philipkool
Newbie

I recently bought the Droid ERIS. For some reason, some youtube videos are playing and others are not. I go through the youtube app and the majority of the ones I try to see come up with an error message stating: "Cannot Play Video. Sorry, this video cannot be played."

Is this a problem with the phone or does this app not play all the videos that are on Youtube. It seems kind of silly if there are only some videos that can be played. I checked the forum and saw notes about deleting the Cache (which I've done) and there are still problems.

 

HELPPPPPP

0 Likes
Reply
20 Replies
philipkool
Newbie

I can't be the only one having this problem. Anyone else having this issue when trying to play youtube videos? I'm assuming that it's because the videos are too high of quality???

0 Likes
Reply
TheGreatOne
Master - Level 1

I have noticed that some youtube videos just won't play on my Andoid phone. I get a not compatible message. I believe certain youtube vidoes have to be compatible for a phone device.Some aren't. Sounds like that is what happening to you.

 

You can try to open the video in your browser instead.It might play there.

0 Likes
Reply
ivorycruncher
Contributor - Level 1

You know, my Eris used to be able to play YouTube clips just fine before the OTA update, and now it will hardly play any of them.  Sometimes I can even play one one time, but subsequent attempts to play the exact same clip fail instantly with an error that simply states it can't play the video.  That's lame.  And quality has nothing to do with it, because I've watched clips that I know are 720p HD clips when viewed on a desktop.  This is the only ongoing issue I've seen on my phone since the OTA update, but it's extremely annoying to have a Youtube app that won't hardly play any Youtube clips for no apparent reason whatsoever.

0 Likes
Reply
philipkool
Newbie

So apparently it's not just me. I'd think we'd have more people commenting on it here though if it was more widespread. It just seems silly that the phone has a youtube app specifically built for mobile, but it's not playing them. Doesn't seem like it's that "smart" of a smart phone.

0 Likes
Reply
justin1018
Newbie

Same thing is happening to me.  I don't think I ever got the message before the OTA update, but after I get the message 9/10 times with non-HD videos and everytime with HD videos.

0 Likes
Reply
Rrrracer
Newbie

Lots of chatter about this over at Phandroid.com, MANY people having this issue (including myself) after the OTA update. 

 

Mine worked great before.  Tried hard reset, battery pull, etc. to no avail.  Normal videos on mine only play every now and then, more not than so; I have not been able to get the HD to work at all.

 

Not a deal killer for me, but definitely throws a monkey wrench into the works; I certainly would like for it to function as it did before the update!

 

 

0 Likes
Reply
bkfist
Specialist - Level 1

I suspect this will be fixed along with the lockup problems pretty quickly.

 

I think Verizon and HTC were trying to get that MR update out quickly (just a *bit* too quickly this time) and a couple of bugs got introduced that they weren't aware of since they seems to be intermittent. 

 

I'm sure that since you are not alone in having this problem they will get it fixed.

0 Likes
Reply
noshoes84
Newbie

I have this same issue.  I cannot give input on weather or not it had anything to do with the update because my phone is only a week old and I got the update during the setup process.  Non of the youtube video's work through the app on 3g or edge however they will work in a browser and I can dowload the videos through Dolphin.  I also tried a few videos today through wifi and they worked fine and in high quality however the day I got the phone the videos did not work through wifi.  At first I thought this was an HTC issue and not verizon however since the videos are now working on wifi I am not so sure.  I can also tell you that my friend has the HTC Touch Pro 2 and all his youtube videos work without a hitch and the phones are sitting side by side when I get the dreaded "sorry this video cannot play."  That makes me think it's an HTC issue as his youtube app is somewhat different and also runs on windows mobile.  I called HTC and the customer service rep told me that there is definitly an issue with the HERO (sprint network) and they are working on a fix but they weren't aware of this on the Eris.  She put me on hold and had a tech confirm what I was saying and he did indeed say that the youtube video's are definitly not working on his test device.  They claimed they are looking into it so we shall see.  At first I only read a few of these threads online but now there are a bunch.  I am sure this is definitly a widespread issue. 

 

If you end up to this thread through google and you have a second please post.  Hopefully if there are enough complaints we can speed up the process and get something done.

0 Likes
Reply
jeffyo
Newbie

**bleep** this phone sucksnow.

0 Likes
Reply
amz2323
Newbie

Yes this is happening to me as well.  The majority of the videos on youtube will not play, and I get the same message "Sorry this video cannot be played."  This, along with the multiple lockups of my phone, really takes away from the Eris experience.  Hope these issues get addressed soon.  A "hotfix" would be nice rather than having to wait for the 2.0 update.  I was, until recently, very happy with my Eris.  I'm hoping that happiness will return....

0 Likes
Reply
6244joshua
Newbie

Me Too!!! This sucks! they get you all hyped up about the "iphone killer" and it stops working in two days! i am having problems with my phone beyond the you tube issue. Any one tell me if tis has happened to them: choppy movments with touchscreen after update, slow loading of content between screens? only had mine for a week but the clerk forgot to update so i used for two days before upgrade and you tube worked great!! Now will not play anything off you tube thru app or browswer including dolphin? Very frustrating!!! Any response would br great?

0 Likes
Reply
drummerman247
Newbie

ya, ever since the update my youtube doesnt work..and the phone locks up more/slows down, that it did before..wth...they need to get a fix for this situation ASAP.. I wonder why no one from verizon is commenting on this issue! I dont even know what that
"update" really did

0 Likes
Reply
SUZETTE90210
Newbie

I just "upgraded" to the Droid last week from a Blackberry.  I have also been getting the error message "Sorry this video cannot be played."  I hope these issues get addressed soon.  I am still in my "return" time frame.

0 Likes
Reply
Darkoverdroid
Newbie
I'm working on my 2nd Eris and just like the first one, it too sporadically plays videos using the app. Maybe 1 out if every 10 to 15 tries it will play. It doesn't matter if I'm on WiFi or if I have 1bar with 1x service or full bars on 3g, it's the same no matter what the signal quality is. The reason I had to exchange the first unit was because of a design flaw @ the charging port. When I plugged in the connector or wiggled the port with my finger, the homescreen would freak out and start flipping through screens and launching apps on it's own. (weird huh?) The Verizon rep said **bleep** is wrong with this thing, I laughed and said, that was my question for you. 😕
0 Likes
Reply
jkmasi
Enthusiast - Level 2

Happens to me too. More videos seem to play in landscape mode... strrage as that may seem. Definitely something worng with the YouTube app.

0 Likes
Reply
Dangerous_Dave
Contributor - Level 2
I think it's fair to say there's a problem with the YouTube app. For me it seems it will usually play a vid once, but if I try to replay the same one again it's definitely not happening. I get the same error message as all of you. But if I open the browser and pull it up it will play just fine. Definitely an app issue. Hopefully they're paying attention and will resolve it soon.
0 Likes
Reply
Liberty
Newbie

This is my second Eris.  The list of perceived problems with the first one was so long that Verizon support voluntarily suggested a replacement.  The replacement is not substantially better than the first one. 

 

My first problem was keyboard roll up on facebook.  That is, clicking in the status box would not roll up the keyboard to allow an entry.  Re-calibrating touch seemed to help for a post or two but not permanently.  The new phone works fine for a comment and most of the time for a post, but seldom for writing on a wall. (What in the world is the difference?)  I try to use facebook in full site mode because the mobile version does not allow live feed.  For some reason this seems to be part of the problem, in that its much better on the mobile screen rather than full site.

 

The other major problem is web video. The first phone would play almost none.  The second one will play probably half of those on a news site and almost none on you tube.  The error message on you tube is basically just "tough luck" and on news sites it is usually a circle with a line through it, a la a traffic sign.  Where is Quick Time?

 

The screen sensitivity on both phones is extremely erratic.  Sometimes a slight brush will send things off on a tangent.  Other times intense pressure does nothing.  Its going to be a tough market for older people.

 

Other things on the laundry list are:  1) The loading progress indicator is unreliable, sometimes not displaying, other times hanging up without completion, 2a) The Browser apparently has no 'Home"  feature.  2b) You can enter a non google home page, but it will eventually revert to google by itself. 3) I can't find a system clip board or cut and paste feature. 4) The screen some times dims until you touch it again.  4)  There appears to be no way to change a contact "Type"  once it is entered in people. 5)  Speaker and sound are dismal. 6)  Oh yes, one time my wife and I were sitting at a restaurant table with my Droid safely locked and in my pocket, when my wife's phone rang and it was me! ??

 

On the other hand, I am amazed at how reliable and fast it is on the web even with one bar voice signal strength.  It has a mind boggling array of features and uses and a pretty good Android Market. Verizon support is generally patient and pleasant, even though woefully ignorant of Droid problems. And of course probably anything is better than the Apple, AT&T idea.

 

Verizon needs to get their act together.  If the number of people I know who are waiting for their two year contract to be up is any indication, there is a terrific market out there.  But, a non video playing device is not going to make it.

0 Likes
Reply
jaggywire
Newbie

My Youtube won't play either!  It sux.  I will be going back to the store and see what they tell me in person.

0 Likes
Reply
axel_2078
Contributor - Level 2

So does this problem exist on both the Droid Eris and the Moto DROID?  It seems that most users in this thread are Eris owners, but I'd like to hear some more Moto DROID users chime in.

0 Likes
Reply
supernova
Newbie

I posted this on another thread, but it might be worth repeating here.

 

The pre-installed youtube link is junk. You should get much better results by linking to youtube mobile:   m.youtube.com

 

Good luck!

0 Likes
Reply