Why is my video choppy or stuttering?

If movement on screen looks jerky, like a camera pan that judders instead of gliding, the video and your TV may be running at different frame rates. Zenith Player has a setting built for exactly this.

What is frame rate?

Every video is made of still images shown quickly one after another. The number shown each second is the frame rate. Films and TV programmes aren't all made at the same rate, and your TV also runs at its own rate. When the two don't line up, the TV has to repeat some images more than others, and that uneven pattern shows up as a small, regular stutter.

What Match frame rate does

When Match frame rate is on, the app switches your TV to the frame rate of the video you're playing. Each image is then shown for the same length of time, so films play smoothly.

How to turn it on

1. Open Settings.
2. Go to Playback.
3. Switch on Match frame rate.
4. Play a movie and watch a scene with steady movement.

Why the screen goes black for a second

Changing the TV's frame rate takes a moment. When a video starts, your screen may go black for about a second while it switches. This is normal and doesn't mean anything is wrong.

If the blink bothers you, or your TV seems to have trouble switching, you can turn the setting off again. Playback will still work; motion may just be a little less smooth on some content.

Stuttering isn't always frame rate

Choppy video can also come from a slow or unsteady connection. A few ways to tell the difference:

• Regular, even judder during smooth movement usually points to frame rate.
• Pauses, a loading wheel or the picture freezing point to buffering instead. Restart your router and box, use a wired connection or 5 GHz Wi-Fi where possible, and try Fewer stalls under Buffer in Settings → Playback.

If you watch in Multiview, remember it needs a reasonably powerful box and good internet, since each stream uses bandwidth. Try a single stream to see if the stutter goes away.

Still stuck?

Message us on WhatsApp or live chat at zenithplayer.us with your device code (found in Settings → Help & support) and a photo of the screen. Tell us which device you use and whether it happens on movies, live channels or both.