[iOS App] Giant Bomb Video Buddy

Good thing you have a fix ready to go for the playback issues with it not starting where you left off. It bugged me a lot today so nice to see you have it done so fast. Thank you! This is the best way I can consume GB and it's great especially on trips.

I've been having an issue lately with audio cutting out. Once every 5-10 minutes, the audio seems to cut out for maybe half a second, then comes back. There's no distortion when cutting out or back in, and it's only the audio that stutters, the video is fine. I'm running the app via an iPhone 6 running iOS 8.4 (though it was on 8.3 when it started) and casting to my chromecast.

Figured this would be the best way of reporting bugs... If you want any more info or anything just let me know.

Even after the latest update, videos are still not picking up where they left off.

@riv3nt: If the issue doesn't occur when playing videos on the device itself, it's possible that the trouble is on the Chromecast side of things. Unlike AirPlay, Chromecast videos are actually streamed directly from the server to the receiver and the iOS device just acts as a remote control. If your Chromecast spends a fair amount of time unplugged, you might try leaving it plugged in and connected to WiFi so that it can take care of any pending automatic updates. Depending on when the issue started, the change in Giant Bomb's video encoding settings could be a factor too. The Low and High streams both received a significant bump in bitrate in May, so if only videos posted since then experience the issue there could be some interaction there. If you were able to experiment with combinations of Chromecast vs local playback and pre-May vs post-May videos, that might help zero in on the source of the trouble.

@pompouspizza: Well that's vexing. Two things which jumped to mind would be making sure the update has been installed and trying to give the player a few seconds to catch up. For the former, the in-app news will pop up once the release is available, not after it's been installed. I thought I'd updated the headings to read "Version x Released" to make that less confusing, but apparently I hadn't yet. Sorry about that. A quick way to tell if you're on the latest is to see if recently posted videos let you select the Mobile quality setting. Regarding giving the player a few seconds, my workaround for setting the initial playback position being broken in iOS 8.4 is to wait for the video to successfully load at 0:00, then immediately telling it to jump to the right spot. It can result in the scrubber staying at 0:00 while loading, but during testing I had good luck with it jumping to the right spot once it was able to establish a connection. If it all still seems broken, please let me know and I'll see what I can do.

An interesting thing; I was just writing a message to @soup_menu saying that I'd verified I'm on 3.0.5 and that Mobile is available, and that I'm still seeing the issue, as I'd verified it twice. But then I went to do a last check so I could give an extremely detailed bug report, and it started working properly. Now I can't get it to fail! So maybe I was mistaken, this is why you always document your bug reports, because in doing so you might see you're incorrect.

Hey there, I love your app and I just wanted to say that the latest update did indeed fix the issue for videos not picking up where they left off. I've got a new one though that I've been running into for the past week. A handful of times vidoes will start and then suddenly stop. The video will begin playing again, but without an image, audio only. And other times, videos will begin playing that way. Fixing it is a simple matter of quitting out of the app and dismissing it, but I thought you would like to know about the issue.

Keep up the great work duder, I use this app pretty much everyday.

@weegieanawrench: Thanks for the heads up! Apple introduced a new video playback API in iOS 8 and they've begun to discourage use of the ol' standard (in service since iOS 2.0!). Based on some of these issues it seems like the old video player code may be starting to fall into disrepair, so it sounds like I'll need to find some time to see about making the switch.

I've hit an issue where the app crashes every time I start it without fail. I see the loading indicator for the video list and then crash. I am on iOS 8.4 on an iPad Air. I have removed the application and reloaded from the App Store however the problem persists. I can tell the data is deleted after the reload because the theme returned to the default light style when I loaded it again. Any advice here as I'm stumped and loved this app ever since the site video player started using the custom html5 player controls on iPad versus letting the browser use the native controls (I wish it wasn't gimped this way!).

Thanks in any event!

@ashurazro: Well that's no good. I don't seem to be able to reproduce the issue here, but I'd definitely like to get you back up and running if I can. One thing to try (if you haven't already) would be to uninstall, then reboot, then reinstall. If a regular uninstall/reinstall didn't do it this is a bit of a long shot, but stranger things have happened.

One of the most useful tools when tracking down a bug is having a crash report. I took a look and I'm not seeing any reports that look like they would be related, so if you happen to have reporting disabled turning it on (Settings > Privacy > Diagnostics & Usage > "Automatically Send" and "Share with App Developers") and triggering the crash a few times should generate one.

Also, since there haven't been any updates to the app recently, there's a decent chance some external factor is involved. If you can recall anything that might have changed on your device (like an OS update or a jailbreak) or on your network (like getting a Chromecast Dongle or starting to use a proxy server) around the time the issue started, that could help narrow things down too.

It's my Nexus Player. I just happened to unplug it yesterday as part of a move and noticed the app was fine when I went to test further just now. I plugged the player back in and the crashes started again sure enough. Unplugged the unit and no problems. No jailbreaks involved here as well. I've enabled the diagnostic options and just triggered 3 crashes in a row. I may just disable Google Cast on the unit for now as I find it isn't super reliable in any event (and always got Kodi for TV based Giant Bomb!). Let me know if you want me to do any further testing here as it's no problem for me. I also have a Chromecast somewhere but it probably hasn't been plugged in for 6 months.

@ashurazro: Thanks! I'll keep an eye out for the crash reports (they can sometimes take a day or so to show up) and will see if I can't chase down the source of the trouble.

I love this app and use it almost every day. Thanks!

P.S. Have you ever considered making an app that plays GameSpot videos. I feel like I'd be watching more of their content if they did.

Howdy - any plans for an AppleTV app? I'm an iOS developer as well, thinking about doing a GB video app for fun, but Giant Bomb Video Buddy is a great app and I'd just use it when the AppleTV comes out if it's supported.

Hello! I've been using the app for the last few weeks and it's great, except that I can only play videos in Mobile quality - any higher quality and it stutters throughout the entire video. I don't think it's a bandwidth issue - I have a 100Mb internet connection (actually runs a bit faster, around 110Mb) and a new Asus 802.11ac router (I know the Chromecast doesn't support 802.11ac, but the multiple antennas should help). I don't have any issues streaming HD content with other apps on the Chromecast (Netflix and YouTube), only the Giant Bomb Video Buddy app. I know you mentioned that the app uses an older version of Apple's media playback implementation so maybe's that's the problem?

For the record, I'm using an iPhone 6 running iOS 9.0.1, no jailbreak or anything like that.

Thanks!

@kylenalepa: Sorry I didn't spot your post sooner. Unfortunately, the most likely source of the trouble in this sort of situation would be a network issue between you and the server storing the videos, and that isn't something that would be fixable in the app. The silver lining is that these sorts of issues are usually temporary and tend to clear up on their own within a few days. If you're still experiencing the issue, one thing you could try is downloading the videos first, both to see how quickly they download and to see if the playback issues persist with local files.

Can you add a "use cellular data for downloads" toggle that defaults to off? Twice now I've chewed through most of my monthly data allotment by queuing up a couple videos to download and forgetting about it before walking out of wifi range. I know I can just disallow all cellular data use for the app in Settings, but then the app throws up a ton of errors when I open it off of wifi.

@cbirdsong: I can make a note to look into it, but I haven't had a lot time to mess with GBVB lately, so I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to give an ETA.

I've been using the app for a long time and it's probably one of the best apps on my phone. I don't know if this has been addressed or asked before (as I don't spend much or any time on the forums here) but one issue is how the app works with Chromecast's.

Streaming from the website/chrome browser on my PC is fine in all video qualities but streaming from the app causes video and audio stutter, the higher the quality you set the video too the more frequent this happens, oddly though if you lower the quality the frequency of the stutters goes way down, but the quality stays at what looks like 'HD'. I have the app set to 'mobile' and the TV shows a pretty smooth HD picture.

I'm not sure why or whats causing this but just wanted to let you know!

Will there be an iOS 9 update anytime soon to support Picture-in-Picture, Spotlight search, etc?

An Apple TV app would be pretty fantastic too, but I realise you've got a day job to do.

@espiox: Although I would like to look at getting some iOS 9-specific features added, things have been pretty busy 'round these parts, so unfortunately I'm not sure when I'll have the time to dive in.

I'd be willing to pay $10-15 for GBVB for the new Apple TV. Just sayin. =)

I think I found a bug. When I have 2 Chromecast on my network at once, the chromecast icon won't show up. In fact the icon will show for a second and then disappear. Disconnecting one of them makes it work. One is a chromecast 2, other is the original chromecast. Let me know if you need more info.

+1 on willing to pay for an ATV4 app

I too would gladly pay to see an apple tv app of video buddy. The youtube channel and air playing with your wonderful app for premium content is ok but a full fledged app would be incredible! Are there any plans?

Would also love to see picture in picture support. Would happily donate to see that as an option. Keep up the amazing work!

I would play for a proper Apple TV app as well, as I plan on grabbing one of those by the end of the year most likely. In addition if that could give you the time to also add those nice iOS 9 specific features, that would be stellar.

Add me to the list of "would buy an Apple TV app." The iOS version is great, and getting that clean, non-YouTubeified GB content on the new ATV would be awesome.

Ditto to buying an Apple TV app. Thanks for the great work you've already done!

I concur with everyone else. I mostly watch GB videos on my tv thanks to your very awesome app (I donated $10, would have done more if possible). Something I do miss is reading the comments though, so I often load up the website to scroll through the comments while watching a video as well.

The newest update that just rolled out mentioned that some features will be removed in the near-ish future. What features are we talking about here?

Another +1 for an apple tv app. I'm most definetely willing to pay for a GB app on there... Hell, name your price!

I love the app and really appreciate the work you are doing.

I'm currently stuck trying to link my account again though and was hoping you might have some advice. Last night I was reinstalling a bunch of software on my iPhone and Nexus 7. I tried to link in the iPhone Giant bomb video buddy and I got the link is invalid try again message.

Now I tried the same linking on the Luchadeer app on my Nexus 7 but got the same result. Does this have to do with the changes that are going on with the Giant Bomb backend that I have heard tale of?

Or am I missing something?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

@mierinco: QLCrew guy here. Yes, it's broken on GB's end and no app can link accounts now. They are working on it as far as I know.

@szlifier: thanks very much for the heads up!

fwiw for quite a while pause/resume downloading hasn't worked for me, it always restarts the download from zero. Iphone 5, always keep up on ios updates.

Thanks for the iOS update. Seems like an improvement. Is this a sign we'll see an Apple TV app in the near future?

Hey, what's the deal with the 20 video limit? I doubt it will bother too many people while it's in place but it does seem kind of weird and arbitrary. Is that something on GB's end or something you're doing for development purposes?

Hey all. It's been a while since I've had a chance to check in on the thread, so I wanted to pop by real quick and try to answer one or two questions that had cropped up.

On the topic of Apple TV, I'm afraid that isn't something that's currently on the road map. Never say never, but right now I'm a little too busy to undertake a project like that.

Regarding the 20 video per day limit, it's a temporary situation. Updating the app to work with the new API will take some time and, as I mentioned in the in-app news, it may require changing or removing some features (I'm intentionally remaining vague at the moment because I'm not yet certain exactly how things will shake out). In order to avoid delaying deployment of the new API or having GBVB go dark until I can get it updated, a compromise was made to keep the old API working, but to impose a limit on use. I know it's not ideal, but the number should hopefully be high enough to not cause too much trouble for users while still allowing Giant Bomb to move forward with the changes.

As always, thanks for being a stand-up bunch of users! You guys are alright in my book.

@soup_menu: I downloaded the ATV app yesterday??? It works great, apart from 1 issue, that I cannot find a way of changing the video quality. My internet cannot handle a HD stream, so on the tablet and phone I drop it to High. I will continue to Airplay though to get around this.

I was also wondering if there is any possibility to sync the position and watched/unwatched video statuses across devices?

This would mean that if were to watch on the iPad and then move to the ATV it would remember where I was/had seen.

Can you also please repost the donation link as I need to send some love the devs way.

@vivek: I'm afraid I'm not sure what Apple TV app you would have downloaded. As I mentioned, I'm not currently working on an Apple TV version of GBVB, so you would need to contact that other app's developer if you have questions about it.

Wanted to post and encourage you to make an Apple TV app as well. Thanks for doing the update for the API changes.

@vivek: That app was developed by a man named Kevin Gudgeirsson, according to the ATV app store. A quick search of his name shows he's made another app using GB's API called Game Vault, but there's no official website or email address to contact him. Unless someone can connect that name to a forum username? Otherwise you'll have to message him on LinkedIn, assuming it's the same guy.

Is there some issue with Chromecast and Video Buddy? Whenever I try pushing Video Buddy content to the Chromecast the video stutters every few seconds, which doesn't happen with any other service. Is there a issue with the Chromecast getting video from the VB servers or something I can do on my end?

I'm running into a issue where the app is reporting to take 3.3 gigs of space but no video is downloading and no video is showing up downloaded. Also randomly a video will finish downloading but isn't showing up as being downloaded. Can up ad a feature to show all the data that is being stored and a way to delete it.

Thank you

Anyone else having recent problems with the app? Since 3/19 I get an error and cannot watch anything (or even load the video list). Message is:

"An error occurred. Tap to retry."

Edit: Resolved - app was fine, issue was on GB end.

I've been using the app for well over a year now, just wanted to tell you its great. Best way to get Giant Bomb to my TV.

Just curious though, what's stopping you from getting livestreams on it?

I currently have no good way to get premium livestreams to my TV because the video player on my Nexus 7 is garbage and whenever I cast it, it starts from the beginning on my TV with no way of jumping forward. I'd love for this app to be my solution!

@readyplayerone: I'm getting this same problem today but only in the iPad version, my phone version is fine. What was the problem at the GB end? Did yours fix itself or did you have to do something?

See the below thread for details.

http://www.giantbomb.com/forums/bug-reporting-33/podcasts-blocked-everywhere-cant-access-mobile-sit-1794107/

I'm also getting "an error occurred, tap to retry". Some videos are also not playing through the mobile site (eg Day of the Tentacle QL). Looks like the Texas attack damage has been fixed, so doubt it's linked to that? Any help appreciated.

Getting the same error, too. After recently reinstalling the app, and re-authing, it no longer functions.