Problems playing content in the PLEX browser

Good evening.

Since I got started with PLEX, I have encountered various problems with the platform. The main one was the compatibility of certain files, depending on the CODECS used. I’ve already made up my mind that not all movies can be reproduced here.

But I have also come across another problem, which has recently been increasing exponentially and I cannot find a solution for it. And it is the following:

When I use the browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera…) on many occasions (and now, more) the movie that I try to play, starts playing for a couple of minutes, and when those couple of minutes elapse, the movie stop charging; it stays charging for an infinite amount of time, and never gets to continue playing. So, if I exit the movie, and start playing it again where I left off, it loads again, and after a few minutes, the same thing happens; it can’t load any more, and it never continues to play.

Instead, if I use the Windows desktop app for PLEX, and try to play that same movie, I have no problem; The movie fully loads within a few minutes, and I don’t experience any interruptions.

Are there any browser compatibility issues? It’s a nuisance to be in bed, wanting to watch a movie on the tablet, and not being able to do it because every so often, the movie stops loading and I can’t continue (no, I don’t use the plex android app because not having the premium version, I can only play 1 minute of each movie)

Any solution?

Thank you very much.

Web browsers have limited video/audio support. It is very common for video and audio to transcode. If your server cannot transcode in real time, you will experience buffering.

You can monitor playback via Plex Dashboard → Now Playing to see if the media is transcoding.

Plex for Windows is has fewer limitations. It direct plays most video and audio formats, which is why it plays most media without buffering.

$5 USD one-time to unlock for all Android devices on the same app store account.

https://support.plex.tv/articles/203868088-unlocking-or-activating-plex-for-android/

And what are these limitations in browsers due to? Is it because of the browser, or is PLEX consciously limiting browsers?

Yes.

H.264 8-bit video and AAC 2.0 audio will most likely direct play.

HEVC/H.265 8-bit depends on the browser and the hardware. See "hevc" | Can I use... Support tables for HTML5, CSS3, etc.
AC3/EAC3 depends on the browser. Google “Does ______ browser support _____ audio” or similar for details (I’m not aware of any “master list” of browsers and supported video/audio/formats).

No 10-bit video support, and, by extension, no HDR support.

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