My Sony Android Smart TV occasionally freezes and reboots- Why?

[MrHT]

I have a Sony XBR-43X800E 4K TV and had it for about three years. For the first couple of years, I never had any issues with it except for the smart TV being rather sluggish, so I ended up buying an Apple TV streaming device for better streaming performance. But when I bought the Apple TV, I still kept the TV connected to the internet in case I needed the Smart TV for backup or in case there are firmware updates. Well, around the summer of last year, the TV started occasionally freezing whenever I turn on the TV and then would reboot on its own. It would act up and do that maybe around once a month. So what I decided to finally do was reformat the TV and do a factory reset. I did that and kept my TV disconnected from the internet and did all my streaming exclusively from the Apple TV box. After doing that, I didn't have any freezing/rebooting for MONTHS. So I was like, maybe the factory reset did the trick! Well, last week, I decided to connect my TV to the internet to check to see if there were any firmware updates. There weren't any, so I shut off the connection to the internet thereafter. Well, today while I was watching a Blu-ray, the TV just randomly shut off while I was watching the movie and then rebooted. So here we are back to the freezing/rebooting issue again.

I really wonder if my connecting the TV to the internet last week triggered something on my TV and it's now causing it to glitch up again. So I went ahead and did a factory reset today and will try to keep the TV disconnect from the internet forever, assuming that is even causing the issue. But I will keep my fingers crossed that this will do the trick.

So does anyone know what could be causing my TV to randomly freeze and reboot occasionally like that? Is it possible that connecting the TV to the internet is making the TV install some bloatware that's causing the firmware to glitch and make it freeze and reboot?

[unberechenbar]

I don't have that TV but something similar recently happened with my PS3. I noticed that the Youtube app was really laggy a few months ago and it got worse, to the point where it would freeze after a few videos and my PS3 would crash. So I decided to stop using the Youtube app and didn't have any more problems. On a whim, two weeks ago I decided to try it again and it worked successfully.

I think given how old your TV is, it might be possible that some app is running in the background when you connect it to the Internet but it's not working properly and is causing your TV to crash. Maybe you can try opening the apps one by one and see if any cause problems? Then if it's possible you could try uninstalling it, although for me the Youtube app came with the PS3.

[MrHT]

Thanks. The way the Smart TV performed, in general, made me feel that it's severely underpowered and all the updates and apps might have bloated the TV. I'm crossing my fingers that this factory reset along with keeping the TV disconnected from the internet will prevent the issue going forward. Or else, I'll be deeply concerned that maybe the new firmware is glitchy and that would be bad since there is no way to roll back the firmware.

I guess, going forward, I should never use a Smart TV to stream. They just aren't very good at it and I don't know why every TV has to have that function. A streaming box works so much better and they're not that expensive at all.

[D00mM4r1n3]

There was an AVForums thread discussing an issue with Sony TV's rebooting and one reported fix is to set RS232C from the AndroidTV Settings > "Network and Accessories" to "Via Serial port"". It apparently also fixes an issue with the USB port light going off and on.

https://www.avforums.com/threads/sony-reboots-every-time.2251041/page-2

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by D00mM4r1n3

There was an AVForums thread discussing an issue with Sony TV's rebooting and one reported fix is to set RS232C from the AndroidTV Settings > "Network and Accessories" to "Via Serial port"". It apparently also fixes an issue with the USB port light going off and on.

https://www.avforums.com/threads/sony-reboots-every-time.2251041/page-2

Interesting, but what the heck is this RS232C control?

[slimdude]

Originally Posted by MrHT

I have a Sony XBR-43X800E 4K TV and had it for about three years. For the first couple of years, I never had any issues with it except for the smart TV being rather sluggish, so I ended up buying an Apple TV streaming device for better streaming performance. But when I bought the Apple TV, I still kept the TV connected to the internet in case I needed the Smart TV for backup or in case there are firmware updates. Well, around the summer of last year, the TV started occasionally freezing whenever I turn on the TV and then would reboot on its own. It would act up and do that maybe around once a month. So what I decided to finally do was reformat the TV and do a factory reset. I did that and kept my TV disconnected from the internet and did all my streaming exclusively from the Apple TV box. After doing that, I didn't have any freezing/rebooting for MONTHS. So I was like, maybe the factory reset did the trick! Well, last week, I decided to connect my TV to the internet to check to see if there were any firmware updates. There weren't any, so I shut off the connection to the internet thereafter. Well, today while I was watching a Blu-ray, the TV just randomly shut off while I was watching the movie and then rebooted. So here we are back to the freezing/rebooting issue again.

I really wonder if my connecting the TV to the internet last week triggered something on my TV and it's now causing it to glitch up again. So I went ahead and did a factory reset today and will try to keep the TV disconnect from the internet forever, assuming that is even causing the issue. But I will keep my fingers crossed that this will do the trick.

So does anyone know what could be causing my TV to randomly freeze and reboot occasionally like that? Is it possible that connecting the TV to the internet is making the TV install some bloatware that's causing the firmware to glitch and make it freeze and reboot?

I used to have this problem when I had internet service with AT&T, which was only 25 Mbps. Since I've switched internet providers with 100 Mbps, I don't have that problem anymore. The speed of an internet has a lot to do with the performance of a smart TV, and any other wireless devices that you have, especially when you're opening apps and downloading HD and 4K content. How many Mbps do you have for your internet speed because, that could be the reason why your Smart TV is sluggish. A slow internet speed can cause frequent buffering and freezing issues, depending on the number of wireless devices you have connected, that's sharing Mbps in one household.

[DVD Josh]

I've been having this issue for a few months now and probably would have gotten a new TV if not for the fact I still watch a ton of 3D content. I am going to try the RS232 port thing and see if it works.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by slimdude

I used to have this problem when I had internet service with AT&T, which was only 25 Mbps. Since I've switched internet providers with 100 Mbps, I don't have that problem anymore. The speed of an internet has a lot to do with the performance of a smart TV, and any other wireless devices that you have, especially when you're opening apps and downloading HD and 4K content. How many Mbps do you have for your internet speed because, that could be the reason why your Smart TV is sluggish. A slow internet speed can cause frequent buffering and freezing issues, depending on the number of wireless devices you have connected, that's sharing Mbps in one household.

The smart TV is getting the max speed because I have a 155 mbps internet speed hooked up to the Smart TV via ethernet and the LAN port on the TV is 10/100. So the max the TV is able to receive is 100 mbps.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by DVD Josh

I've been having this issue for a few months now and probably would have gotten a new TV if not for the fact I still watch a ton of 3D content. I am going to try the RS232 port thing and see if it works.

Yeah, I just tried it too. No idea if it did do the trick and am trying to wrap my head around the concept behind it. But worth a shot. So, I'll give it a few months to see what happens.

I think I might go back to Samsung when I get my next TV. I thought Sony TVs would be more stable, but the Android platform is just awful. And I can't even use the ARC function on the TV because occasionally, it would automatically turn my receiver on and off while the TV is on standby. My guess is that the TV is rebooting while on standby and it's affecting the ARC control while doing so. So I had to turn off the ARC function to stop that annoying problem. There's just too many glitches with this TV.

Based on the link that D00mM4r1n3 posted, it's apparently a glitch on the latest firmware. Lesson learned. Next time I get a TV, it's not getting hooked up to the internet or getting updated. All streaming will be done from a separate streaming box. A TV only has one job- to deliver the picture & sound. Nothing more and if it does just that right out of the box, then no need to update the firmware or connect to the internet.

[DVD Josh]

Originally Posted by MrHT

Yeah, I just tried it too. No idea if it did do the trick and am trying to wrap my head around the concept behind it. But worth a shot. So, I'll give it a few months to see what happens.

I think I might go back to Samsung when I get my next TV. I thought Sony TVs would be more stable, but the Android platform is just awful. And I can't even use the ARC function on the TV because occasionally, it would automatically turn my receiver on and off while the TV is on standby. My guess is that the TV is rebooting while on standby and it's affecting the ARC control while doing so. So I had to turn off the ARC function to stop that annoying problem. There's just too many glitches with this TV.

Based on the link that D00mM4r1n3 posted, it's apparently a glitch on the latest firmware. Lesson learned. Next time I get a TV, it's not getting hooked up to the internet or getting updated. All streaming will be done from a separate streaming box. A TV only has one job- to deliver the picture & sound. Nothing more and if it does just that right out of the box, then no need to update the firmware or connect to the internet.

I think I'm with you on that. No more FW updates. It killed my printer.

[slimdude]

Originally Posted by MrHT

Yeah, I just tried it too. No idea if it did do the trick and am trying to wrap my head around the concept behind it. But worth a shot. So, I'll give it a few months to see what happens.

I think I might go back to Samsung when I get my next TV. I thought Sony TVs would be more stable, but the Android platform is just awful. And I can't even use the ARC function on the TV because occasionally, it would automatically turn my receiver on and off while the TV is on standby. My guess is that the TV is rebooting while on standby and it's affecting the ARC control while doing so. So I had to turn off the ARC function to stop that annoying problem. There's just too many glitches with this TV.

Based on the link that D00mM4r1n3 posted, it's apparently a glitch on the latest firmware. Lesson learned. Next time I get a TV, it's not getting hooked up to the internet or getting updated. All streaming will be done from a separate streaming box. A TV only has one job- to deliver the picture & sound. Nothing more and if it does just that right out of the box, then no need to update the firmware or connect to the internet.

I don't like eARC either, I disconnect it, and reconnect all of my components into separate inputs. Before you decide to change the brand on your next TV, have you tried to contact Sony technical support and maybe they can give you some assistance over the phone to troubleshooting the problem. It may be an issue that can be resolved in a few seconds. If anybody should know it would the manufacturer because it's their product.

[DVD Josh]

Originally Posted by slimdude

I don't like eARC either, I disconnect it, and reconnect all of my components into separate inputs. Before you decide to change the brand on your next TV, have you to tried to contact Sony technical support and maybe they can give you some assistance over the phone to troubleshooting the problem. It may be an issue that can be resolved in a few seconds. If anybody should know it would the manufacturer because it's their product.

I vaguely recall that someone on AVS or somewhere else said that Sony sent them a special FW which resolved their issue, but there was never any followup comment. I wonder if that's true or not.

[MrHT]

Originally Posted by DVD Josh

I vaguely recall that someone on AVS or somewhere else said that Sony sent them a special FW which resolved their issue, but there was never any followup comment. I wonder if that's true or not.

Hmm, now I'm tempted to give it a try and contact them. But let me see if that RS232 port thingy worked. So I'll wait it out and see if the freezing/rebooting issue persists.

Though it's odd why Sony wouldn't share the firmware publicly if it's a global issue.