My Netflix subtitles on my Roku LT are yellow and big - I find this highly annoying. I changed my settings on my Roku box and this works for my HBOGo - when I change the font size and color on my Roku these changes appear on True Detective (for example). When I change my caption settings on my Roku box - still yellow and big on Netflix through Roku. When I change my captions settings on the Netflix web site - still yellow and big on Netflix through Roku.

Who can I blame for this? The Netflix rep tells me that Roku has to change their box to accommodate Netflix and this is Roku's problem. Do I really need to buy some other kind of box to get normal captions on Netflix? I've had a Roku since 2009 and I love it. This bums me out. Are there solutions for this problem? Thanks for any advice or info on this issue.

False. Netflix has settings in the account section and Netflix writes the channel. Therefore Netflix is responsible forNetflix's subtitles.

The Netflix channel completely overrides the Roku subtitle settings.

mroop wrote:

My Netflix subtitles on my Roku LT are yellow and big - I find this highly annoying. I changed my settings on my Roku box and this works for my HBOGo - when I change the font size and color on my Roku these changes appear on True Detective (for example). When I change my caption settings on my Roku box - still yellow and big on Netflix through Roku. When I change my captions settings on the Netflix web site - still yellow and big on Netflix through Roku.

Who can I blame for this? The Netflix rep tells me that Roku has to change their box to accommodate Netflix and this is Roku's problem. Do I really need to buy some other kind of box to get normal captions on Netflix? I've had a Roku since 2009 and I love it. This bums me out. Are there solutions for this problem? Thanks for any advice or info on this issue.

You'll need to wait for the new Netflix interface to roll out to the LT models in order for the settings on the Netflix site to work. I'm a bit surprised, however, that the Settings->Captions settings are ignored on the older Netflix channel. Channel developers don't have to do anything special for those settings to work in the standard video player, so I would have expected that to just work. That sounds like a bug to me.

EDIT: I just tested the Roku Settings->Captions options, and they worked exactly as expected in the old Netflix channel, so I'm not sure why you'd be seeing different behavior. Probably obvious, but make sure you don't have the color and size set to "Default".

TheEndless wrote:

EDIT: I just tested the Roku Settings->Captions options, and they worked exactly as expected in the old Netflix channel, so I'm not sure why you'd be seeing different behavior. Probably obvious, but make sure you don't have the color and size set to "Default".

I changed my Roku settings to "black" text color and "small" text size and that is what I get on HBOGo, but I still get yellow and big on Netflix - I checked it on two videos on Netflix - both yellow and big. I just changed the color to red and the font size to large - it changed on HBO Go and Netflix is still yellow and the same size.

mroop wrote:

You'll need to wait for the new Netflix interface to roll out to the LT models in order for the settings on the Netflix site to work.

That's good to hear. Is there any time frame for when this might roll out? Is this definitely going to happen?

TheEndless wrote:

EDIT: I just tested the Roku Settings->Captions options, and they worked exactly as expected in the old Netflix channel, so I'm not sure why you'd be seeing different behavior. Probably obvious, but make sure you don't have the color and size set to "Default".

I haven't tried it for a while but they used to be completely ineffective on my 2 XS.

mikeyts wrote:

TheEndless wrote:

EDIT: I just tested the Roku Settings->Captions options, and they worked exactly as expected in the old Netflix channel, so I'm not sure why you'd be seeing different behavior. Probably obvious, but make sure you don't have the color and size set to "Default".

I haven't tried it for a while but they used to be completely ineffective on my 2 XS.

It was a 2 XD that I just tested it on, but I may be running a newer firmware version that could explain the difference (i.e., it's already fixed, but hasn't been rolled out to everyone, yet).

Just tried it on my 2 XS again; still no effect. I'm running System V5.3 b3063, Netflix V3.1 b6014. What have you got?

^ NDA applies I suspect.

kc8pql wrote:

^ NDA applies I suspect.

My suspicion as well . (Well that's strange--I got a "You cannot make another post so soon after your last" error, when my last post was in a different thread. I suppose that its a anti-spam measure).

I have a Roku HD that has the same problem with subtitles. I can change them in the Roku settings, but Netflix still plays the very unreadable yellow all-caps ones. I have also tried changing them on "my account" on Netflix's website, also to no avail. It's very annoying. I hope they fix it soon.

kristyjnh wrote:

I have also tried changing them on "my account" on Netflix's website, also to no avail.

Those settings only fully work in the new Netflix UI on Roku 3 and other platforms (also the Win8 app and Silverlight and HTML browser players; they'll change font color only on some other devices).

[rant]So if all features are only going to work correctly on a Roku 3, maybe Roku should just sell that one model.
I'm getting sick of being treated as a second class citizen because I don't have the most expensive product in the line up.
this is second chance I've given Roku and they are screwing me again.
And I'm getting a little tired of Roku advertising the features, Roku taking my money for the box, then Roku refusing to accept any responsibility for stuff not working the way it should. "It's the channel developers" is all support says. Well, Roku, how about working with your channel developers in the interest of your customers. I'm starting to see some value to Apple's draconian approach.
[/rant]

So, anyone have ANY idea when I'll be able to get proper use of captions in my BRAND NEW Roku 2? A little black border on Netflix titles is all I want....

ApK wrote:

[rant]So if all features are only going to work correctly on a Roku 3, maybe Roku should just sell that one model.
I'm getting sick of being treated as a second class citizen because I don;t have the most expensive product in the line up.
this is second change I've given Roku and they are screwing me again.
And I'm getting a little tired of Roku advertising the features, Roku taking my money for the box, then Roku refusing to accept any responsibility for stuff not working the way it should. "It's the channel developers" is all support says. Well, Roku, how about working with your channel developers in the interest of your customers. I'm starting to see some value to Apple's draconian approach.
[/rant]

So, anyone have ANY idea when I'll be able to get proper use of captions in my BRAND NEW Roku 2? A little black border on Netflix titles is all I want....

The upcoming streaming stick is rumored to use the same processor as the Roku 1 and Roku 2, and will have the new Netflix channel, so I'd be pretty surprised if the new Netflix channel doesn't make it onto the Roku 1 and Roku 2 when that's released.

ApK wrote:

this is second change I've given Roku and they are screwing me again.

I still don't understand this line of reasoning... How, exactly are they screwing you again? The new Netflix channel wasn't available on the Roku 2 when you bought it, so it's not like they took something away from you.

TheEndless wrote:

The upcoming streaming stick is rumored to use the same processor as the Roku 1 and Roku 2, and will have the new Netflix channel, so I'd be pretty surprised if the new Netflix channel doesn't make it onto the Roku 1 and Roku 2 when that's released.

That would be nice.
I hadn't realized the stick was still 'upcoming.' I saw it in the comparison grid and assumed it was on sale already. Not a product I'm interested in, just surprised that they haven't jumped faster on Chomecast's initial popularity wave.

TheEndless wrote:

I still don't understand this line of reasoning... How, exactly are they screwing you again? The new Netflix channel wasn't available on the Roku 2 when you bought it, so it's not like they took something away from you.

The first time was when I bought a Roku HD having been led to believe it would be upgraded with new features like Netflix subtitles. Instead, I had to buy a different device (also because even basic Netflix performance is now unacceptable on the HD...constant rebuffering.)

OK, never buy a device because of future promises. Always assume nothing has any lasting value or ongoing support and that everything has planned obsolescence and and is disposable.
Screwed, but lesson learned.
Next, Nowhere in the new marketing materiel or feature comparisons on the Roku site does it say the experience in the same channels would be lacking if you don't get the Roku 3. Both the 2 and the 3 just have a check box in the "1000+ of channels" column. If that's the material I'm supposed to make a purchasing decision on, it's misleading. I did at least know that the Youtube channel is only on the 3. I don't like it, and it's not like they highlight the fact on the sales pages, but at least it was on the site somewhere.
You say "The new Netflix channel wasn't available on the Roku 2 when you bought it" as if the average consumer should know that there even ARE different versions, or that they have different features, or that different models of Roku might have different ones. That's not reasonable in the consumer market, certainly not with the marketing info Roku presents. This is not an open-source hacker/enthusiast platform like MythTV. This is a mass market consumer appliance.

Does that make the reasoning any easier to to understand?

ApK wrote:

You say "The new Netflix channel wasn't available on the Roku 2 when you bought it" as if the average consumer should know that there even ARE different versions, or that they have different features, or that different models of Roku might have different ones. That's not reasonable in the consumer market, certainly not with the marketing info Roku presents.

It's common practice on the sales/marketing pages to highlight the positives of a product. It's bad marketing to put negatives. Why do you think the whole "read the fine print" exists? If you only read the sales/marketing page of a product and bought based on that, then honestly, that is the fault of you the consumer for not researching further, because you as a consumer should know that a marketing/sales page will not show the negatives of a product. Also, buy a product based on current features, not with wishlist of future features and expectations. Roku can only move as fast as their development and engineering departments can.