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HBO Max Is Working To Fix HBO Max App

An upgraded version will finally be rolling out by the end of the year on most platforms.

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There's finally some good news in store for HBO Max subscribers--according to Vulture, the execs behind the platform are aware of the app's unpredictable instability, and are reportedly getting ready to do something about addressing it. An unnamed WarnerMedia exec has gone on record, promising that an entirely new app is coming.

"We're going to replace every single connected TV app in the next four or five months," said the exec. The upgraded app has been in development since late last year, and is expected to roll out to Roku and PlayStation users first (though no timeline was disclosed), with AppleTV coming before the end of 2021, while mobile and web-based apps are being slated for "early 2022."

The same exec quoted above also promised it "will be wildly better than what's out there" and "just work better across the board." Of course, easier said than done--the real proof will be once customers have the app installed and use it at their leisure to pressure-test and watch content as they would normally. HBO Max has apparently blamed the recurring issues on complications from the ad-supported tier, distributing programming to non-English speaking markets, and that HBO Max was running on a retrofitted version of the old HBO Go and HBO Now services.

While bugs and tech hiccups are increasingly part of the streaming landscape, HBO Max has far and away been the one plagued with the most problems. It's easy to, as this exec has done, promise a "sophisticated and cool and sexier" interface and user experience--at this point, all customers really want is to watch HBO Max, and not know whether the app will crash repeatedly.

David Wolinsky on Google+

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CarolOli81

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Edited By CarolOli81

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masscrack

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the new lg tv app is horrible, all dolby vision stuff buffers on my oled, 1gig download speeds wired lol.

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DJRyuuji_Fury17

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I really hope so, it not only crashes on Roku but also freezes my Roku to where i have to Unplug it and plug it back in.

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Tekcor

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I expect the new version to still be complete garbage. These companies always outsource this stuff who developers that just want to get it done quick and move on to the next target. There's no care put into these apps.

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Voldrik

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Thank God. The PS5 app is complete garbage. Skipping forward or back freezes it, it lags horribly and it crashes so often. I'm surprised Sony didn't pull it like CP77

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christophersays

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The HBO Max app is probably one of the worst out there. It runs like crap on my Sony X900F (Android TV) as well as on my Xbox Series X.

The problems are different for each. On the Xbox, the sound is great and sufficiently loud but there is often stutter that's pretty obvious when camera is panning left to right. On the Sony tv (so, Android/Google tv UI) - the HBO Max app doesn't have the stutter problem but the sound is crap. It's SUPER low, and I have to turn my surround sound receiver WAY up to hear it at 'regular listening levels'. Even with it turned up to sufficient levels, the sound isn't really 'right' - it's mainly just all out of the center channel speaker. Not correct audio like it is via the HBO Max app on Xbox.

So I have to choose between awesome sound but stutter video on Xbox, or smooth video with 'OK' sounds when cranked on Android TV in Sony. I often just choose the OK sound. Oh, the HDR is kind of crap in the HBO Max app as well. At least with the Xbox version I can easily disable HDR via Xbox OS. I really hope they can address one or both of these so I have at least ONE place to decently view HBO content!

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MoogleStar

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Yeah I have the app on my PS4 and its absolutely terrible.

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