Smart Resume not working correctly

@user_24efbe hang tight a few more days.  I'm in contact with Xfinity Executive Management and hope to have an answer soon.  I'll keep everyone posted.  A technician is coming out tomorrow to see the issue first hand at my location (Vancouver).  I'm convinced the cause is within the software that runs the X1 box.  I just have to meet them face to face to explain it and show examples.  Wish me luck.  As far as other services, I've had DISH in the past.  They were okay but not as good as Xfinity (when Xfinity is working properly).

@JP98683 Good luck.  But I've already been through that.  As I said earlier, the technician claimed it wasn't a box problem, it's a back-end problem.  But nothing has been done about it yet.

@user_24efbe

How about shutting off the feature for now and manually skipping through the commercials until they figure out the problem?

Same problem here in Seattle, WA.  Have done all the troubleshooting steps, system restart, plug, unplug, etc.  All smart resume end 60-90 seconds too early on all recordings.

@Audiomixer It's more than the inconvenience of having to scroll through the commercials manually - that's bad enough, given the amount of money we pay not to have to do that. But every single one of my DVR recordings on every channel starts and ends too early. I CANNOT capture an entire show, from start to finish, in one recording. The Guide time associated with the programming is NOT sync'd with the DVR time displayed on the box - it varies from 30 seconds to a minute or too, and that's enough to cause a) the Smart Resume not to work right and b) the end of every show to be missing. It's maddening, if you care about seeing the entire show.

@user_cea344 Thanks for your comments.  At this point it appears that Comcast is unable and/or unwilling to resolve the issue we're all having with Smart Resume.  I had a tech come out on Thursday after swapping out two separate boxes on my own to no avail.  He worked on my cabling for approximately two hours with no joy.  He finally stated that Smart Resume is working the way it's supposed too.  In other words, going forward we can expect a 20 to 40 second delay between the time Smart Resume ends and the next segment of the program we've recorded starts again.  It appears that someone high up in the chain of command made a unilateral decision to change the functionality of Smart Resume without communicating this fact to customers or to COMCAST EMPLOYEES!   I suspect the rationale of the person who made that decision was influenced by the sponsors who are paying for commercial air time.  They apparently feel they are not getting what they're paying for so they have applied pressure from their perspective.  I know it's not how things used to work but in today's world nothing stays the same for long.   Personally, I've clocked the time between Smart Resume stop and when the program begins again on several different programs.  In my case the average time between Smart Resume stop and program resume is approximately 30 seconds give or take a couple of seconds.  With this in mind, my workaround for the Smart Resume issue is to use Voice control and fast forward 30 seconds once Smart Resume stops.  This gets me pretty close to program resume.  The time interval may vary depending on where you are.  Use a timer or stop watch to determine the time interval within your particular case and fast forward that amount of time once Smart Resume stops.  Yes, it still may be a bit frustrating to have to do this but, to me, it's not as frustrating as having to sit through several commercials in a row.  To get past commercials I use voice command a lot during shows that don't have Smart Resume functionality.  Take for example the game show Jeopardy.  I've determined that the timing of the first commercial break is 2 minutes 20 seconds.  So, when the first break begins I fast forward that amount of time so I don't have to watch commercials and/or future show trailers.  Some would say that I watch too much television.  I guess that's true but it keeps me off the streets.  Best wishes to all who may view my comments.  I hope I've helped ease some of your frustrations. 

Thank you for your reply, I am sorry and mad they won't change it back.  My 3rd DVR is now having problem besides the Smart Resume so back to Xfinity I go.

I'm sorry to see that @thedf and the others on this thread are having such issues with Smart Resume. We definitely understand that it can be frustrating to have to sit through commercials!

As of yet, we do not know of any official issues and so we can certainly do some troubleshooting and open a ticket, if needed. If you would like for us to do so, so that this is noted in your account(s), please send us a direct message, using the following instructions:

(Full credit to @BruceW for this excellent explanation!) 

"Search for Xfinity Support" won't work. To send a "Direct Messaging" message to Xfinity Support:

 • Click "Sign In" if necessary

 • Click the "Direct Messaging" icon or https://comca.st/3GUqZqq

 • Click the "New message" (pencil and paper) icon

 • The "To:" line prompts you to "Type the name of a person". Instead, type "Xfinity Support" there

 •  - As you are typing a drop-down list appears. Select "Xfinity Support" from that list

 •  - An "Xfinity Support" graphic replaces the "To:" line

 • Type your message in the text area near the bottom of the window

 • Press Enter to send it

See https://comca.st/3o2AM53 for an example.

@user_cea344 As @JP98683 mentioned, you can use voice control to skip ahead and avoid commercials.  You can also reprogram the PageUp button to perform a 30-second skip (by default it's set to 5 minutes).  To do this, press the exit button three times, and then enter the numbers “0030” on the keypad. You won't receive any confirmation of the change, but after that the PageUp button (up arrow) should skip 30 seconds forward, and the PageDn button (down arrow) should skip 15 seconds back.

Thanks for the tip @user_cea344   Just to update everyone, today (Sunday) I went to the local Xfinity office to exchange my X1; including my original DVR, this makes 4 different DVR's I've had over the past 2 months.   The original DVR did not have a Smart Resume issue; I had to swap it out because it would reboot intermittently throughout the day.  The reason for my exchange today was because on Saturday night my (then current) DVR started freezing every 3 to 5 minutes when I played a recording.  I tried viewing several different programs and it was freezing on all.  I tried a system refresh to no avail.  I suspect that perhaps the hard disk was corrupted. Low and behold, the latest DVR I installed works perfectly!  I no longer have a Smart Resume issue!  Therefore, it appears the information the tech who came out last Thursday provided about ALL DVR's now being programmed to stop Smart Resume 30 to 40 seconds before program restart was incorrect.  In addition, it appears that Xfinity upper management DID NOT arbitrarily change the software code to install a gap between the end of Smart Resume and the continuance of a recorded program.  Hopefully, this latest information will provide ammunition for those of you still having the problem to continue to seek resolution from Xfinity.  If an Xfinity employee reads this and wishes to discuss the issue further I'll be glad to provide more in-depth information regarding the software and firmware versions of my DVR that works correctly.  I thank everyone for taking the time to read my comments.  Hopefully, things will get better for all of us. 

@user_92e336 and everyone else.  It seems I was a bit premature in saying the issue was resolved.  I updated everyone on Sunday night that the issue was resolved.  However, when I watched some of my recorded programs on Monday, the problem was back.  Apparently, when the daily system updates (in my case on Monday morning between 4 and 6 a.m.) were run the issue was introduced into the box I had installed the previous day.  I have again contacted Support via private message and advised them of the situation.  I haven't heard back from them yet.  At least they are admitting that it is a known issue.  Maybe if we keep pestering them they will give it some priority and resolve the issue once and for all.  Based on my experience and what I've heard from other users, this is definitely a coding issue.  I first noticed the issue back in September when I had my first box replaced due to it continually rebooting.  My original box did not have the Smart Resume issue but all subsequent boxes (I'm on my third replacement now) have exhibited the issue.  Thanks to everyone for their continued contributions in trying to get this frustrating issue resolved.  It should be a relatively simple fix if the right software engineer takes an in-depth look at the code.

I don't know the cause of this issue but I do believe it started with recordings from the new TV season.  Smart Resume was working for me and for my daughter at her house, miles away, until we each started watching the newer TV shows.  I had a bunch of them from last season that I've been watching all summer without issue.  New season, new problem.  I still think it has to do with selling the last commercial or two for more money than the others that truly get skipped with Smart Resume.

@JP98683

Question for you. Have you compared the HD channel with the SD Channel? I had to shut off the "Prefer Best Available Resolution" option. I've noticed it mostly does it on FOX CBS NBC ABC. If I go to the SD Channel of CBS it seems to be in actual time. But if I go to the HD Channel of CBS it's behind by 40 seconds? Does your service have this issue too? That almost seems like that's another main issue too. My DVR is starting eariler than normal and cutting off the very end of a show before the previews for the next episode even starts.

I haven't compared SD and HD channels but I believe what you're saying.  I have the same problem with recordings starting earlier and ending earlier in addition to the Smart Resume issue.  Apparently, Comcast now admits they have a problem but God only knows when (or if) it will every be fixed.  Comcast moves slower than the federal government in getting things done!  Good luck to us all!

@eastmoreland I'm clocking about 30 to 40 seconds on CBS and NBC.  I've reset my page up and page down buttons to forward 30 seconds and 15 seconds respectively so I just automatically hit the page up button after smart resume stops.  This makes the situation tolerable but I'd still like Comcast to resolve the issue.  Thus far, they don't seem to be willing to check/adjust the software code.  At least now they are acknowledging there is an issue (something they didn't do in the past).  As I posted in a previous reply, they are slower than Congress in getting things done.  This issue has been going on for at least two months and maybe more.  I don't know if you're experiencing this other issue or not but a bunch of us also have to contend with recordings starting earlier than they should and, more frustratingly, ending before the show has completed.  I just keep hoping that SOMEONE at Comcast is listening.  I have an open ticket but there's been no progress for the past 3 days.

@JP98683 Yes, I have experienced the early start and early finish issue.  But it seems to me that the early finish is only a few seconds early.  Not that I would actually know, but it seems like I'm not really missing much of importance in the shows that I've been watching.  If it was bad, I'd go into settings and adjust the end time to be later on future recordings.

@JP98683 I'm clocking almost exactly 30 seconds on CBS, and about 40 seconds on NBC as well.

@hooey I found that if I wait a couple seconds after it automatically resumes, when the clock begins to move a second or two, I can then fast forward to the end of the commercial. Usually it is about 30-35 seconds of commercial to get to the show. 

@thedf

Or even much less annoying is to turn the [EDIT: LANGUAGE] Smart Resume off. :>) 

@hooeyI have found that you need to let the commercial run for about 3 or 4 seconds before the fast forward works without going back to the commercial. 

@Audiomixer 

That is exactly what I did - I turned Smart Resume off.  Good ridance since it was more trouble than it was worth.  Maybe some day they will fix it so that when you click on "Smart Resume", it will stop at the end of the commercial with the recorded problem starting right up.  This is what it really should do anyway.

@user_b73da3  Don't hold your breath on that.

I exchanged my box again for the 4th time and for 3 shows it has been working.  Keeping my fingers crossed.  

Thank you for taking the time to reach out to our community forum about your Smart Resume not working, @TnJ1221! I definitely want to make sure you're able to skip through the entire commercial when you're watching your recordings.

Please send a direct message by clicking the chat icon in the upper right corner of the page, click on the pen and paper icon, then enter “Xfinity Support” in the “To” section. Please include your name and address and I'll be happy to help :). 

I tried sending a direct message to xfinity support and was chastised for doing so (something about not being invited according to community rules???).  Whatever...   There was no happiness to help there.