If you plan on streaming content via any of the Kodi addons we recommend using a VPN. A VPN will anonymize your online activity, protect you from spying ISPs, and allow you access to geo-blocked add-ons and content.
We personally use IPVanish VPN and highly recommend it. You can sign up for IPVanish VPN here or if you want to know more about why to use a VPN with Kodi click here
The other main reason for buffering in Kodi can be your Internet connection, if you have a low speed Internet connection then you will face buffering issues on Kodi so you need to have a good internet connection for watching Movies, TV shows or Live TV content on Kodi. You can use the Speed Test Application to test the speed of your Internet connection on your android devices. I have seen cases were users had high speed broadband connections but the speed received on the Android Device was pretty low. So it always beneficial to make sure as to what speed you are getting on your device.
Follow the below instructions to Eliminate Buffering From Kodi 17.1, you will also find the Video Guide at the end of textual instructions:
01. From the main screen of Kodi 17.1 you need to click on Settings icon
02. Click on Player Settings and make sure at the bottom, Settings are set to Expert level
03. Select Videos option and then on the right side scroll down to Enable Scalers for Scaling Above
04. If you have device with low specs like FireStick then set “Enable Scalers for Scaling Above” to 0% by clicking on little Down Arrow Key
05. Turn off Hardware Acceleration, this can also help you to reduce buffering on Kodi
Another way to reduce buffering on Kodi is to install Ares Wizard, that can help you to manage your buffering settings.
Follow the below instructions to install Ares Wizard on Kodi 17.1:
-> From the main screen of Kodi click on Addons Now click on Settings Icon that you can see at the top left side of your screen
-> Select Addons option and click on Unknown Sources option to enable unknown sources on your Kodi
-> Once you will click on Unknown Sources option you will get an popup window, then press Yes
-> Now you need to return back to the main screen of Kodi by pressing the return button(Back arrow)
-> Click on Settings Icon that you can see at the top left side of your screen
-> Click on File Manager
-> Click on Add Source
-> Click on None(Textbox) and Keyboard will popup on the screen
-> Type in the web address http://ares-repo.eu and click on Done
-> After that click on TextBox underneath “Enter a name for this media Source”, type magic and click on OK
-> After that you need to return back to the main screen of Kodi by pressing the return button(Back arrow)
-> Click on Addons
-> Now click on Addon Browser Icon that you can see in the top left corner of your screen
-> Click on Install From Zip File
-> Click on magic
-> Click on repository.aresproject.zip
-> Wait for Addon enabled notification at the bottom right corner of the screen
-> Click on Install from Repository
-> Click on Ares Project
-> Click on Program Addons
-> Click on Ares Wizard
-> Click on Install and then wait for Addon enabled notification at the bottom right corner of the screen
-> Now click on Ares Wizard again and then click on Open, it will start checking for updates and install them
-> If you get any popup then ignore that by clicking on Ok button
-> Now on the main screen of Ares Wizard you need to click on Ares Wizard
-> Click on Tweaks>Advanced Settings Wizard and click on Next button at the bottom right side of screen
-> Click on Generate Settings and it will give you settings based on the device you are using
-> Now click on Apply Settings option to apply these settings on your Kodi
-> If you get any popup then click on Ok and then restart your device
That is it, now you should see an improvement in Buffering on your Kodi.
