How to Change Netflix Video & Audio Quality on Browser

I was hesitant to try Netflix, at first, because of the stupidly low quality of service provided by the internet duopoly of PLDT and Globe. This weekend, however, I found some time to try the streaming service, watch a movie and tinker around some settings.

The discovery of my account’s default playback setting to “Low” wasn’t surprising. I’m on WIFI, through PLDT’s basic DSL plan. I can stream YouTube seamlessly at 480 during peak hours, and 1080 on off-peak. This should be enough to stream movie or tv shows at ~720p. I was right! But finding the option to do this took some time.

Set your account's preferred playback settings

• Hover over your avatar & name on the top right corner, then go to "Your account".
• Under the "My Profile" section, click "Playback Settings"
• Select your preferred quality (Low, Medium and High), then click "Save".

Whatever option you selected becomes the default of any movie or show that you watch. I prefer Medium as the basic PLDT line can barely keep up with HD playback. On a 23-inch screen, the drop in quality isn't that noticeable if you're watching, at least, 2 meters away.

Going back and forth setting this option can be a pain. Fortunately, there's a way to override it on the actual player.

Overriding Netflix's default playback setting

• Press CTRL + ALT + SHIFT + S
• A small dialog box will appear with the following options: Audio Bitrate, Video Bitrate and CDN
• Select the audio and/or video bitrate that you prefer. If you know the best CDN for your ISP, select it.
• Click the "Override" button.
• Press CTRL + ALT + SHIFT + S to close the dialog box.