Is HBO Max not letting you download? You might have the wrong subscription. Here are 5 steps to fix it.
Streaming platforms have revolutionized the way in which we watch our favorite shows. Being able to pause, rewind and access our content on-demand is something we could only dream of 20 years ago.
A true modern-day marvel.
But even with all their virtues, these platforms had one main weakness for years. Their strong dependence on a stable internet connection. For a very long time, you could only stream from home and only if your internet speed was high enough.
Taking your content to the outside world was unheard of.
Luckily, as you probably know, these days that’s no longer an issue since you can now download whatever you want to watch and get on a plane, a car, or a train and still access a world of entertainment seamlessly.
But what happens when, no matter what you do, you’re having trouble downloading?
There are several reasons why this could be happening. From having the wrong subscription to not having enough storage on your mobile devices. The possibilities are nearly endless.
But don’t worry, I’ve gone ahead and done some research to help you.
Below, you will find a list of the most common causes behind this occurrence and the simplest steps you can take to address them. I’m certain that, if you follow them religiously, you’ll be downloading several Gigabytes of content in no time.
Sounds good? Let’s go!
I was in your shoes not too long ago, so trust me when I tell you that I understand how frustrating this is. We’ve grown so accustomed to being entertained at all times, that even thinking about a long ride to a distant destination without content to consume, is mind-numbing.
Some of the fixes I’ll provide you with will require you to prioritize and delete things you don’t need, so be prepared to back up any data you deem important before we proceed.
Without further ado, here are 5 steps you can follow to download content from HBO Max:
Let’s start off with the obvious.
You might think there’s no way you might have missed that your Internet connection is compromised. But remember that it’s the most apparently unimportant things, that we tend to overlook more often.
Even though service drops have decreased dramatically over the last decade, as you know, it’s still something that can happen now and then.
The first thing you want to do is pinpoint the source of the issue, as this will determine what your next course of action should be.
Solution: Before doing anything else, I’d advise giving your provider or call and checking the service status in your area. Should they tell you everything’s fine, the issue is likely coming from your modem, and you’ll need to reset it.
Here’s how you can do it:
There’s a very good chance that the problem could be unrelated to you.
You’d think that with the millions of dollars giant streaming companies, such as Netflix, HBO Max, and Amazon Prime invest in technology and development, they would not experience server downtime anymore, right?
Well… they do, and it can be disastrous.
As you probably know, servers are in charge of providing you, and all the other platform’s subscribers with the service you’ve come to know and love.
Any server downtime could result in inconveniences, such as login obstacles, slow loading times, and, you guessed it… the inability to download your favorite shows.
And while servers are built to be resilient, they’re certainly not failproof. A bug in the company’s coding, a short-circuiting hard drive, or even hacking, can lead to a lot of problems.
Solution: While there’s nothing you can do to fix HBO Max’s servers, you can at least check their status.
Here’s how to do it.
The higher the spikes, the more likely you are to be experiencing issues
If HBO Max’s servers are, in fact, down, I wouldn’t worry too much. In most cases, the service is fully restored within 24 hours.
If you ask me, anyone should be allowed to download HBO Max’s content if they pay for it.
Sadly, the company does not share the same views and has restricted the download feature to Ad-free subscribers only. As you probably know, HBO Max has two subscription plans, the Ad-Free version, which goes for $14.99, and the subscription with ads, which goes for $9.99.
I won’t go ahead and tell you that paying an extra $5 is totally worth it to remove the ads and be able to download your favorite content, as everyone’s preferences are different. But if you like the idea of accessing your favorite shows anywhere, anytime, those additional $60 a year might make sense.
Solution: If you do want to upgrade your subscription, here’s what you have to do:
If you subscribed to HBO Max through your internet provider, you’ll have to talk to them directly to upgrade, as your current plan is being billed through them. Luckily, the platform has a comprehensive guide on how to do this for every third-party provider.
Be sure to check it out to follow the right steps for your specific situation.
If none of the solutions above have worked, we can safely assume your storage space could be to blame.
These days, most mobile devices are equipped with several Gigabytes of available storage, which, unless you’re a content creator, should never run out. However, some apps and unwanted documents can quickly pile up and use up all your available space rather quickly.
This can be a problem for several reasons, one of them being that you won’t be able to download your favorite content from HBO Max. After all, your downloads have to be stored somewhere, right?
Solution: Here’s how you can free up some space on your mobile devices:
For IOS devices:
The broad strokes should be very similar for Android devices; however, there could be some differences between OS versions. Be sure to refer to Google’s help page to find out what steps to follow in your specific case.
If all else fails, we can start considering the possibility that the content you’re trying to download is not yet available for that feature.
I won’t get all technical on you, but making the platform’s content downloadable must be done individually, and can be a long process for the company’s programmers.
If the show or movie you’re trying to download has just been added or is otherwise exclusive to be played on the platform, you’ll most likely have trouble saving it to your devices.
Now, before you go ahead and cancel your subscription, let me assure you that 99.9% of HBO Max’s content should be downloadable. There are only a handful of movies and shows that are not.
Solution: I saved this for last because I wanted to rule out any other possible culprit. Assuming that you’ve already tried all the points above to no avail, this is most likely your issue.
Be patient, I’m sure the content you’re trying to download will be available soon enough!
Not being able to access a feature you’re paying for is annoying. Especially if you upgraded to an ad-free subscription specifically to download your favorite content.
It’s easy to feel cheated and annoyed.
Luckily, as I hope you’ve learned in this piece, addressing most of the causes behind this situation is fairly simple and not very time-consuming. More often than not, double-checking that you have enough available storage space and that HBO Max’s servers are functional, will do the trick.
Thank you so much for sticking with me all the way to the end. If you found this article helpful, you’ll be glad to know that we upload new content weekly. Stay tuned and become a Tech Detective yourself!
Detective Anderson is a grizzled veteran of policing the internet’s cyber-streets. After decades of experience busting illegal floppy disk rings and underground dial-up connections, Anderson has now been placed in charge of the more modern Tech Detective team.
