What to have ready
- An Android TV, Google TV or Android box on version 7 or later
- Your Tivo8k username, password and server address
- A Google account signed in on the device
- An Ethernet cable if the box has a socket for one
No account yet? Open the 24-hour trial, or look over the four terms.
Setting it up, in order
Work out which kind of Android you have
They behave differently and it is worth knowing which you are dealing with. A Google TV interface puts recommendations across the home screen; classic Android TV shows rows of apps; a cheap generic box often runs a tablet build of Android with a launcher pasted over it. The first two install from the Play Store without trouble. The third may need a file manager, and its audio handling is the least predictable of the three.
Install the player from the store
Open the Play Store on the device itself rather than pushing the app from a phone, since the television build and the phone build are not the same package. Search for IPTV Smarters Pro, or for TiViMate if you already know you want the better guide. Install, but do not open it yet.
Give it the account details
Open the player and choose the Xtream Codes login. Enter the username, the password and the server address from your WhatsApp chat. Use the on-screen keyboard carefully: the server address is where mistakes happen, and a single missing character produces a login failure that looks identical to a wrong password.
Let the list build, then leave it alone
The first download of a list this size takes up to a minute and the screen may look frozen while it happens. Do not press anything. When it finishes you will have the full set of groups, and the player will keep that list cached until you tell it to refresh.
Set how Android hands over the sound
In the device settings, under Display and Sound, Advanced Sound or Audio Output, you will find a choice between Auto, PCM and pass-through of some description. Choose pass-through if an amplifier or soundbar is doing the decoding, and PCM if the television speakers are. This single setting decides whether the surround on a feed survives the journey or is folded to stereo before it leaves the box.
Arrange the groups you will actually use
A list of this size is unpleasant to scroll. Hide the country groups nobody in the house will open, and build a favourites group holding the twenty or so channels you genuinely watch. In a multilingual household it is worth making two, one per language, which takes about five minutes and changes the experience completely.
Verify before you call it done
Open a familiar channel, let it run for a minute, and bring up the track selector. Confirm that switching audio tracks works and that your amplifier reports what you expect. Then play an on-demand title and check the subtitle list. If the amplifier reports stereo on everything, revisit the audio output setting rather than blaming the feed.
When something is wrong
The Play Store says the app is not compatible
Usually an Android version below 7, or a box whose manufacturer never passed certification. Installing the player from the developer as a file works on most such boxes, and we will point you at the right download if you tell us the exact model.
Audio and picture drift apart over time
Nearly always pass-through negotiating badly with the television or amplifier. Switch the audio output to PCM and watch the same channel again. If the drift stops, leave it on PCM; you lose surround on that device but gain a watchable picture.
Everything is fine until the box has been on for hours
Cheap boxes with little memory begin swapping once several apps have been left open. Restart the box, and if it recurs, stop the other applications rather than reinstalling the player, which is rarely the culprit.
One group of channels is missing entirely
Check first whether that group is hidden in the player rather than absent from the account, since hiding a group is easy to do by accident. If it is genuinely gone, tell us which group and we will look at it from our end.
The remote cannot reach the track selector
Some launchers intercept the long-press that opens the overlay. Try the dedicated options or menu button, and if the remote has neither, a cheap air-mouse solves it permanently and is worth having for any set-up work.
The player updates itself and settings are lost
Rare, and when it happens it is the player rather than the account. Sign in again with the same three values; your term, your feed count and the line-up are untouched by anything that happens on the device.
Players worth trying on this hardware
TiViMate
Set TiViMate up properly with 25,000+ channels, working guide data and groups, and understand what the paid Companion tier does and does not add.
IPTV Smarters Pro
Install IPTV Smarters Pro on any platform, sign in to 25,000+ channels, and find the audio-track and subtitle controls that most people never locate.
The full guide index
Every screen and player we cover, in one list.
Does it sound right on your Android TV?
Terms start at $15. The login lands in under 15 minutes over WhatsApp, and the trial is there so you can check the audio track and the subtitles before you commit.
Android TV IPTV FAQ
Should I use Smarters or TiViMate?
Smarters to begin with, because its audio and subtitle controls are obvious and it asks nothing of you. TiViMate once you know what you watch, because its guide and groups are better than anything else on the platform and worth the half hour it takes to configure.
Is a cheap Android box worth buying?
Rarely. The very cheap ones ship with old Android, little memory and unpredictable audio handling, and they are the source of a disproportionate share of support conversations. A Fire TV Stick 4K Max or an Nvidia Shield will cost more and behave.
Can I sign in on several Android devices?
You may install the player anywhere you like. What the term controls is how many streams play at the same moment, so three installed devices on a one-feed term is fine as long as only one of them is watching.
Does an Nvidia Shield make a real difference?
For picture, marginally. For sound, noticeably: it is the most reliable pass-through device in this category and it copes with heavy feeds without any of the stuttering cheaper boxes show. If you have an amplifier, it is the one worth the money.
Does a Google TV box behave differently from Android TV?
Only at the surface. The home screen and recommendations differ; the Play Store, the players and every audio setting described above are the same underneath. Anything written for one applies to the other.
Should I leave the box switched on all the time?
There is no need, and standby is fine. What is worth avoiding is leaving several heavy applications open on a box with little memory, which is the usual cause of something that works perfectly for a week and then begins stuttering.
Is it worth buying an Ethernet adapter?
For a box with no socket, yes, and it is the cheapest improvement available. Wireless carries HD perfectly well, and a 4K feed with surround on top is where it starts to struggle. An adapter costs very little and removes an entire category of problem permanently.