Every guide on this site ends the same way: a player on the device, three values from your WhatsApp chat, and a channel list that fills itself in. Where they differ is the part the person watching will live with every day: which remote, which buttons, how many presses from switching on to their first channel. That is what should decide the device, so this page starts there rather than with a list of gadgets.
Start with the person, not the device
Which device suits which viewer, and the SWIVTV guide for each
| The person watching | Why this suits them | Set up |
|---|
| Wants one remote | No extra box, no second remote and no input switching: the player lives on the TV they already know. Works on recent Samsung, LG and Android TV sets. | Samsung, LG or Android TV |
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| Likes a small remote | The Fire TV Stick remote has few buttons and feels familiar quickly. You do the sideloading once; they never see it. | Fire TV Stick |
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| Misses the cable box | Behaves most like a cable box: channel up and down, colored buttons for favorites and the program guide. | MAG or Formuler box |
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| Lives on WhatsApp | The same phone or tablet they already use all day, with nothing to plug in. An iPhone can also AirPlay a channel to an Apple TV in the same room. | iPhone or iPad, Android phone |
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| Already has Apple TV | Everything comes from the App Store, and the remote stays the one they know. | Apple TV |
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| Owns a Roku | Roku blocks sideloading and most players are missing from its store. The Roku guide covers the two ways round it, but for every evening a Fire TV Stick beside it is simpler. | Roku |
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| Watches at a desk | A web player or VLC on a laptop, with nothing to configure. Also the quickest way for you to check an account works. | Windows PC or Mac |
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The player is the app they will actually look at. You can change it later without touching the subscription, because the same login works in all of them.
Before the visit: have these ready
- The login message in your own WhatsApp: server address with its port, username and password. Activation takes under 15 minutes, and the login lands there and stays there.
- A photo of the sticker on the back of their TV, so you know the make, model and year before you arrive.
- Their Wi-Fi name and password, or a network cable long enough to reach the router.
- Fresh batteries for the TV remote, and for the stick or box remote if there is one.
- Their short list of channels, written down; the channel page shows how to build it.
- For a MAG box, the MAC address from the label underneath (it starts 00:1A:79), sent to us beforehand, because the portal is switched on at our end first.
The three values every guide ends with
Accounts are standard Xtream Codes logins: a server address with the port on the end (it starts with http://), a username and a password, both case-sensitive. Nearly every player has an Xtream option, and the Xtream Codes guide explains where each value goes. Players that want a playlist instead take the M3U link, shaped like http://server:port/get.php?username=…&password=…, which VLC, Kodi and Smart IPTV use; Smart IPTV has you upload it against the TV's MAC address at siptv.app/mylist. The M3U guide covers those. MAG boxes skip all of this and load a portal address tied to the box's MAC address, and Formuler boxes go through MyTVOnline.
Keep the values in the WhatsApp chat where they arrived. The person watching never needs to see them, and they do not belong on any note left by the TV.
Which player to put on it
IPTV player apps compared by cost, the devices they run on and the viewer they suit
| Player | Runs on | Suits a viewer who | What it costs |
|---|
| IPTV Smarters Pro | Every device in these guides | wants the same plain screen on every device, Apple, Samsung and LG included | Free |
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| TiViMate | Android TV, Firestick, Android boxes | likes a TV-style grid of what is on, or follows sport | Free; Premium is about $9.99 yearly or a one-off lifetime license |
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| Smart IPTV | Samsung, LG | has a smart TV, wants no box and is happy with a simple list | A small one-off fee per TV |
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| MyTVOnline / MAG portal | Formuler, MAG | expects channel up and down, like cable | Comes with the box |
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| VLC / web player | PC, Mac | watches at a desk, or is helping you test an account | Free |
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TiViMate Premium is bought in the separate TiViMate Companion app on a phone, not on the TV: about $9.99 a year, or a one-off lifetime license in the mid-$30s, with a seven-day trial. Smart IPTV's fee goes to its developer, per TV, after a seven-day trial. For a longer comparison, read our guide to IPTV apps, and for hardware, our guide to IPTV boxes.
Leaving it finished
Installing is the quick part. What makes the difference is the ten minutes before you leave. Go through this list with the person watching next to you:
- It starts on its own. If the player has an option to open when the device switches on, turn it on. If not, move the app to the first spot in the row of apps on the home screen.
- Their channels are on the first screen. Favorites hold their list, in the order they use it, with the most-watched channel in slot one.
- The program guide is filled in. Give it a few minutes on first load. In IPTV Smarters, "Enable EPG on live TV" under Settings, EPG shows it while a channel plays.
- The remote does what they expect. They know which button goes back, which one opens their list, and which one changes the volume.
- They have done it once alone. Switch everything off at the wall, switch it back on, and let them reach their first channel without you.
The card to leave by the TV
Write three lines on a card and prop it next to the screen:
- Restart the TV box or stick: off at the wall, count to ten, back on.
- Check the router: if its lights look different from usual, restart it the same way.
- Still nothing? Message SWIVTV on WhatsApp at +212 663 813 479, or message me.
Leave the password off the card. The login stays in your WhatsApp chat, where it arrived, and if it is ever lost, a message to support gets it back to you.
When something changes later
Most weeks nothing happens at all. When something does, it helps if both of you already know who handles it:
What the person watching can do alone, and what the helper does, when something changes
| What happened | They can | You can |
|---|
| A power cut | Wait for the router lights to settle, then switch the TV on as usual. | Set the player to open by itself if it did not come back on its own. |
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| A stuttering evening | Pick the HD version of the channel, or restart the device. | Check hardware decoding over a video call, or move the box onto a cable. |
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| An app update | Call you rather than pressing through menus they do not recognize. | Walk them through the new layout on a video call; the login does not change. |
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| The plan is ending | Nothing at all. | Renew on WhatsApp and pay from your own phone. Nothing renews by itself, so keep the date in your calendar. |
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| Nothing loads | Restart the device and the router, then message support. | Check the end date first; support will also talk to them directly if you are busy. |
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Paying for someone else's TV is normal here. You can order a plan from your own phone, the login arrives in your chat, and you install it on their TV. A parent in another home needs a plan of their own, though: one account is for one household. The pricing page lists every plan, and what IPTV is explains the basics for anyone new to it.
Try the setup on their TV before you pay
Start with the free 24-hour trial on the device they will use. No card, and the login lands in your WhatsApp.
IPTV setup questions
Which device should I choose for my mum's TV?
Choose by who holds the remote. If her TV is a recent Samsung, LG or Android TV, the player can live on the TV itself and she keeps one remote. If the TV is older, a Fire TV Stick adds a small, simple remote. If she has always had a cable box, a MAG or Formuler box will feel the most familiar.
Can I set up IPTV for someone in one visit?
Yes, if you arrive prepared. Bring the login from your WhatsApp chat, the TV model, the Wi-Fi password and their list of channels. The install itself takes five to ten minutes on most devices; the rest of the visit goes on favorites, the program guide and a practice run with them holding the remote.
Can I set it up for them over a video call?
Often, yes. On a TV that has the player in its own app store, or on a phone, you can talk them through each screen while they point the camera at it. Sideloading onto a Fire TV Stick or typing a MAG portal address is far easier in person, so keep those for a visit.
What equipment does IPTV need?
Any screen that can run a player app: a smart TV, a streaming stick or box, a phone, a tablet or a computer. Add an internet connection of about 10 Mbps for HD, or a steady 25 Mbps for 4K, and a subscription. Nobody has to fit a dish, run a cable through the wall or book an installer.
Which IPTV app is easiest for someone new to it?
IPTV Smarters Pro. It costs nothing, exists for almost every device and asks for nothing beyond the login, so the screen looks the same wherever they watch. On Android hardware, TiViMate suits someone who would rather see a TV-style grid of what is on; one login serves both players.
What if the setup stalls halfway?
Stop, take a picture of whatever the TV is showing, and send it on WhatsApp with the number of the step you reached. Support replies in the chat and can guide you screen by screen while you are still there. If the person watching is the one holding the remote at that moment, support will talk to them directly instead.
