TiviMate Setup Guide: Add Your IPTV Playlist With Xtream Codes or M3U

Why people choose TiviMate

TiviMate is built to feel like a cable or satellite receiver. The guide runs down the left side, channel numbers work with the remote, and switching channels is quick even with thousands of channels loaded. It is a player only: you bring the playlist from your IPTV provider. Because it is designed for TV remotes, it is at its best on Android TV, Google TV and Fire TV devices.

TiviMate free vs Premium

TiviMate is free to install and play live channels with a guide. A paid Premium subscription adds features such as multiple playlists, favourites management, catch-up, recording and multi-view. The TiviMate listing on Google Play shows current pricing in Canadian dollars. You can set everything up on the free version first and upgrade later.

Installing TiviMate

• Android TV and Google TV (Google TV Streamer, NVIDIA Shield, Sony and TCL Google TVs, Formuler): open the Play Store, search for TiviMate and install it.
• Fire TV: if TiviMate is not in the Appstore, follow Steps 2 and 3 of our Firestick guide to install it with Downloader from the official source.
• Phones: TiviMate is designed for TVs. It installs on some Android phones, but IPTV Smarters is the better phone app.

TiviMate is built for Android TV, so it uses the TV remote throughout.

Add a playlist with Xtream Codes (recommended)

1. Open TiviMate and select Add playlist.
2. Choose Xtream Codes.
3. Enter the server address exactly as in your email, including http:// and the port.
4. Enter your username and password and select Next.
5. TiviMate shows how many channels, movies and series it found. Select Next, give the playlist a name and select Done.

With Xtream Codes, the guide and catch-up information come in automatically.

Add a playlist with an M3U link

If you only have an M3U link, choose Add playlist > Enter URL, type the link carefully (or use the TiviMate companion option to send it from your phone if offered), and select Next. Then add the EPG address from your provider under Settings > EPG so the guide fills in.

Set up the guide, groups and favourites

• Hide groups you never watch: long-press a group in the channel list and hide it. A shorter list makes TiviMate faster.
• Favourites: long-press a channel and add it to Favourites (Premium) for one-tap access.
• Guide refresh: in Settings > EPG, set the update interval to daily.
• Channel numbers: turn on channel numbers in settings to switch channels with the remote's number keys, like cable.

Playback settings that stop freezing

Open Settings > Playback:

• Buffer size: set it to Large or Very large if streams freeze during live sports.
• Decoder: leave it on hardware. If one channel shows a black screen with sound, try software decoding for that channel.
• Auto frame rate: turn it on if your TV supports it; it makes motion smoother on sports.

If freezing continues on several channels, check your connection with the CIRA Internet Performance Test or our IPTV speed test. Plan for about 15 Mbps per Full HD stream.

Catch-up, recording and multi-view

Catch-up: on supported channels, scroll back in the guide and select a past programme to play it. Ideal for games that end after midnight in Atlantic Canada or start in the afternoon in British Columbia.

Recording: Premium can record to the device's storage or a USB drive. Check free space first; a Full HD hour takes several gigabytes.

Multi-view: watch up to several channels on one screen. Each one is a separate stream, so your plan's connections and your internet speed both need to cover it.

Organise the channel list

A long, unsorted channel list is the main reason people give up on a player. Ten minutes of tidying pays off every day:

1. Hide groups you will never watch, such as languages you do not speak.
2. Reorder groups so the ones you use most are at the top.
3. Build a favourites group with the 20 or 30 channels you actually watch.
4. Turn on channel numbers and keep your favourites on low numbers for quick zapping.

Premium and the TiviMate Companion app

TiviMate Premium is bought through the separate TiviMate Companion app on an Android phone, then activated on your TV device by signing in with the same account. The Companion app is also where you manage which devices use your Premium account. If you do not have an Android phone, check the current purchase options on the TiviMate Google Play page before you buy.

Back up your settings

After setting everything up, use the backup option in TiviMate's settings to save your playlists, favourites and preferences to a file. If you reset the device or move to a new box, restoring the backup takes a minute instead of an evening. Store a copy somewhere other than the TV device itself.

Using more than one playlist

Premium lets you add several playlists, for example your IPTV subscription and a free over-the-air or local playlist. Each playlist keeps its own groups and guide. If you only have one subscription, keep a single playlist; it keeps the channel list short and the app fast.

Setting up recording

1. Plug a USB drive into the device if it has a USB port, or check how much internal storage is free.
2. In TiviMate's settings, choose where recordings are saved.
3. In the guide, select a programme and choose to record it, or set a recording for a whole series.

A Full HD hour takes about 3.6 GB, so a 64 GB drive holds roughly 15 hours. Recordings use one connection while they run, just like watching live.

Getting around with the remote

TiviMate is designed for a TV remote rather than a touch screen. During playback, pressing OK brings up the channel list, the arrow keys move through it, and the Back button closes it again. Long-pressing a channel opens options such as adding it to favourites or locking it. If your remote has number keys, turn on channel numbers in settings and type a number to jump straight to that channel.

Spending five minutes learning these buttons is what makes TiviMate feel like a cable box rather than an app.

TiviMate on a phone or tablet

TiviMate installs on some Android phones and tablets, but its layout is built for a TV screen and a remote, so it can feel awkward with touch. For phones and tablets, IPTV Smarters is the better fit, and our IPTV Smarters Pro guide covers it. You can use both apps with the same subscription, as long as the number of streams playing at once stays within your plan's connections.

Moving TiviMate to a new device

Install TiviMate on the new device, restore your settings backup if you made one, and sign in to Premium with the same account. If you did not make a backup, add your playlist again with the Xtream Codes details from your activation email; favourites will need to be set up again.

Parental controls in TiviMate

Premium includes a parental control PIN. Set the PIN in settings, then lock channel groups such as adult categories. Locked groups ask for the PIN before they open. Our parental controls guide covers TiviMate, IPTV Smarters and the device-level controls on Fire TV and Google TV.

Troubleshooting

• "Server not responding": recheck the server address and port.
• Channels load but the guide is empty: update the EPG in settings and confirm the device time zone.
• TiviMate is slow: hide unused groups and clear the app cache. On older boxes, a faster device is the real fix; see our IPTV device comparison.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• TiviMate IPTV Player, Google Play
• Android TV, Wikipedia
• Internet Performance Test, CIRA