How to Create and Manage a 'Favorites' List in Your TV Guide
11/6/2025
The best part of an IPTV service is the massive number of channels. The worst part of an IPTV service is the massive number of channels. Scrolling through 10,000+ channels to find your local news is a nightmare.
This is where the "Favorites" feature becomes the most important tool in your app.
The Problem: 10,000 Channels is Too Many
When you first log in, you see everything: all channel groups from all countries. You may have to scroll past 500 UK channels and 300 German channels just to get to your local US stations. This is slow and frustrating.
The Solution: The 'Favorites' Feature
The "Favorites" feature lets you build your own personal channel guide. You can spend 10 minutes, one time, scrolling through the full list and "tag" the 30-40 channels you actually watch.
Once you do this, you'll have a new channel group at the top of your list called "Favorites". From now on, you can just stay in that group and see only the channels you care about, in the order you want.
How to Add/Remove Favorites in IPTV Smarters Pro
IPTV Smarters makes this easy.
- To Add: From the EPG (TV Guide) or the channel list, highlight a channel you want to add. Press and hold the "OK" (or "Select") button on your remote. A new menu will pop up. Select "Add to Favorites". A star icon will appear.
- To Remove: Do the same thing. Press and hold "OK" on a favorited channel, and select "Remove from Favorites".
How to Add/Remove Favorites in TiviMate
TiviMate is even faster.
- To Add: From the EPG, highlight a channel. Simply press the "Menu" button (the 3 horizontal lines) on your remote. A star icon will appear next to the channel. It's now a favorite.
- To Remove: Highlight the channel and press the "Menu" button again to toggle the star off.
How to View Your Favorites List
After you've added at least one channel, go back to your "Channel Groups" list (where you see "USA," "UK," "Sports," etc.). A new group will be at the very top called "Favorites" or "All Favorites". Select this group, and you will now see your own personal, clean TV guide.
This is the single best way to make your service easy to use. If you need help finding this feature, check our Help Center.
IPTV Technical Glossary
Essential terminology every IPTV user should understand
ISP Throttling
This occurs when your Internet Service Provider intentionally slows down your connection when they detect high-bandwidth streaming activities. This is the #1 cause of buffering during live sports events. Using a specialized VPN hides your traffic, preventing your ISP from inspecting data packets and lowering your speed.
M3U Playlist
A text file format that contains a list of media URLs. In IPTV, the M3U link is the 'key' that connects your device to the streaming server. It is often replaced by 'Xtream Codes' (Username/Password) which is simply a more user-friendly way to authenticate that same M3U connection.
Sideloading
The process of installing applications on a device (like an Amazon Firestick or Android Box) that are not available in the official App Store. This is standard practice for IPTV players like Smarters Pro or TiviMate, requiring the 'Downloader' app to fetch the APK file directly.
EPG (Electronic Program Guide)
The digital menu that shows you what is playing on each channel, along with a schedule for the next 7 days. If your EPG says 'No Information', it usually means the XML link in your playlist settings needs to be updated or refreshed.
Packet Loss
When data 'packets' traveling from the server to your device get lost in transit. Unlike VOD (Netflix), live TV cannot buffer ahead, so even 1% packet loss results in freezing or looping. This is often fixed by switching from WiFi to a hardwired Ethernet connection.
Transcoding
The process of converting a video stream from one format to another. A 'Hardware Decoder' setting in your app allows your device's processor to handle this efficiently, ensuring smooth 4K playback without overheating or lag.
