General questions to ask for an IPTV provider

[Drake5280 0]

Not necessarily looking for specific providers, but in general how to identify one that is Emby-friendly.

I recently subbed with an IPTV provider that allows me to pick the channels I want and it provides me a URL to reference or I can download the M#U file and access it directly.

Similarly with VOD, I can choose a size (some, a lot, or all) of Movies, Adult Movies, or TV Series and have a separate URL or M3U file. This works great because I can convert these to STRM files and manage them in EMby nicely.

The cons is that this provider doesn't really have high quality, especially with the VOD. Poor selection and 720 resolution max.

So, I did a trial (StreemQ) which excels in the quality and selection side but only one connection, requires their app, and sent me 180K channels which is unwieldy. I know that I can pull this into M3U4U or a similar tool, but     

 

TLDR: What features do I look for that allow me to pick the channels to avoid using a third-party list editor?

 

[kikinjo 162]

U cannot "control" what iptv provider puts in m3u list.

U can use iptveditor tool (great app) for example and cut stuff u dont want..and also make your own epg, logos etc...

Check out tivimate for android, it has features you want (hide groups, channels..vod plays fine..etc..) and it is best iptv player by far. I dont use emby for iptv...it is too clunky, too much problems, its like 1994 year for iptv in emby. U cant use 2 same epg ids for same channel in emby, think thats enough said.

 

Edited April 20, 2023 by kikinjo

[Drake5280 0]

Hmmm, that is unfortunate. I did try TiviMate but seemed to require a subscription to use. I did one month and was nice, but I watch on a few devices including Apple.

 

Basically, Emby is replacing PLex only because I couldn't find a solution to STRM files (VOD) in Plex, where Emby handles these awesomely,

 

I found that just asking if they support M3U download and/or Emby is sufficient. Most have said "Only with these apps"

 

[Spaceboy 2493]

1 hour ago, kikinjo said:

U cannot "control" what iptv provider puts in m3u list.

U can use iptveditor tool (great app) for example and cut stuff u dont want..and also make your own epg, logos etc...

Check out tivimate for android, it has features you want (hide groups, channels..vod plays fine..etc..) and it is best iptv player by far. I dont use emby for iptv...it is too clunky, too much problems, its like 1994 year for iptv in emby. U cant use 2 same epg ids for same channel in emby, think thats enough said.

 

i can't agree with that. once you have a curated m3u (and iptvboss is great for that) then to me the benefits of having everything in one place far outweigh the minor annoyances with emby/iptv shortcomings

[Drake5280 0]

Good points,  I haven't tried tools like ITPVBoss but it looks like this is the answer. I can point it to the M3U URL and curate the lists and produce my own local M3U file to use. 

[kikinjo 162]

13 hours ago, Spaceboy said:

i can't agree with that. once you have a curated m3u (and iptvboss is great for that) then to me the benefits of having everything in one place far outweigh the minor annoyances with emby/iptv shortcomings

Everyone has its own preferences, for me iptv in emby is way too slow, u cant update playlist in easy way ) add new channels and auto update, many issues with epg in general, cant have same channel in HD and FHD with epg (same epg id problem), guide issues, moving in guide...etc,  no support whatsoever for catchup (my iptv provider has 600 channels on catchup back 7 days), i could write issues till sunday but they are all written here on forum many times.

[Spaceboy 2493]

26 minutes ago, kikinjo said:

Everyone has its own preferences, for me iptv in emby is way too slow, u cant update playlist in easy way ) add new channels and auto update, many issues with epg in general, cant have same channel in HD and FHD with epg (same epg id problem), guide issues, moving in guide...etc,  no support whatsoever for catchup (my iptv provider has 600 channels on catchup back 7 days), i could write issues till sunday but they are all written here on forum many times.

no argument from me that emby is still atrocious for managing an m3u. i have long, long, long written about them here. but with a 3rd party app such as the one i referenced a number of the issues you list can be overcome. the only one that can't is catch up.