Install Nartiel8k on Android TV, Google TV and the Shield

Eight moves from the home screen to the first feature

1. Choose the player by what this screen is for

   If this is the television where the family watches films and series, start with IPTV Smarters Pro: its Movies and Series sections, each with categories and a search field, make a 120,000-title library easy to walk through. If it is the screen for matches and the evening news, TiviMate’s channel list and program guide fit better, and recent versions also show movies and series from an Xtream login. Install both if you like and decide after a week; the same login works in each.

   Choose a plan before you start

2. Check that the device is certified

   Open Settings, then System, then About; older menus put it under Device Preferences. A device that reports Android TV OS or Google TV and opens a TV-style Play Store is certified, and every step below applies as written. A box whose Play Store looks like a phone’s, with portrait screenshots and tiny buttons, runs a phone build of Android; some players will be missing from its search, and the Downloader route in the troubleshooting section is how you get them on.

3. Install the player from Google Play

   Open Google Play from the Apps row, sign in if asked, search the player by name and choose Install. TiviMate is listed as TiviMate IPTV Player. If IPTV Smarters Pro is not listed in your country’s store, install Downloader from Google Play instead and fetch the player from the address support sends in the WhatsApp chat, after allowing Downloader under Settings, Apps, Security and restrictions, Unknown sources.

4. Sign in with the three values

   In IPTV Smarters Pro choose Login with Xtream Codes API; in TiviMate choose Add playlist and then Xtream Codes. Give the profile a name, then fill the user, password and server fields from the chat, keeping the http:// and the port. The on-screen keyboard can capitalize the first letter of a field without asking, and logins are case-sensitive, so read each line back before you save.

5. Let the catalog sync, then build a shortlist

   The first sync brings in the live list, the program guide and the full movie and series catalog, which on a fast line usually needs a minute or two. Once it settles, open Movies, browse by category, and use the search field for titles you already have in mind; where the on-screen keyboard shows a microphone key, dictating a title is quicker than spelling it with the remote. Add tonight’s pick and next week’s to favorites.

6. Tune the box and the TV for films

   Most Google TV devices list Match content frame rate, and newer ones Match content dynamic range, under Settings, Display and Sound, Advanced display settings. Turn them on so a 24-frame film plays at its own rate and standard titles stay out of HDR. Then set the TV’s own picture mode to Movie, Cinema or Filmmaker Mode and switch off motion smoothing, which otherwise gives films the flat, too-smooth look of a video recording.

7. Set up the kids’ side before family night

   If children use this television, give them a kids profile in Google TV for their own apps. Inside the player, open the kids’ categories once so you know where they are, and if your player offers a parental PIN, put it on the categories you would rather they did not wander into. Doing this before the first family movie night saves a negotiation later.

8. Verify: a 4K film, then a live channel

   Play a title from a 4K category for a couple of minutes and check that the TV’s info banner reads 2160p or 4K. Pause it, skip forward ten minutes and make sure it picks up cleanly. Then open Live TV, play a channel you know, and change channel three times. Smooth on both means the box, the player and the connection are each doing their part, and the setup is finished.

Android TV troubleshooting, symptom by symptom

The Play Store has no listing for the player

Either the box runs a phone build of Android, which hides TV apps, or the listing is not offered in your country. Install Downloader from Google Play, allow it under Unknown sources, and fetch the player from the address support sends. On some Google TV devices the Unknown sources switch only appears after you click Android TV OS build seven times under System, About.

Downloader finishes, but nothing installs

Unknown sources is still off for Downloader. Open Settings, Apps, Security and restrictions, Unknown sources and switch Downloader on, then open the downloaded file again. The menu names move slightly between makers, so search Settings for unknown if the path differs on your television.

4K films stutter while HD films play smoothly

Plenty of cheap boxes print 4K on the carton but carry a weak video decoder. Switch the player’s decoder between hardware and software, connect the box by cable, and try again. If a certified device on the same connection plays the same title smoothly, the box is the limit, and no setting will change that.

The screen goes black for a second when a film starts

That is the frame-rate or dynamic-range matching doing its job: the TV changes mode to suit the title. It is normal and lasts a second or two. If it bothers you more than the judder it prevents, turn Match content frame rate to Never.

TiviMate shows live channels but no movie shelf

Movie and series support depends on the TiviMate version and on the playlist having been added as an Xtream Codes login rather than as a plain M3U link. Update the app, add the account again as Xtream Codes, and if the shelf still does not appear, use IPTV Smarters Pro for films on this screen.

The program guide is empty after sign-in

The guide downloads after the channel list and can lag behind it by a few minutes. Leave the player open, then trigger an update from its settings. If one group stays empty, those channels may simply carry no listings, which is normal for a share of any large line-up.

Still stuck after these? Photograph the screen and send it to support on WhatsApp; a picture of the exact message saves ten minutes of describing it.

Player guides that pair with the Android TV

Guide kept current by Nartiel8k Team · Revised September 5, 2026