How to Build a Tidy Favourites List in IPTV Smarters Pro
When your channel list runs into the hundreds, finding the one thing you actually want to watch each evening turns into an unnecessary chore. IPTV Smarters Pro on iPhone has a dedicated favourites section that solves exactly this: once you have put together a short list of the channels you genuinely watch, they are there the moment the app opens — no scrolling, no searching.
The app is available through the Apple App Store under its own name. When you first run it, you enter the details from the welcome e-mail that arrives after purchase — a user name, a password and a server address — and from that point on the app goes straight to your channels every time. Everything streams over your broadband connection at home, with no satellite dish or cable contract involved.
This guide covers the whole process: tracking down a channel inside a vast list, adding it to favourites, tidying the order, and knowing what to do when the list disappears after an update or a fresh log-in.
Finding a channel before you add it
Several hundred channels with no obvious structure can feel overwhelming, but IPTV Smarters Pro offers two quick routes. The first is the search field: tap the magnifying-glass icon, type a few letters of the channel name, and the list narrows almost instantly. The second is categories — channels are grouped either by content type or by region, so you can reach a cluster of Balkan stations by opening the relevant group rather than scrolling through everything.
When you do find the channel you are after, do not close it straight away. That is the right moment to add it to favourites, because you have already done the hard work of locating it. This matters especially for channels whose names are easy to forget, or for stations buried inside a category with dozens of similar entries — find them once, save them immediately.
Channels you watch only occasionally but struggle to find each time are also worth adding. A short favourites list saves more time than it first appears. On the other hand, a channel you open once a month probably does not deserve a permanent spot — the search field will get you there faster than scrolling past a cluttered list.
If you sometimes use the app away from home, it is worth reading about staying safe on public Wi-Fi before connecting to a network you do not control, as connection quality directly affects how reliably channels load.
Adding a channel to favourites, step by step
There are two ways to add a channel, depending on where you are in the app at the time.
If you are browsing the channel list and have not yet started a stream, press and hold on the channel name. A context menu appears with several options; look for the one marked with a star icon or a label that refers to favourites. Tap it and the channel moves into the separate favourites section that IPTV Smarters Pro keeps distinct from the main list.
If you have already opened the channel page or are watching a stream, the star is usually visible alongside the channel name or near the corner of the screen. One tap adds the channel; tapping again removes it. A filled star confirms that the channel has been saved to your list.
One practical rule applies here: a favourites list works best when it stays short. If you add every channel you ever glance at, the list becomes just as unwieldy as the starting point. Ten to fifteen channels that you open regularly can be scanned at a glance; a list of fifty requires as much scrolling as the original catalogue, with less content in between.
A useful approach during the first week of using the app is to notice which channels you actually open every day. The ones you return to daily belong in favourites; the ones you open once or twice are fine in the main list and easy enough to reach through search when you need them.
Reordering and removing channels
The order of channels in your favourites section is entirely under your control. Inside the favourites section, look for the edit button — on iPhone this is typically a pencil icon or an option that appears when you activate the edit mode. Drag handles appear next to each channel. Press a handle, drag the channel to where you want it, and release.
The same edit mode handles removal. Next to the drag handle you will usually find a delete button. Tapping it takes the channel out of your favourites but leaves it in the main list — you can find it again through search or via its category group at any time. Removing a channel from favourites is not deleting it; it is simply editing your shortcut.
As for ordering, the most practical approach is to put at the top the channel you turn to first when you pick up your phone — perhaps a morning news channel, or whatever you tend to put on for background viewing. Channels you watch in the evenings sit below that, and anything reserved for weekends or specific occasions such as sport goes at the bottom.
It is worth revisiting the list every few months. Programmes end, tastes shift, and channels you added a year ago may no longer feature in your regular viewing. A list of around ten channels is far easier to keep current than one that has gradually crept up to several dozen.
For anyone who has recently moved and is still settling into new viewing habits, this guide to keeping your home channels after relocating is a useful starting point.
When favourites disappear after an update or a fresh log-in
IPTV Smarters Pro stores your favourites list locally on the device, tied to the active profile. It is safe as long as you use the same account on the same phone, but the list can vanish in a handful of situations: if you delete the app and reinstall it, if you log out and sign in with a different account, or if the app cannot immediately read local data after an update.
When this happens, first check that you are signed in with the same account you used when you originally added the channels. Then close the app fully — on iPhone, swipe up from the bottom of the screen and flick the app away from the list of active apps — and reopen it. The list sometimes fails to appear on the very first launch after an update but comes back once you open the app again.
Because there is no automatic export for the favourites list, it is sensible to take a screenshot of the favourites section occasionally and save it to your photo library. That reference is enough to rebuild the list by hand if it ever disappears — not an elegant solution, but a reliable one that takes only a moment.
For advice on what to check before and after updating the app itself, this walkthrough of updating IPTV Smarters Pro covers profile settings and local data in a way that applies regardless of which device you are using.
If you are still choosing a service to use with the app, the available plans from Balkan IPTV are listed on the home page.
When the star button does not respond
Occasionally you tap the star and the channel never appears in your favourites, or the button does nothing at all. This is usually a connection issue or a cache problem rather than a fault with the app itself.
Start by checking your internet connection. If the signal is weak or the connection is dropping in and out, the app may fail to register the change because it is trying to confirm it with the server. Move to a stronger Wi-Fi signal or wait for the connection to settle, then try again.
Next, check whether you are running the latest version of IPTV Smarters Pro. Older versions have known bugs in the favourites section that were fixed in later releases; the App Store's updates tab will tell you whether a newer version is available.
If neither of those helps, close the app completely and reopen it. Data that builds up during a long session can occasionally block certain functions, and a fresh start clears it without affecting your account details.
If the problem only affects certain channels and not others, the likely cause is the format of that particular channel group within your list. In that case, try adding the channel while you are watching the stream rather than from the channel browser — this route bypasses the part of the app that is causing the difficulty.
Frequently asked questions
- Does closing the app delete my favourites list?
No. The list is saved locally on your iPhone and stays there whether you close the app, restart the phone, or leave it unused for weeks. It is only lost if you delete the app entirely or sign out of the account you used when you added the channels.
- Can I have more than one separate favourites list?
IPTV Smarters Pro provides one favourites section per active profile. If you set up more than one profile inside the app, each profile keeps its own independent list, which makes it straightforward to separate viewing habits — or viewers — on a single device.
- Why is the add-to-favourites option not visible on some channels?
Visibility depends on the format of the channel list associated with your account. If a quick tap on the channel name shows nothing, try pressing and holding for a moment longer — the extended-press menu sometimes contains options that a short tap does not reveal. Updating the app to the latest version resolves this in most cases.
- Is a longer favourites list better, or should I keep it short?
A shorter list works better in day-to-day use. When the favourites section holds only the channels you open regularly, finding what you want takes a single glance. For everything else, the search field is quicker than scrolling through a favourites list that has grown over many months.