Despite the fact that the device discussed in this article is no longer quite new, in any case it deserves special attention. Since, today, this is one of the most popular models of IPTV set-top boxes throughout the post-Soviet space, and not only.
As you probably already understood, we will talk about an IPTV set-top box, produced by the Ukrainian company Infomir. And in this article, we will get acquainted with its hardware, appearance and delivery package. And I would like to immediately say a special thank you to ASP24 for providing the test sample.
Contents of delivery
Let's start our review, as usual, with packaging and delivery.
MAG250 is supplied in a bright and beautiful box with color printing. On different sides of which both the console itself and various logos of supported services and standards are depicted. There is also a factory sticker with barcodes, serial number and MAC address ohm Ethernet interface.
Inside the package, in special compartments, the device itself is located, as well as everything that comes with it. Everything is neatly packed in such a way that during transportation, the possibility of damage is minimized.
The MAG250 package includes:
— STB MAG250
- Remote controller remote control
- Power unit
— AA batteries for remote control
— A/V cable
- Manual
In fact, this set- self-sufficient. However, the lack of an HDMI cable is depressing. Because, to use the set-top box with modern TVs, it is simply necessary. But given the not very high cost of these cables at the moment, you can close your eyes to this.
Appearance and interfaces
The trend towards miniaturization of modern electronic devices is especially noticeable in the case of the MAG250 Micro. What immediately catches your eye is the “modest”, so to speak, size of the console. It has dimensions of only 125x86x28mm (WxDxH), and its weight does not exceed 156 grams.
The body of the console has a classic rectangular appearance and is made of very high-quality black plastic, in some places it is glossy and in others it is matte. At the same time, the build quality is very high. There are no defects, nothing creaks, no flaws or gaps.
On the front panel of the device, there is one USB connector and an LED indicator and an IR receiver for the remote control hidden under translucent plastic.
On the upper side of the case, on a matte background, there is a glossy MAG250 inscription. And on the bottom, in addition to standard legs and holes for mounting on a vertical surface, you can see ventilation slots and a label indicating the model, serial number and MAC address specific device. There you can also see a small but rather interesting inscription Made in Ukraine and a holographic warranty sticker covering one of the screws.
Well, as usual, all the most interesting things are on the back panel of the MAG250. Here, from left to right, we see: another USB port, a connector for an external IR receiver, an RJ-45 Ethernet port, an HDMI connector, an optical S/PDIF connector, an A/V output (Jack) and a power connector.
Generally, appearance MAG250 consoles, quite attractive. And its miniature size allows you to simply hide it behind the TV without showing it off. Although there is no shame in showing it.
Remote control
If we talk about the remote control, IPTV set-top box MAG-250, then it can be safely called convenient and thoughtful. And despite the absence of any ergonomic refinements and its completely square shape, it fits comfortably in the hand.
In addition, the layout of the buttons on the remote control is familiar to most set-top boxes, media players and receivers. Therefore, getting used to the remote control does not present any difficulties. Literally after an hour of communication with MAG250, you begin to control the device without looking at the remote control.
Another feature of this remote control is the ability to learn. In the upper right corner there is a block of buttons designed to control the TV. These buttons can be trained with the original remote control. And despite the fact that they are mainly labeled as volume (+/-), mute (Mute), power and TV/AV, they can be taught any commands to control your TV or even audio system.
At the top, there are also buttons for the virtual keyboard, settings, muting the sound on the console and a number of colored buttons.
In the central part of the remote control, according to an established tradition, there are menu control buttons, with OK in the center, as well as service buttons Menu, Back, Exit and Info. Even lower, there are three rows of buttons for controlling the media player, channel list and volume level. And finally, a standard block of number buttons.
All buttons are pressed clearly, with a characteristic “click”, while at the top of the remote control, green indicators (for MAG250) or red (when controlling TV) light up.
The remote control is powered by two AA batteries, which are included in the kit.
Specifications
And of course, the most important thing in any electronic device, it is his specifications. And in the case of the MAG250 IPTV set-top box, the hardware specification is as follows:
| CPU | STi7105 |
| RAM | 256 MB |
| Flash memory | 256 MB |
| HDMI | 1.3 |
| USB | x2 (on the back and front panels) |
| A/V output | composite + stereo A/V output |
| Ethernet | RJ-45 10/100Mbit/s Fast Ethernet port |
| WiFi | Optional via USB adapter |
| Additionally | Optical audio output S/PDIF, connector for connecting a 5V power supply, connector for an external IR receiver |
And despite not the most outstanding characteristics, this configuration is quite enough to ensure the normal operation of all currently existing web and online services and even playback of any video formats.
Video modes — 1080i, 1080p, 720p, 576p, 480p, PAL, NTSC
Video codecs - MPEG1/2 MP@HL, H.264 HP@level 4.1, MPEG4 part 2(ASP) ,WMV-9(optional) , VC1 video, XviD; support for high bitrate video(up to 40 Mbit/s and above)
Video formats — MKV,MPEG-TS,MPEG-PS, M2TS, VOB, AVI, MOV, MP4, ASF, QT, WMV(optional) Audio codecs — MPEG-1 layer I/II, MPEG-2 layer II, MPEG-2 layer III(mp3) , MPEG-2 AAC(optional), MPEG-4 AAC LC 2-ch/5.1ch(optional ), MPEG-4 AAC+SBR 2-h/5.1ch(optional), Dolby Digital
Audio formats -MP3,MPA,M4A,WMA(optional), Ogg, WAV, AC3, AAC
Image formats — JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF, RAW
Subtitles — DVB,SRT(support coming soon) embedded text
Playlist formats — M3U
In a word, MAG250 fully meets all modern requirements for devices of this kind.
Software and some features
Basis for software MAG250, is linux 2.6.23. It is on this core that all the “firmware” for this set-top box is built. Both official and alternative. Moreover, anyone, if they have certain knowledge, can create their own image. On the manufacturer’s website, you can find not only everything you need, but also detailed instructions. It is this feature that attracts many enthusiasts and gives IPTV providers the opportunity to create their own platforms and entire services.
The official software (firmware) of MAG250 is available for downloading or updating the set-top box itself via the Internet. Developers quite often release new versions with changes, improvements and fixes.
You can install almost any official or non-official software in several ways - from a USB drive (flash drive) through the appropriate menu or through the BIOS. Using Multicast, via the network and several other ways. Also available as automatic update, and updating in manual mode.
A main feature everyoneIPTV set-top boxesMAG250, is that almost all functionality depends not so much on the set-top box or firmware itself, but on the content provider. The more “chips” the operator has and the more diverse they are, the more extensive are the various options for using the set-top box.
It is for this reason that we have included a discussion of the features of the software and operation of the MAG250 in a separate article. Where we will introduce you to them, on specific examples some IPTV operators and user portals.
In general, MAG250 is capable of receiving content from sources such as: USB storage devices (USB HDD, USB Flash drive, USB Card-Reader, etc.), PC and NAS in local network via SMB, NFS, UPnP or HTTP protocols, as well as from local networks and the Internet via broadcasting via HTTP, UDP / RTP Unicast/Multicast protocols. And it fully supports the following Stream media protocols - RTSP, RTP, UDP and IGMP.
In addition, the set-top box is compatible with the following Middleware systems: Stalker, OFT-Media, Netup, SmartLabs, Netris, ZTE. This provides quite extensive opportunities for operators and providers.
Initial setup
Any MAG 250 IPTV set-top box, whether operator or “pure”, has a fairly extensive menu of settings. Which is called by the SET button on the remote control.
Here you can make video output settings, audio settings, get information about the device, including hardware and software version, update software, and much more.
There is also a Services section here. With which you can set the addresses of the portals from which you will receive the main content. These could be third-party portals created by enthusiasts. For example, a very popular portal is ModMenu. This is how you can use the addresses of paid services or IPTV providers, such as Divan.tv, Bonus-TV, Planeta TV and many others.
In the same section, you can specify software update sources.
Network settings
Since IPTV involves receiving content from the Internet, it goes without saying that MAG250 has a number of network settings. The set-top box can be connected to the network using wired or wireless interfaces. Moreover, the second one is optional and requires an additional USB Wi-Fi adapter. Wireless adapter, can be purchased together with the set-top box for an additional fee. Or, use a third-party adapter based on the chip - Ralink RT3070 or Ralink RT5370. Here is the list of supported models:
— DLink DWA-125 (not all H/W versions are supported)
— ASUS USB-N13 (not all H/W versions are supported)
— Edimax EW-7711UAN
— Tenda W311MI
- TPLINK TL-WN727N
- Dune HD Air
It is also possible to use other models, for example I used the GI Wi-Fi 11N adapter (WL0224) from Galaxy-Innovations, based on the Ralink RT3070 chip.
It is also possible to raise a connection using the PPPoE protocol for direct connection to the provider’s network.
Moreover, it is possible to select different options for establishing a connection for each of the interfaces. Can be used as manual settings, and automatic receipt of settings from the DHCP server.
In case of setting wireless connection, you must specify or select from the list the SSID of your access point and specify the encryption parameters.
But one way or another, setting up a network in the MAG 250 does not take much time. And after completing a few simple steps, the set-top box gains access to the network, after which you can begin to use it.
In a word, setting up the MAG250 is quite simple and should not cause any difficulties, even for people with limited knowledge of network technologies.
conclusions
Summarizing, this review IPTV set-top box MAG250, we can draw a number of conclusions and highlight several pros and cons. But in any case, we can say with confidence that this device has found considerable popularity for a reason.
First of all, this is, of course, thanks to the fairly extensive functionality that can be expanded by each specific provider or content provider. Then you can highlight the possibility of independently creating both internal software and external (portals). And all this with plenty of choice network protocols and compatibility with various systems.
In addition, the attractive appearance, convenient remote control and ease of setup and control add points to the console’s treasury.
But, nevertheless, one cannot help but pay attention to what is not the most powerful Hardware, which in some cases can become a bottleneck. For example, I would like to have a little more memory and a gigabit Ethernet port.
But in general, MAG250 leaves only positive impressions when used. Especially considering the wide selection of possible content providers. Which we will talk about in our next article. There, we will also touch on the issue of multimedia playback from external sources, image quality and other aspects of device operation.
You can discuss this article and the MAG250 IPTV set-top box on our forum -
For IPTV viewing On a regular TV, a special set-top box (STB) is used. One of the attachments we recommend is the MAG250 Micro. This device supports channels broadcast in HD (high definition) format. The set-top box provides access to services on the Internet, such as YouTube, Picasa, as well as some additional features. The attachment is equipped USB ports for connecting peripheral devices that expand the basic functionality of the device (Wi-Fi adapters for connecting the set-top box to a wireless router or for organizing additional communication channels with mobile devices at home wireless network, flash drives or external hard drives to play audio and video files or photos, mouse, keyboard, etc.).
1, 2 - universal USB port
3 - RC connector for connecting an external IR receiver (not available in all models)
4 - Ethernet port 10/100 Mbit/s for connecting the set-top box to the network
5 - HDMI connector - digital audio/video output for connecting the set-top box to a high-definition TV (HD). HDMI cable sold separately
6 - S/PDIF port - optical digital audio output for connecting to a home theater system (not available in all models)
7 - AV connector - composite analog audio/video output. The set-top box includes a cable with RCA connectors (“tulips”), yellow for video, red and white for audio
8 - connector for connecting the power supply.
Attention! All switching must be performed in the switched off state to avoid equipment failure.
To connect the set-top box to the TV, use a composite or HDMI output. Any modern TV is equipped with an input for a composite signal, but if the TV has a digital HDMI input, then it is better to connect the set-top box to it, this will provide the best sound and image quality (the quality of HD channels when using the composite output is reduced to standard quality).
We are considering connecting the set-top box to the network via a router. Using a patch cord ( network cable) connect the LAN port of the router to the LAN connector of the set-top box.
Connect the power source to the set-top box. Turn on the TV and select the signal source using the TV remote control (depending on the brand of the TV, the button may be called SOURCE, INPUT, HDMI, TV/AV, see the instructions for the TV).
When the device has finished booting, you will see main screen internal portal.
Navigation in the interface of the set-top box is carried out using the arrow buttons, selecting a menu item or control element with the OK button, going back with the BACK button, exiting with the EXIT button.
Press the SET (SETUP) button on the set-top box control panel to open the system
settings.
Select Advanced settings.
Select Russian language and press OK button on the screen.
Let's look at the network settings when connecting through a router.
Select Network Configuration.
Select Wired (Ethernet)
Select Auto (DHCP).
Click OK.
To check the connection status, select Network INFO.
Select Wired (Ethernet).
Make sure the IP address, subnet mask, gateway and DNS servers are obtained. These addresses depend on your router settings, so they may not match the example. To exit, press the EXIT button on the remote control.
Select Servers.
To enter characters, use the on-screen keyboard, which can be called up by pressing the button with the image of a keyboard (KB) on the set-top box remote control. Pressing this button again will close the keyboard.
In the NTP server field, enter pool.ntp.org
Click OK on the screen.
Select Video Settings.
In the “Video output mode” line, select the mode that your TV supports:
- PAL (default), graphic resolution 720×576 - for TVs with composite (tulips) AV input;
- 720p-50, graphic resolution 1280×720 - for TVs with an HDMI input that support 720p mode (HD ready);
- 1080p-50, graphic resolution 1280x720 and higher - for TVs with an HDMI input that support 1080p mode (Full HD, HD ready 1080p), etc.
You can find out more about the modes that your TV supports in its instructions.
Click OK on the screen
Attention! If the video output mode is not configured correctly, there will be no image or a message will be displayed asking you to switch to SD mode.
To reconfigure the video output, turn off the power of the set-top box, press and hold the MENU button on the remote control and turn on the set-top box.
Change the values of the TV System and Graphic Res items. in accordance with the capabilities of your TV (options can only be switched with the right arrow).
After rebooting, the main screen will reappear. This time you need to select IPTV Channels.
Press the MENU button on the remote control and select the menu item Group - Load playlist (Group -
Download).
In the URL field, enter the playlist address http://site/files/play140.m3u and click OK
on the screen.
As a result, you should see a list of channels.
If a message appears stating that it was not possible to obtain the channel list, you should check:
- correct connection of the set-top box to the network
- the entered playlist address is correct
Please note that the channel list is not updated automatically, and if for any reason it changes, you will need to download it again.
Press the EXIT button on the remote control. When asked about saving changes made to the list of channels, answer in the affirmative.
- The procedure for connecting the set-top box
- Specification
- Portal for viewing Teleprom.TV
- Setting up a wireless WiFi connection
- Installing software with Teleprom.TV settings
Connection
To watch Teleprom.TV channels on a regular TV, a special Set top Box (STB) is used, which decodes video data and displays the decrypted video on the TV screen. One of the recommended viewing consoles is the MAG 250.
Appearance of the MAG 250 console
Fig.1 Front view
Fig.2 Rear view
USB port is a universal USB port for connecting a USB flash drive with movies and photos.
USB port is a universal USB port for connecting a USB flash drive with movies and photos.
RC port * - connector for connecting an external IrDA receiver. Please check the port availability when purchasing.
Ethernet port - port network connection 10/100 Mbit/s. Use this connector to connect the set-top box to the Internet.
HDMI port is a digital audio/video output for connecting the set-top box to a high-definition HD TV. Also transmits digital audio signal. HDMI cable sold separately.
S/PDIF port * - optical digital audio output for connection to a home theater system in DOLBY 5.1/7.1, DTS format. Please check the port availability when purchasing.
* - only in some models!
TRRS port is a connector for transmitting an audio/video signal in analog format via an RCA cable. Composite video (yellow “tulip”) and stereo (red and white “tulips”). An RCA cable is included in the package.
Power—connector for connecting a power supply.
Specification
Processor: STi7105
RAM: 256 MB
Flash memory: 256 MB
Operating system: linux 2.6.23
External interfaces:
Optical audio output S/PDIF, HDMI 1.3a (on the rear panel), USB 2.0 (1 on the front panel and 1 on the rear panel), composite + stereo A/V output (mini jack on the rear panel), Ethernet port 100Mbps (on the rear panel), connector for connecting a 5V power supply (on the rear panel), LED indicator (on the front panel)
Sources of media content:
USB devices ( external hard disk, USB flash drive, USB card reader, etc.), PC and NAS on a local network (SMB, NFS, UPnP, HTTP), other Internet and local TV networks (HTTP, UDP / RTP unicast/multicast ), video streaming services are fully supported
Web engine: WebKit
DRM option: Verimatrix, Secure Media
Video modes: 1080i, 1080p, 720p, 576p, 480p, PAL, NTSC
Video codecs: MPEG1/2 MP@HL, H.264 HP@level 4.1, MPEG4 part 2 (ASP), WMV-9 (optional), VC1 video, XviD; support for high-bitrate video (up to 40 Mbit/s and higher)
Video formats: MKV,MPEG-TS,MPEG-PS, M2TS, VOB, AVI, MOV, MP4, ASF, QT, WMV (optional)
Audio codecs: MPEG-1 layer I/II, MPEG-2 layer II, MPEG-2 layer III (mp3), MPEG-2 AAC (optional), MPEG-4 AAC LC 2-ch/5.1ch (optional), MPEG -4 AAC+SBR 2-h/5.1ch(optional), Dolby Digital
Audio formats: MP3, MPA, M4A, WMA (optional), Ogg, WAV, AC3, AAC
Image formats: JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF, RAW
Subtitles: DVB,SRT (support coming soon), built-in text
Playlist formats: M3U
File systems: FAT16/32, NTFS (read), NFS, Ext2, Ext3
Ethernet: 10/100 Mbps
Wi-Fi: Optional USB module (not included in delivery), a list of modules that have been tested and working can be viewed at the link
Stream media protocols: RTSP, RTP, UDP, IGMP, HTTP
Software: Fully compatible with MAG-100, MAG-200, MAG-250(P) (API JS, API C)
built-in media portal with IPTV functionality
HTTP 1.1, HTML 4.01 XHTML 1.0/1.1
DOM 1, 2, 3, CSS 1, 2, 3
XML 1.0, XSLT 1.0, XPath 1.0
SOAP 1.1
JavaScript ECMA-262, revision 5
Media JavaScript API
C layer SDK
Dimensions (w/d/h), mm: 125/86/28
Set-top box weight, g: 156 (with packaging: 620)
Contents: MAG-250 Micro set-top box, user manual, mini jack to RCA (A/V) cable; power adapter 5V 1.5A, remote control, AA batteries - 2 pcs, packaging.
Warranty: 2 years
The procedure for connecting the set-top box
To connect to the MAG 250 TV, use the component TV signal output (3 RCA tulip-type connectors) - (Fig. 2 - 7) and the HDMI connector - (Fig. 2 - 5). The set-top box can be connected to any modern TV via a component output. If your TV has an HDMI input, it is better to connect through it for higher image quality.
Connect the Ethernet cable from the network switch to the Ethernet input of your set-top box (Fig. 2 - 4)
Insert the power supply connector into the socket (Fig. 2 - 8) on the console body.
Enabling and setting up the connection
Plug in the power source. The blue indicator on the front panel of the set-top box lights up.
Switch your TV to HDMI or Composite mode, depending on which cable the set-top box is connected to - HDMI or 3xRCA.
2. Press Setup on the console’s remote control again and select Advanced Settings:
3.Select Language: Russian, Time zone: GMT +02.00 Jerusalem, then click OK:
4. Go to the Network Configuration menu:
5. Select Wired (Ethernet):
6. Select Auto (DHCP) and then press the EXIT button on the set-top box remote control:
7. Go to the Servers menu:
8. Fill in the fields in accordance with the figure below and click OK. To enter characters, we use the on-screen keyboard, which can be displayed by pressing the KV button on the set-top box remote control:
9. Select the Reboot menu and wait for the console to reboot:
Setting up the MAG-250 set-top box for connecting via Wi-Fi
1. While the set-top box is loading, the following will appear on the TV screen in turn: Loading, Loading the portal..., when the message Loading the portal... appears, press and hold the SETUP button on the set-top box remote control, release it when the message Loading the internal portal... appears, we get into the internal portal:
2. Go to the Network Configuration menu:
3. Select Wireless (Wi-Fi):
4. Select Auto (DHCP):
5. Click the Scan button:
6. In the list of found networks, select your wireless network and click OK on the set-top box remote control:
7. In the Password field, enter the key for your wireless network and click OK. To enter characters, we use the on-screen keyboard, which can be displayed by pressing the KV button on the set-top box remote control:
That's it for the setup Wi-Fi networks finished
Software installation
1. To install software configured to view the Teleprom.TV service, you need to download plugins for Infomir / MAG 250 / AURA HD, download the archive and unpack it to external media (USB Stick or flash drive formatted FAT32).
2. A folder “” should appear on the flash drive, and there should be 2 firmware files in it:
imageupdate
Bootstrap
3. Insert the USB flash drive into rear USB connector set-top box and turn it on while holding down the " MENU" on the remote control until the blue bootloader menu appears.
4. Select " Def.Settings" and click the arrow " right", confirm.
Next select " Save & Exit».
5. The set-top box will reboot, hold down the “ button again MENU"on the remote control until the blue bootloader menu appears.
Select " UPGRADE TOOLS" and press the arrow " right", select " USB Bootstrap" and click the arrow " right" And " OK", the set-top box will update and reboot.
After the first download, an auto-update window will appear in the portal - it needs to be updated ( F4).
MAG-250 is a set-top box that operates over the IP protocol. Compact but powerful device provides big choice multimedia services.
Description of IP set-top box
The MAG-250 case is small and stylish. On the front panel there is a USB connector, an infrared remote control receiver and an indicator. On the rear panel there is an additional USB connector, HDMI, Ethernet, composite video and audio output, digital audio output and Slots are made on the side panels for ventilation of the device.
In addition to MAG-250, the kit includes:
- RCA audio and video cable;
- remote control;
- two AAA batteries;
- external power supply.
MAG-250: characteristics
The device allows:
- play high definition video;
- view multicast streams;
- create a list of television channels;
- download a pre-prepared list of channels from the network;
- realize preview gears;
- gain access to Internet services such as YouTube, Picassa, etc.;
- connect external devices through, among other things, flash drives, Wi-Fi adapter, keyboard, mouse, etc.;
- play audio and video of various formats;
- JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF, RAW standards;
- decode video streams of MPEG2, H264, WMV9, MPEG4P2, VC-1 standards;
- decode audio streams of MP3, AC-3, MPEG2-audio, MPA, M4A, WAV, Ogg, AAC standards;
- Convert video format to a format supported by the TV;
- play media from UPnP servers;
- play media from USB.
Viewing video in HD format is only possible on television receivers with an HDMI connector. In this case, you will additionally need an HDMI cable, which is not included in the set-top box.
Using the composite video output does not allow you to view HD channels. At the same time, they are displayed in SD quality.
Purpose of connectors
The following outputs are located on the rear panel:
- USB 2.0 for connecting a flash drive, Wi-Fi adapter, keyboard, mouse, etc.
- Ethernet for connecting a 100 Mbps wired LAN.
- HDMI for connecting to a TV receiver.
- S/PDIF for connecting to a speaker system.
- AV - composite video output for connecting to a TV via an RCA cable.
- DC - 5 V power connector.
Network connection
The next stage of preparation for operation of the MAG-250 is setting up an Internet connection. There are two options:
- direct connection to the network;
- via router.
When connecting the MAG-250 via a router, the procedure is as follows.
- Connect the Ethernet network cable to the corresponding connector of the set-top box and router.
- Connect the HDMI cable to the MAG-250 and TV connector. If there is no HDMI input, use an AV cable and the TV's composite input.
- Connect the power supply.
- Configure the router.
- Turn on the TV and use the remote control to select the signal source (SOURCE, HDMI or INPUT).
If the MAG-250 set-top box is connected via an HDMI cable, then after pressing the INPUT or SOURCE button you should select the HDMI signal source. If through composite, then you need to press AV on the remote control.
First use and preliminary setup
When connected, a splash screen will appear on the screen. The set-top box software downloads automatically within 1 minute. After the “Loading Portal” window appears, press the SETUP button on the remote control. The portal for MAG-250 will begin downloading. Upon completion, you must press the SETUP button again to call up the settings window. In the “General” section, check the NTP servers and configure the MAG-250 in the “Servers” section. In the “Video Settings - Video Output Mode” menu, select the mode supported by the TV:
- PAL - for devices with AV input;
- 720p - for television receivers with HDMI input and support for HD Ready mode;
- 1080i - for devices with an HDMI input and support for Full HD mode.
You can find out which modes your TV supports in its instruction manual.
In the “Graphic Resolution” menu, set the portal shell resolution, the value of which for 16:9 TVs is recommended to be set equal to the maximum possible 1280x720. For the changes to take effect, you must click the "OK" button and restart the set-top box. After re-downloading, you may be asked for a login and password to log into the portal. For better operation of the set-top box, in the “Advanced settings - Input buffer size” section, you must set the buffer value to 1000. This will allow pre-loading of data, which will eliminate interruptions in broadcasting when errors occur.
If the set-top box malfunctions when inappropriate video parameters are selected, the bootloader is used. Its menu allows you to set the TV display resolution, video output mode, etc. To enter the menu, you need to, with the set-top box turned off, hold down the power button on the front panel and turn on the power. Exit occurs through the menu item “Exit and save” or “Exit and do not save.”
Setting up channels
The next question MAG-250 users ask is how to add a playlist? To do this, you need to save the m3u file to a flash drive and insert the latter into USB port. Go to the viewing form on the USB drive and select a playlist. When prompted to save it in UTF-8 format, confirm by clicking OK. Adding the playlist is complete.
It is also possible to add by providing a direct link to it. To do this, go to the “TV channels” section, press the “Menu” button, → key and select the “Download playlist” section. After being prompted to enter a link, press the KB button on the remote control and use the auxiliary keyboard to enter the link.
Watching TV
For quick and convenient search channels and switching between them, you should use the “TV Channels Menu”, called up by pressing “OK” on the remote control in viewing mode or the MENU button and selecting the “Television” section.
The TV channel menu consists of the following main elements:
- the top line shows the current user, list page, day of the week, date and time;
- channel categories, past, current and upcoming programs;
- current program time indicator;
- active control buttons.
The navigation buttons on the remote control allow you to navigate through the list of groups or channels. “Paging” allows you to move to the next page of the list. When watching TV, the and ↓ buttons allow you to switch TV channels of the selected category. When you turn on a channel and call up help by pressing the "INFO" key on the remote control, a form with information about its name is displayed at the bottom of the screen, current program, day of the week, time and purpose of contextual buttons. The Back button allows you to return to the previous TV channel. The list of channels is numbered, so selection can be made by dialing the serial number.
Setting a reminder
You can set a reminder about a program or movie you want to watch. When the time comes to start the transmission, the MAG-250 set-top box will offer to switch to the specified channel.
To do this, follow these steps:
- select a channel in the menu and go to the list of upcoming programs;
- using the navigation keys on the remote control, select the program of interest;
- set a reminder with the "OK" button.
A mark will appear on the program. To cancel, click "OK" again. The list of reminders can always be viewed by pressing the blue button on the remote control.
If a channel has several audio tracks, then you can switch between them with the yellow button on the remote control.
To select the video format mode, you need to successively press the green button on the remote control.
Creating profiles and categories
Press MENU and go to the “Favorites” menu, which contains the following functions:
- “Manage favorites” to create channel categories and change their lists.
- “Manage Profiles” to create profiles and configure them for each user, assigning available channel categories to profiles.
- “Change profile” to change the active profile.
If more than one set-top box is used, then it is enough to manage profiles and favorites on only one.
View files from a flash drive or external drive MAG-250
Instructions for launching video and audio files on flash memory or external drive. First of all, you need to connect the flash drive to the USB port. Switch the set-top box to media player mode by calling service menu remote control button. After downloading additional services, a form for viewing files on a USB drive will appear, in which you should select the USBDISK folder. The AV folder contains media server files. The table displays the files in the current directory. On the left, each line contains an icon that symbolizes their type. To make it more convenient to work with the form, you can use a USB keyboard. You can use the remote control and keyboard to control the player. To run a file or enter a folder, select a line by placing the cursor on it and press “OK” on the remote control or “Enter” on the keyboard. You can return to the top level by going to “. ." and confirming your choice with the "OK" or "Enter" button. If you need to remove the flash memory, you can do so at any time.
Playing content
To call up positioning forms when viewing or listening to a file, press the navigation buttons on the remote control. The form contains:
- exact position time;
- step value in seconds;
- duration of content playback;
- current position indicator.
Each press of the ← and → buttons changes the current position by 1 step, the value of which can be changed with the and ↓ buttons from 5 to 900 s. The default step is 60 s. The first press of the navigation buttons stops content playback to allow the user to change the positioning step. Playback continues from the set time after 1 s.
The MAG-245/250 set-top box is one of the most successful in the line of the Ukrainian company Infomir and one of the best, if not the best, in its price segment. Therefore, it has gained well-deserved popularity among Russian consumers.
There are a huge number of different instructions on the Internet for setting up this set-top box, but often they are all limited by the settings of a particular provider. As a result, the instructions will be far from complete and will not reveal the wide capabilities of the device at all.
Today we will discuss various and complete ways to use this set-top box with any IPTV traffic content provider.
Set-top box operating modes
In this article, we will not consider the capabilities of this set-top box for playing content from USB drives and from a local media server, as well as from network SMB shares, although such functions are very useful - a separate article will be devoted to this. We will focus on setting up the set-top box for playing streaming content from external Internet IPTV providers.
The MAG-250 set-top box allows you to play content from both your Internet provider and third-party providers simultaneously. In any case, you are using your provider's server or a third-party server located somewhere on the Internet. In both cases, a working Internet with a bandwidth of at least 10 Mbit/s is required.
The set-top box itself has a built-in IPTV portal and allows you to configure several additional external portals. Most often, if you buy an IPTV service from your Internet provider, it will provide you with the server name and URL, which must be specified in the set-top box settings to connect to the portal. The URL is specific to different models set-top boxes, so the MAG-245/250 set-top box must use its own address, which will not work for other set-top boxes, and vice versa. Having specified such an external portal, the set-top box will offer you where to log in - into the built-in portal or use an external one.
If you have chosen to log in to an external portal provided by your provider, then when you log in you will be asked to provide a login and password associated with billing. After entering your credentials, a list of channels and video streams available for your tariff will be loaded. It is noteworthy that if you move the set-top box to another location, for example, connect it to another Internet channel, then the external IPTV portal will continue to work through any other Internet connection (provided that it is paid for).
The third option is to flash the set-top box with custom firmware from your provider, which, when loaded, will immediately load the required portal. In this mode, the set-top box will only work on your provider’s local network. In principle, then it can be flashed with the default firmware from Infomir from a USB drive, but this may cause some difficulties. This type of work, for example, is used by the provider Interzet (DOM.RU). They rent out these set-top boxes with their own firmware already installed, but in principle, you can use your own by flashing it with the provider’s firmware (technical support provides it upon request).
Using the built-in set-top portal
The built-in portal is empty by default: it does not contain any channels. You need to add the channel list there manually. The list of channels should be located either at any address available for downloading on the Internet or on a local network. The channel list URL must point to a file in m3u or m3u8 format. The file must contain links to a list of streams (channels). You can easily download such a ready-made file on the Internet or create it yourself by editing it in Notepad or any other text editor.
You can read about editing the channel list in a separate article. After downloading the list of channels, you can edit it directly in the set-top box using the remote control: move channels, create groups, edit their URL and delete them. When you exit the channel menu with the Exit button, the Set-top box will offer to save the changes.
The convenience of this approach is that you can add any channels to the list of channels, both from your provider and any others - paid and free - found on the Internet. The downside is that the functionality of the set-top box does not support viewing channels from the archive of TV programs - you cannot rewind the broadcast to the desired date and time.
Let me give you an example of this type of use of the console by me. My provider Smarthome provides access to the list free channels for viewing via content provider MOOVI(to view paid channels and receive an extended playlist, you must subscribe). MOOVI provides its own pre-configured player, the settings of which include a link to the playlist. Of course, channels from this playlist will only be played on the Smarthome network. I download the player from the provider's link, go to its settings and copy the link to the playlist from there. The list of free channels is presented as an m3u file. The same sheet can be obtained from the player of any other providers:
At the same time, I have subscribed to a paid IPTV service edem.tv, which provides access to hundreds of channels, including HD in good quality, for just $1 per month. This service also provides its own playlist for access to all channels at once. The playlist can either be downloaded or opened in any video player that supports playback of streaming content, for example, the most popular VLC. I download this file too, open both in the Notepad++ editor, edit it line by line, merging the lists and leaving only the channels I need. For each channel, this file contains 3 lines: the group to which the channel belongs (optional line), URL link to the stream and the name of the channel.
The inside of an M3u sheet looks something like this:
#EXTINF:1,Match! TV
http://persik.by/stream/3903/293564/276.m3u8
#EXTINF:1,Match! Arena
http://persik.by/stream/3903/293564/261.m3u8
#EXTINF:1,Match! Planet
http://persik.by/stream/3903/293564/10269.m3u8
#EXTINF:1,Match! A game
http://persik.by/stream/3903/293564/10270.m3u8
#EXTINF:1,Match! Our sport
http://persik.by/stream/3903/293564/10271.m3u8
After editing and merging the lists, I save my file with the m3u extension. This file then needs to be placed somewhere on your local network (on a file server in network folder and give access via UNC path like \\server\folder\file.m3u), on any web server or on the Internet, so that the file is available via a link like http://server/path/file.m3u. Then all that’s left to do is add a link to the settings of the internal port of the set-top box so that the channels are loaded into its memory.
There is also an option to simply indicate a direct http link to posting the playlist on the edem.tv servers - in case you only have one playlist and you do not plan to edit it. If you want to use the edem.tv playlist, but edit it online (for example, change the order of channels and their grouping), then you can place it on free service Ottplayer. This service allows you to place third-party playlists on it and view channels through this service with the ability to access the TV program guide and program archive.
To add a new m3u playlist:
- In the main menu, select IPTV channels, enter the list of portal channels
- Press the Menu button, a menu will appear on the right
- Select “Add IPTV list”
- Using the remote control and on-screen keyboard(language translation - F4) enter the list URL, click OK
- A list of channels will be added to the left. If you already had some channels in the list, then new ones will be added to the end of the list.
- If you want to organize channels into groups, then select the necessary channels with the F2 button, press Menu, select the “Add to group” option.
- Click Exit, save the channel list when exiting.
Using external portals for the MAG-245 set-top box
Our set-top box allows you to specify in the settings the downloading of content from external portals. There are quite a lot of such portals; for each supported model of set-top box they provide their own access link.
In particular, the portal Smotreshka(smotreshka.tv) provides the ability to access IPTV via various tariff plans both for Internet providers and private clients. Smotreshka supports many different viewing platforms, in particular the Infomir set-top box.
Adding new portals occurs as follows:
- from the main menu select Settings
- Click System Settings > Servers > Portals
- Using the remote control and on-screen keyboard (language translation - F4), enter the portal URL and a custom name.
To configure the loading of such a portal in the MAG-245 set-top box, you need to specify the URL in the portal address settings, and then enter it by selecting it from the list. Address for MAG set-top box: http://mag.somteshka.tv
Of course, you will need Internet access to download the portal. The Smotreshka portal requires you to provide data when loading for the first time. account to enter. You can enter them using the on-screen keyboard and the console remote control. After logging in, you will see a list of channels available to you according to your tariff plan.
There are also free portals for MAG-245/250. This portal provides the same service Ottplayer, which was discussed above. Let me remind you that Ottplayer itself is not an IPTV service provider; it provides a platform for posting your playlists and playing them through their player or set-top boxes with a web portal.
To add Ottplayer to the MAG set-top box, enter the address widget.ottplayer.es.
The Ottplayer portal is convenient because it supports as many playlists as you have added on the service website. You can easily switch between them at the bottom of the portal. As you understand, playlists are in no way tied to providers - within the portal you can play any content, as long as the Internet works. It also supports a program archive, scrolling back and forth, and a TV program guide (provided that you have included a link to it in the m3u file).