Hypnotix at a glance
- Made by
- The Linux Mint team; free and open source (GPLv3)
- Plays
- Live TV, plus films and series where the provider offers them
- Provider types
- M3U URL, Local M3U File, Xtream API
- Player engine
- mpv (libmpv)
- Default provider
- Free-TV, a list of free, publicly available channels
From the Hypnotix GitHub page and Linux Mint release notes, checked 5 October 2026.
Getting Hypnotix
On Linux Mint, Hypnotix is part of the system: it first shipped with Linux Mint 20.1, and later releases have kept improving it. Open it from the applications menu.
On other distributions, check your package manager first. The project’s GitHub page lists what it needs: libxapp 2.6 or later, libmpv, python3-imdbpy and circle-flags.
Add your provider
Open Providers
In Hypnotix, go to Providers and choose Add a new provider....
Name it and pick the type
Give it a Name, then choose the Type:
- M3U URL for a playlist link from your provider;
- Local M3U File for a playlist saved on your computer;
- Xtream API for a server address, username and password.
Fill in the details
For an M3U URL, paste the URL. For Xtream API, enter the URL, Username and Password; see your Xtream Codes login details. For a local file, use Browse... to set the Path.
Add the guide link
M3U URL and Xtream API providers also have an EPG field. Paste the XMLTV guide link from your provider if you have one; see XMLTV explained.
Once the provider loads, the home screen shows TV Channels, Movies and Series with a count for each. The default Free-TV provider can be deleted from the same Providers screen, and Reset to defaults... brings it back.
Features worth knowing
- Favourites: since Linux Mint 21.3 you can star channels; favourites from all providers appear together, opened with the star icon on the main screen.
- Custom channels: also since 21.3, any streamable URL can become a channel, without an IPTV provider.
- Theater and borderless modes: since Linux Mint 22.2, theater mode hides the controls so the picture fills the window, and borderless mode also hides the title bar; hold Alt to move the window. Handy for TV tiled in a corner of the screen.
- Network settings: Preferences has User Agent and Referrer fields, for the rare provider that asks for them, and MPV Options for playback settings.
Keyboard shortcuts
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| Left / Right | Previous or next channel |
| F11 or F | Full screen |
| F6 | Theater mode (no controls) |
| F7 | Borderless mode |
| Esc | Back to normal mode |
| Ctrl + F | Search |
| Ctrl + R | Reload all providers |
| F2 | Stream information |
| Ctrl + K | Show all shortcuts |
From Hypnotix’s own shortcuts window.
Fixing common problems
- No channels after adding a provider: press Ctrl + R to reload, then check the link or login in another player such as VLC. A link that fails everywhere is a provider issue; see channels not loading.
- Black screen or no video on Wayland: add
vo=x11to MPV Options in Preferences, and start Hypnotix withGDK_BACKEND=x11 hypnotix, as the README suggests. - Is it the stream or the connection? F2 opens stream information, with the codec, resolution and average bitrate of what’s playing.
- YouTube channels stopped working: Preferences can switch to a local copy of yt-dlp and update it from GitHub. Linux Mint notes that this is manual for security reasons and affects only Hypnotix.
For other Linux players, including IPTVnator with a full TV guide, see IPTV on Linux.