The quick answer
Start with the device that runs your streaming app. Built-in TV apps use the TV setup; a separate HDMI player needs its own setup. Choose your streaming service, confirm Smart DNS access for your TV plan with USip, then subscribe. Your credentials and setup instructions arrive by email. Register your home connection, apply the device settings and test playback.
1. Choose the device that plays your video
A TV brand is only the starting point. Note the full model, approximate year and operating system, then check whether you open the streaming app on the TV itself or on a box connected by HDMI. That tells you which device needs the setup.
Built-in app or HDMI player? Changing the television’s network settings does not automatically configure a separately connected player. Choose the guide for the device where you open the app.
- Samsung Smart TV — apps running on the TV itself.
- LG webOS TV — apps running on the TV itself.
- Apple TV — an Apple TV box connected by HDMI.
- Fire TV — a Fire TV Stick, Cube or television running Fire TV.
- Home router — consider this route when the playback device cannot use manual DNS or several home devices need the setup.
- Another Smart TV brand — check the model and available DNS settings below.
For a router route, confirm the router model and firmware with USip before changing settings. Only devices using that router and its DNS configuration can use that setup.
Check that your intended app is available for your model and market. DNS settings do not install an app, add a streaming subscription or change the account attached to it. If the store cannot find it, start with our guide to a streaming app not available on your Smart TV.
Your next step
Choose a Residential US IP for your Smart TV.
Choose your streaming service to open its Residential US IP offer. For TV use, confirm that your chosen plan includes Smart DNS access before subscribing. Your USip credentials and setup instructions then arrive by email; use them to configure the device that plays your video.
2. Register the connection the TV will use
Use the current home-connection registration instructions. Connect a phone or computer through the same router as the TV; on a phone, use Wi-Fi and turn mobile data off. Turn off the registering device’s VPN. The wizard registers your public IP automatically.
After successful signup, your USip login details and instructions arrive in the account email. Use those credentials in the existing registration step. This associates the connection you are setting up with your USip access; it is separate from signing into a streaming app.
Continue to the current DNS settings and device instructions. Note your original settings first, then use the supplied DNS values exactly rather than substituting a public resolver. If the device refuses the documented secondary-DNS options, contact USip Support.
- Connect the registration device and TV through the same router; keep the registration device’s VPN off.
- Register the current public IP with your emailed USip credentials.
- Continue to the TV instructions and use the DNS values supplied there.
3. Open the guide for your TV brand
Start with the current USip device instructions. The Smart TV selector also provides the brand guides below. Complete registration first and use the current USip DNS values when following a model-specific menu guide.
Menus can differ within the same brand. Samsung’s network guidance documents manual DNS with different menu paths on some models. LG’s instructions distinguish webOS generations and wired versus wireless settings. Their example DNS servers are for general troubleshooting; use the values from USip for this setup. For Samsung-specific model, app and menu checks, read our Samsung Smart TV setup guide. For LG models, see our LG Smart TV setup guide.
If your screen does not match the guide, ask USip support about your exact model and software version. A listed brand is not confirmation that every TV it has sold uses identical settings.
4. Allow activation time, then test playback
Save the changes and follow USip’s playback check. Allow up to 15 minutes, reconnect or restart the TV if needed, and reopen your streaming app. Try a title included in your account; loading the app’s home screen is not the same as playing a video. If you changed DNS on a router, save without restarting it unless required; if a restart changes your public IP, register again.
Smart DNS handles selected supported streaming traffic; it does not route every request through a US address or provide VPN encryption. Our IPv4 checker reports the address used for its own lookup request, so your usual country can remain visible. Test the streaming service on the actual playback device.
If your ISP changes your public IP, register the new connection. If setup still fails, use Smart DNS troubleshooting for registration and DNS checks. For a service-specific error, open Streaming Doctor or follow US IP, but streaming still blocked to separate routing, account and app issues.
5. Match the plan to your service and device
Use the streaming-service choices above to open the matching Residential US IP offer. Confirm Smart DNS access with USip Support for your TV and chosen plan before subscribing. Then use the credentials and instructions emailed to you to register the home connection and configure the device.
If the TV cannot use the documented route, read the home-router guide and ask USip whether the setup fits your exact router model and firmware. For help choosing between connection types, use Smart DNS vs VPN. Confirm the supported option before buying hardware or changing the whole network.
A US connection addresses the network part of the setup. The streaming service still controls account access, title availability and playback. Use the service-specific checks when the error points to one of those requirements.
Quick questions
Do I need a VPN app on my Smart TV?
USip provides a DNS setup path for the listed TV brands. Check the guide against your exact model. An external Apple TV or Fire TV player needs its own device assessment.
Do I register the TV's private network address?
The USip DNS registration step uses the connection’s public IP. Complete it from a device on the same router as the TV, using your USip credentials.
What if it stops working after my home IP changes?
Return to the USip registration step, register the current public IP. Then test the streaming app again.
Sources
Current USip Smart DNS instructions and setup links reviewed on October 11, 2026. Manufacturer documentation was reviewed on September 24, 2026. This guide explains the setup process; it is not a hands-on playback test of every TV model or streaming service.