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Amazon Fire TV Stick update (Image: AMAZON)
If you own a Fire TV Stick and have suddenly noticed something is missing you are definitely not alone. Amazon appears to have quietly removed a much-used function on some of its streaming devices with fans left so annoyed some have threatened to ditch their devices for good.
As spotted by the team at AFTVnews, the latest Fire OS upgrade seems to have removed the option to 'Hide Apps" from the menu panel. It did exactly what it said on the tin with a couple of taps on the remote, hiding applications rather than fully removing them.
This may not seem like a big deal but with Amazon featuring a number of pre-installed applications - such as Freevee and Prime Video - that can't be removed or deleted, many used the hide function to de-clutter their viewing experience. It was also handy if you wanted to install app or game and then keep it hidden from younger members of the family.
Now that option has been removed on devices including the premium Fire TV Stick Max and 1st-gen Fire TV Stick 4K.
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AFTVnews now thinks more Fire TV Sticks will get this update in the coming weeks.
"The removal of the option to hide apps has been confirmed on both the older 1st-gen Fire TV Stick 4K, running Fire OS 6, and the current 2nd-gen Fire TV Stick Max, which uses the latest Fire OS 8, so it’s likely that this change will be applied to all Fire TV models," the AFTBnews team said.
It might seem like a small update, but users have been left pretty miffed by the changes. In a post on Reddit, one Fire TV Stick owner asked, "Hey everyone, I’m on a Fire TV Stick 4K Max (2nd Gen) and just noticed the option to hide apps has disappeared with the latest update."
In response, another fan said, "Yeah, I've been trying to get them off too, but you can't now, which sucks."
One user even threatened to leave the platform, saying, "It makes Fire Sticks officially a deal breaker. If I am unable to get rid of the useless Amazon bloatware icons, I am done with Fire Sticks."
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It seems the changes are affecting devices running Fire OS 8.1.2.7 although - at the time of writing - not all Fire streamers have lost the "Hide Apps" option.
Sadly, there's no way to stop the update with Amazon forcing the release onto devices.
English (US) ·