Amazon Fire TV Tips and Tricks: 11 Hidden Features About Amazon TV Streamer

If you’re looking to access apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu, it’s hard to beat Amazon’s line of Fire TV devices. From watching movies and live TV to playing games on the big screen, Amazon’s Fire OS devices are the best way to build your entertainment system.

Amazon Fire TV (2nd generation) was a slim-design box that was discontinued in 2018, replaced by the ever-growing Fire TV Stick product line, driven primarily by the success of 2016’s second-generation Fire TV Stick. Amazon also sells The Fire Cube TV. Today, you have several Amazon Fire TV Stick options, from Classic to 4K, and the tips and tricks discussed here should work for any version of Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, Fire Cube, or the old Fire pendant. Visually, each model may appear different on your screen than some of the screenshots shown below.

Over the years, Amazon has updated the models and their design with useful tweaks, including the option to control your TV’s power and volume directly from the remote. Meanwhile, they’ve also improved their software to look cleaner than ever, so you can find the movies you want to watch and jump right into the action. Installing Kodi on a Fire Stick is just another cool thing you can do, along with many other third-party apps.

Here are nine hidden/semi-hidden features for Amazon Fire TV devices.

1. How to use the Fire TV context menu

If you’re tired of navigating to the “Settings” menu every time you need to put your Fire TV to sleep (there’s no on/off option available), there’s a quick method that Amazon includes by default. The context menu on your Fire Stick allows for quick navigation, and once you know where to look, it’s something you’ll use all the time.

1. Press and hold the “Home” icon button.
   
2. He “Quick settings” A pop-up menu appears showing common options, including Sleep, Duplication, Settingsand Applications, depending on your model.
   

2. How to use your Amazon tablet as a second screen

If you have an Amazon Fire tablet, you can use it as a second screen to watch content on Amazon Prime or browse your Fire Stick. You can also cast content to your tablet, meaning you can enjoy your Fire TV even if someone else is using the actual TV.

As with everything else on Amazon’s media box, it’s pretty easy to set up.

1. Make sure your Fire Tablet and Fire TV Stick/Cube are connected to the same network, including the band (2.4GHz/5GHz).
2. On your Fire tablet, open the “Settings“ menu.
3. Then choose “Second screen” of the options to allow the device to serve as a secondary display.

3. How to mirror your Fire tablet to your TV

Newer Fire HD tablets, like the Fire HD 8 and 10, provide easy access to the mirroring feature.

The easiest way to identify mirroring support on your device:If your Fire tablet includes the “Screen mirroring“Option found in”Screen and sounds”, supports the function.

Here’s how to mirror your Fire tablet to your TV, Firestick, or Fire Cube.

1. Make sure your Fire tablet, TV, Firestick, or Fire Cube are connected to the same network.
   
2. On your Fire tablet, swipe down from the top, then select “Settings.”
3. Choose “Screen and sounds” then tap “Screen reflection”.
4. Choose your TV, Fire TV Stick, or Fire Cube from the list that appears. Your tablet starts mirroring to the device.

To stop mirroring to your TV, Firestick or Cube, all you have to do is swipe down from the top and choose “Stop reflecting.” The process is that simple.

4. How to enable parental controls to keep your children safe

Amazon allows you to place parental controls on your Amazon Prime Instant account or on the apps installed on your Fire TV device. This option prevents your children from accessing inappropriate content and also means you won’t end up with any surprise payments.

While a device-level setting for parental controls will cover all Amazon content on your device, you’ll still need to set restrictions for other apps like Netflix.

5. How to expand your internal storage for games, videos and apps

As standard, Amazon’s Fire TV Cube (2nd generation 2019) comes with 16GB of internal storagewhile the Fire TV Stick 4K and 4K Max include 8GB.

While that amount of space on Firesticks and Fire TV Cube may seem reasonable, any serious Fire TV user will find that it fills up pretty quickly. Fortunately, the Fire TV Cube allows you to connect a USB stick or drive to transfer your games and apps or install new apps on it. You can’t easily do the same with the old Fire TV 2018 dongle or any Fire TV Stick. A USB OTG cable is required and you must move the files to the external USB drive or stick manually.

To increase storage on your Firestick or Fire Cube, you need a USB 3.0 (not 2.0) flash drive formatted in FAT32or your Fire TV will erase everything when you format it.

1. Once the USB stick or drive is connected, go to “Settings.”
2. Choose“Applications”.
3. Then click “Manage installed applications” to transfer content to the USB storage device.

6. How to connect Bluetooth headphones

Did you know that Fire TV supports Bluetooth headphones? If you didn’t, you do it now. The process is simple.

1. Make sure your headphones are ready to pair, and then select “Settings” on your Fire TV device.
2. Next, scroll down and select “Bluetooth Drivers and Devices.”
3. Under “Other Bluetooth Devices,” you can automatically select and connect your headphones to your Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, or Fire TV Cube. Be patient. It may take a couple of minutes for Bluetooth devices to display.

7. How to keep your home screen tidy

If you don’t like clutter on your Home screen, you can remove entries from the “Recently Used Apps” p and other areas. The newer layout uses horizontal scrolling (sliding carousel navigation), so there’s not much to clean up. However, you can still remove some thumbnails from specific lists to reduce their length.

1. Navigate to the item you want to remove from any p of the slider carousel, but do not select it.
2. Tap on the “hamburger icon” (Menu) button on your Fire TV remote control.
3. Choose “Remove from the list” either “Remove from recent,” depending on the location of the entrance.

Note: If an item cannot be removed, such as those listed in “FREE MOVIES & TV from IMDb” or “NETFLIX RECOMMENDED”, you will not see the “Remove from list” option. There is nothing you can do.

Currently, as of February 19, 2022, you can delete entries from the following ps:

• Recently used apps
• Prime Movies We Think You’ll Like
• Any other “We think you’ll like” p that appears on the home screen

There may be other slider carousel ps depending on your use of your Fire device. Also, carousels are changed/updated frequently, so they are subject to variations, such as adding carousels for the Olympics, holidays, etc.

8. How to create a custom screensaver

To add a custom screensaver to your Fire TV device, upload a set of images to your Amazon Cloud Drive. Make sure you choose the same account registered with your Fire TV account. You get 5GB of free storage just for setting up cloud storage, so there’s plenty of room to upload some brilliant images and decorate that beautiful big screen when your Fire TV device is idle.

To access the images, go to the “Photos” on your Fire TV device and then browse the uploaded photos to set some as your screen saver.

1. Upload some images to your Amazon Cloud Drive (they must match the Amazon Fire TV account used on your device).
2. Go to “Settings” on your Fire device.
3. Choose “Display and sounds.”
4. Select “Screen Saver” and then choose “Current screensaver.”
5. Select “Daily Memories” “Your photos,” either “Recent photos.” If you added custom folders to your Amazon Cloud Drive, they are also listed as an option.

9. How to install apps from Amazon website

Navigating the Amazon Appstore on Fire TV can be tricky, especially if you’re in a hurry. But did you know that you can install apps on your Fire TV device directly from the Amazon website? Be sure to use the filters on the left side to offer compatible apps for your particular Firestick.

By browsing Amazon’s online catalog or directly to the app you want, you’ll be able to purchase it and have it sent to your Fire TV device, as long as it’s linked to the Amazon account where you purchased the app.

10. Get free movies and shows with Amazon Freevee

You’ve probably heard about the Fire TV’s ability to stream free content. But what you may not know is that Amazon developed its own app to allow users to stream movies and TV for free. You can install the Freevee app on your Fire TV using the device’s app store.

11. Use your smartphone as a remote control

Whether you’ve lost your remote or want to play a prank on someone watching content on their Fire TV, Amazon offers a mobile app that lets you control the device as if it were the remote.

You will first need to connect the Fire TV and your smartphone to the same WiFi network. So, install the Fire TV app on your smartphone. Once you’ve gone through the setup steps, you’ll never have to worry about losing your Fire TV remote again.

As you can see above, Amazon’s Fire Stick models offer many interesting features and benefits. Devices are customizable and universal for music, movies, shows, games, images, apps, wallpapers, content organization, and more! Try some of the features above!