As an experienced Firestick owner, I know the frustration of dealing with the dreaded “white box”. For those of you who don’t know, the white box is a common problem where certain apps on your Firestick appear as a white box instead of their normal icon. After doing some research and testing myself, I’m here to share what I discovered about the causes and fixes for the white box on Firestick.
Some users turn on the white box mistakenly by pressing the shortcut buttons on their remote. Other times, it’s caused by a Firestick bug. You can easily fix the white box issue from the Accessibility menu on the TV settings. Alternatively, you can press the Rewind and Fast Forward buttons simultaneously. If it doesn’t work, try restarting your device.
| Key Takeaways |
|---|
| – The white box on Firestick can be caused by user error or a Firestick bug. |
| – The white box is a text banner feature that assists visually-impaired users. |
| – You can fix the white box by adjusting the settings in the Accessibility menu, pressing the Rewind and Fast Forward buttons simultaneously, or rebooting the device. |
| – A hard reboot or updating the Firestick may also solve the issue. |
| – Make sure to update your Firestick regularly and close background apps. |
Table of Contents
What Causes White Box on Firestick?
Amazon has designed the white box out of good intentions. Its official name is “text banner.”
The text banner is an accessibility feature that helps navigate Firestick with ease. When this feature is on, the text becomes more visible to users with vision conditions, such as macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa.
The real problem is that the text banner can show up automatically without having intentionally activated it. Why is that?
Many Firestick users have reported that the white box shows up when they press the Rewind button. This might be because they pressed some of the shortcut buttons by mistake.
It could also be that the Rewind button sometimes triggers a common Firestick bug. So, just make sure you don’t press the Rewind button with another button by mistake.
How to Fix White Box on Firestick?
Now that we know why this white box shows up, let’s get to the solutions!
- Adjust the Settings
Since Amazon has designed the text banner to help its users, they have made it easy to control from the settings menu.
Follow the steps below to toggle this feature off from your TV settings.
- Press the Home button on your remote.
- Select Accessibility.
- Select Text Banner to turn it off.
Alternatively, you can use the free Firestick remote control app to swiftly navigate the settings menu. It offers an intuitive interface that’s based on swiping. The text input is also much easier through the keyboard.
- Use Remote Buttons
You can toggle several features on your Firestick by pressing some remote buttons simultaneously. In all cases, you’ll need to press and hold for around 5 seconds before you release the buttons.
Use any of the following button combinations to adjust the text banner feature.
- Pause button and Back button
- Rewind button and Fast Forward button
The Rewind and Forward buttons can temporarily hide the white box. You can also press them again if you need to show the text banner for a few moments.
- Reboot the Device
If the text banner is stuck even though it’s turned off in the settings, it’s time to give your device a fresh start. There are two main ways to restart a Firestick TV.
1. From the Settings Menu
Follow the following steps on your TV.
- Go to the Settings Menu.
- Choose My Fire TV.
- Choose Restart.
- Confirm Restart.
All you need to do is wait for a few moments until the TV screen turns on again.
2. Using Shortcut Buttons
Press and hold the Select button and Play button for a few seconds. Once the screen indicates that your device is powering off, you can release the buttons.
This is the fastest method for rebooting the device, and it works on all Firestick TVs and their remotes.
- Hard-Reboot Your Device
A typical reboot might not always do the job, so you’ll need to resort to a hard reboot.
Simply unplug your Fire TV stick from the power source. Make sure to remove the HDMI port too.
Then, wait for a few minutes and then plug in your device again. Alternatively, you can remove the USB cord from the Fire TV.
- Update Firestick
Sometimes all you need to fix a bug is to update your Firestick. Here’s how to install the update on the latest interface.
- Select the gear icon on the right side of the TV screen.
- Scroll down the Settings menu and choose My Fire TV.
- Choose About.
- Choose Check for Install Update or Check for Updates.
As for the older interface, these are the steps for the update.
- Select Settings, located at the upper right corner of the screen
- Scroll to the right side to select My Fire TV.
- Choose About.
- Select Install Update at the bottom of the screen.
Before installing the update, make sure that you have a stable Internet connection and close all background apps.
Wrapping Up
In most cases, pressing some buttons by mistake will trigger the white box. You can turn off the feature from the settings menu or by pressing the shortcut buttons on your remote.
Admittedly, the text label is irritating at first glance. However, since visually-impaired users could independently navigate Firestick, there’s beauty in its underlying message.
