Has Downloader stopped working on your Fire TV Stick? Dont panic, Amazon isnt killing sideloading on previous models, and a fix is on the way

Date:
Tue, 15 Sep 2026 16:02:50 +0000

Description:
A bug that stopped sideloading on older Fire TV models is being fixed, says Amazon.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Fire TV owners spotted an issue that prevented sideloading on compatible Fire TV models This convinced users to believe that Amazon was clamping down on sideloading on older devices
Turns out it was just a bug, and Amazon is rolling out a fix soon There's a dedicated community of Amazon Fire TV Stick owners who like to sideload apps on their devices. However, a recent issue seemed to block the feature,
leading to users worry that the tech giant was removing sideloading for older devices to match the lack of sideloading capability on the latest Fire TV Stick HD .

Turns out, it was just a bug. It's been plaguing Fire TV owners for the past month, and was first spotted by users when Amazon rolled out an update that effectively stopped Downloader, a popular sideloading service developed by AFTV News, from working. Soon after, similar services started vanishing from the Install unknown apps list in Fire TV settings, mainly ones that can install apps from sources that arent the official Fire TV app store. Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

While the bug didnt invade every Fire TV device, it was enough to make users suspicious that Amazon was cracking down on the feature. Without Downloader and similar apps, you cant grant permission for them to install other apps.

Thankfully, Amazon has confirmed that a fix is on the way, sharing the following with AFTV News : You may like Google fixes setup issues for older Chromecast and Google Home devices ExpressVPN joins the short list of VPNs built for Amazon's Vega OS Fire TV Sticks I'm sick of privacy worries, so I'm taking my TV off the internet for good

"There was a bug in a recent Fire TV Settings update that caused the 'Install unknown apps' list to appear incomplete or empty on some Fire TV devices. We have identified the cause and a fix will roll out in an upcoming Fire TV Settings update, installed automatically on affected devices over the coming week."

According to AFTV News, the update will be installed to your Fire TV device automatically and will likely arrive as a component update. You can also
check for it by going to Settings > My Fire TV > About > Check for updates. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our
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Of course, this all still only applies to the older devices anything powered by Amazons own Vega OS, which is taking over from the Android-based Fire TV
OS in newer models, will likely never have sideloading abilities. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/televisions/streaming-devices/has-downloader-stopped -working-on-your-fire-tv-stick-dont-panic-amazon-isnt-killing-sideloading-on-p revious-models-and-a-fix-is-on-the-way


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