Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
TL;DR
- A recent Samsung One UI 8.5 update has revived the auto-hide taskbar toggle in DeX.
- Samsung initially ditched this toggle in One UI 8’s rebuilt desktop mode.
- This should make life much easier if you want a distraction-free experience while watching videos.
Samsung’s DeX mode underwent massive changes last year, as the company dropped its legacy desktop experience in favor of a rebuilt mode in partnership with Google. Unfortunately, this rebuilt experience lacked several legacy DeX features, including a toggle to automatically hide the taskbar. Thankfully, a One UI 8.5 update brings good news.
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A recent One UI 8.5 update for the Galaxy S26 series has resurrected the Auto hide taskbar toggle. This feature can be accessed by tapping Settings > Connected Devices > Samsung DeX > Connected Display. You can then scroll down and find the toggle below the screen timeout option.
We’re glad to see this toggle in DeX once again, as it means we’ve now got an easier way to hide the taskbar when going full-screen. Samsung’s rebuilt DeX did let you enter an immersive mode when maximizing an app, although it wasn’t very intuitive. This entailed clicking and holding on the maximize button until a menu popped up, then tapping the immersive option. This would indeed hide the taskbar, but Samsung didn’t make this option easy to find. So the auto-hide toggle is a far more convenient solution.
Samsung has also revived a couple of other legacy features since it launched the rebuilt DeX. This includes the on-screen keyboard location option and a toggle to output sound through the connected display. In any event, we hope the company continues to revive old features and bring new additions to its desktop experience.
Thanks to Dylan H for the tip!
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