[Update: Jan. 07] Did Samsung One UI 3.0 (Android 11) update remove option to hide camera cutout?

New updates are being added at the bottom of this story…….

Original story (published on December 19, 2020) follows:

Not everyone is a fan of big holes in their displays, and while One UI previously addressed this concern by offering a “hide camera cutout” option, there is no trace of the feature anymore on the latest One UI 3.0 update.

Samsung seems to have quietly done away with it. And as apparent from the comments given below, fans of the feature are clueless as to why it was removed. Many are also quite bummed about it.

I have just done an up date and my front camera dot has come back on, I have gone into settings and display to click the 3 dots that go to the screen to switch off but it isn’t there. Can we no longer turn it off
Source

The Note 20 Ultra One UI 3.0 Android 11 update is HORRIBLE! I wish I never installed it! I no longer can hide my camera cutout, the calender on my always on display is no longer available & it’s been interfering with games.
Source

Camera cutouts can cause quite an interference sometimes, especially when the cutout is comprised of two cameras that result in a huge gaping hole in the front. A typical example is the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus.

The issue stands out way more on light mode as light backgrounds and the black cutout result in a contrasty effect and don’t exactly go well together. On the other hand, using dark mode does help make it far less noticeable.

It is odd that Samsung decided to do away with a perfectly working feature and causing inconvenience for several users.

There is no official acknowledgment about the removal as of now, but it does seem like Samsung has removed it because its users only made up a small niche.

However, due to the fact that only a small number of people have switched to One UI 3.0 given its sparse rollout at this stage, the influx of reports is not as huge as we would expect from such an issue.

It is worth mentioning though, that the vast majority of users still prefer cutouts over having a black bar on the top of the display. After all, if you paid for all of the display, then why not use the entire thing?

Moreover, having a black bar on the top doesn’t quite make sense in 2020. Previously, a top bar atop used to balance the huge bottom bezels that most Android smartphones used to have.

This has changed in 2020 though, as most smartphones, or at least the flagships, have close to non-existent bottom bezels. And having a black bar at the top does make the front of the phone appear a bit lopsided.

Perhaps, Samsung decided to do away with it after considering these aspects. It is unclear at the moment though if the change is a deliberate, permanent one or if Samsung messed up something in the update.

But if the hide camera cutout feature is truly done away with the onset of One UI 3.0, then the chances of it being added again seem pretty slim.

That being said, we will continue tracking the matter for further updates. For now, be sure to check out our dedicated One UI 3.0 bugs/issues tracker for further coverage on problems like these.

04:45 pm (IST): A new report has surfaced that suggests that Samsung has indeed removed the option to hide the camera cutout with the One UI 3.0 update. Moreover, it’s likely that the option to do so may never return.

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