This is the state of the Apple TV app on windows, it's literally unusable. If this is the way of apple deliberately making the UX worse on non apple devices, guess it's time to cancel my sub.
Windows
Had the same problem but went to Start and right-clicked the app. Selected more then clicked to repair the app. On-screen controls vanished. Already auto-hide the taskbar so everything looking good again for me.
Same issue still. Did this get messed up in an update in January or something? I'm relatively new to Apple TV. I watched Severance last year and don't remember this issue happening.
This is not a fix! Its only a remedy. A temporary solution.
This problem needs to be fixed immediately!
What worked for me was to remove the Apple app from the taskbar. I have tried it a few times now and it works so far. I will check back in if the problem comes back.
The on-screen controls are supposed to fade in a second or two, if the mouse pointer isn’t moving. Please verify that your mouse isn’t on an uneven surface that could cause the mouse pointer to move between two pixel positions back-and-forth.
I use autohotkey and use a script and load it on windows startup. Now I can toggle the taskbar on/off easily just by pressing the F12 key. I got it from here: https://www.autohotkey.com/boards/viewtopic.php?t=60866 . There are some scripts on the thread, here's the one I use:
$F12:: HideShowTaskbar(hide := !hide)
HideShowTaskbar(action) {
static ABM_SETSTATE := 0xA, ABS_AUTOHIDE := 0x1, ABS_ALWAYSONTOP := 0x2VarSetCapacity(APPBARDATA, size := 2*A_PtrSize + 2*4 + 16 + A_PtrSize, 0)
NumPut(size, APPBARDATA), NumPut(WinExist("ahk_class Shell_TrayWnd"), APPBARDATA, A_PtrSize)
NumPut(action ? ABS_AUTOHIDE : ABS_ALWAYSONTOP, APPBARDATA, size - A_PtrSize)
DllCall("Shell32\SHAppBarMessage", UInt, ABM_SETSTATE, Ptr, &APPBARDATA)
}
Thats not a solution. I use the app for month just like that. I never considered to pin the app to the taskbar. :D
I just found out recently that when the app is started and you open a new programm or window, like your browser or the file explorer and then start a movie, the taskbar will be visible the whole time. For this bug to occur it's enough to have the apple tv app open, you don't need to start a movie.
Did you end up finding a fix? Running into the same problem, super annoying
Not really a definitive fix, but you can set the taskbar to automatically hide under the taskbar behavior settings.
On Windows 11: Settings > Personalization > Taskbar behaviors
I right clicked on the Apple TV app, when to settings and then repair and that fixed the UI not fading, regards taskbar can just right click the taskbar and under task bar behaviour select auto hide.
Its only temporary man.
I pinned it to Start instead of the taskbar.
Apple TV on Windows does not hide the player controls and taskbar