Android users complain after Google removes popular homescreen app icon notification feature
Before Android users installed Android 14 on their handsets, they had a shortcut that could help them quickly see a notification from an app by long-pressing the app's icon on the homescreen. Only one complete notification would appear on the display and a counter in the corner would alert the user if there were more notifications from that app. Tapping on the notification would open it up or the user could just swipe it to dismiss it.
But in Android 14, long-pressing on an app icon no longer shows notifications. It shows app shortcuts, App info, Pause app, and Widgets. The removal of notifications from the app icon long-press was first spotted when Google was releasing beta versions of Android 14 to those installed in the Android 14 beta program. Once the stable version of Android 14 was disseminated in October, more users realized that the notifications were missing and the number of complaints on the Google Issue Tracker soared to over 100.
One comment said, "Why would you remove such a useful feature? It is a really regressive step." And another comment said, "Just to add my disappointment, this feature was so helpful! Any plans to put it back?" Yet another Android user expressed his/her unhappiness by writing, "The removal of this feature was a bad move. It improved notification visibility, and it was extremely intuitive. Pass on the feedback to reverse this decision. It was definitely an ill advised move, especially for users who focus on productivity."
Android 13, at left, showed notifications when long-pressing an app icon, That feature ended with Android 14. Image Credit-9to5Google
A Googler responded, "Thank you for reporting this issue. We have looked into the issue you have reported and would like to inform you that this is working as intended. It was removed in the latest update." So that is bad news for Android users who were hoping that the removal of the feature was a bug that could be reversed with a software update. Now that Google has extinguished all hope, Android users need to understand that unless Google has a change of heart, long-pressing an app icon on the homescreen is not going to show notifications anymore.
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