How To Get Kodi Apps On Main Screen

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Customize Kodi menu options: How to change menu options in Kodi

When you first install Kodi, its main menu comes with a default layout that allows you to play any kind of media you want: movies, music, tv shows, pictures, weather, etc. But each Kodi user has different habits. Some users never use Kodi to look at pictures or listen to music, for example. For this reason, you may want to customize Kodi's menu options to optimize it for the content that you most want. This article explains both basic and advanced methods to change menu options in Kodi.

What is Kodi?

Kodi is a software media player from the Kodi foundation. It runs apps called "addons" that allow users to stream video from virtually any website. It can be installed on Apple TV , Amazon Fire Stick , PC, Mac, and Android or iOS phone. Unlike the default software that comes with Apple TV or Amazon Fire Stick, Kodi is open-source, and its addons are created by independent developers. Many streaming-video users prefer Kodi for this reason.

Kodi is often accused of being used in online piracy. However, there are many addons available for it that only stream from properly licensed sources.

Warning: Kodi should only be used for content to which you have the legal right to access. Neither the Kodi Foundation nor Comparitech advocates the use of Kodi for piracy.

Before we start: Always use a VPN wth Kodi

Many people who stream video from unlicensed sources use virtual private networks (VPNs) to hide their activity. But VPNs should actually be used by all streaming-video users, even ones who only access legal websites.

TV and movie websites often block users from content based on their location. For example, a user in the U.K. who is traveling in France may find that U.K. streaming-sites are inaccessible from there. This is because the streaming site knows the user's IP address. Using a VPN often eliminates this problem because it hides the user's IP address.

VPNs also help to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks and buffering caused by ISP speed throttling.

Many VPNs are not very effective for Kodi users though. Some keep logs of users' streaming habits, which creates a privacy risk. Most do not have native apps for popular streaming devices like Amazon Fire TV and Fire Stick. And many VPNs do not have servers in enough countries to consistently get around geoblocks.

We recommend IPVanish for Kodi users. It has a native app for Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Stick , and Nvidia Shield , keeps no logs, and has servers in over 60 countries.

READER DEAL: Save 60% on an IPVanish plans here.

Basic methods to change menu options in Kodi

How to delete menu items you don't want

If you want to get rid of some menu options you never use, here's how to do it:

Change the background

Besides customizing the actual menu items, you can also change the background images that appear when you move your cursor over these items. There are two ways to do this. The first way is to click the gear icon, then choose skin settings → artwork → choose background pattern. Each time you click choose background pattern , a new piece of background art will appear. There are seven available by default.

The second way is to install a new set of background images. You can do this by navigating to skin settings → artwork → choose skin fanart pack → get more. This will provide you with a list of background art packages.

Kodi artwork backgrounds

After selecting the package you're most interested in, click install . Wait a few seconds for it to finish installing, then select it again. Now repeatedly click choose background pattern until you find the pattern you like the most.

Kodi background installed

Read more: How to use Indigo to repair and maintain your Kodi

Use a different color scheme

To change the colors of the menu, follow these steps:

Note: If you don't see "skin" as an option under "interface settings," make sure it says "expert" beside the gear icon in the lower-left of the screen. If it does not, click it until it does.

Change fonts

The default Kodi estuary skin comes with two different font packages. The first one is called "skin default" and the second one is called "arial based." To switch to the "arial based" font, click the gear icon, then select interface settings → skin → fonts → arial based .

Kodi fonts

See also: How to share Kodi libraries using UPnP

Advanced methods for changing menu options

If you want even more options for customizing the Kodi menu, you can install the Estuary Mod skin. This will allow you to add new menu items that are not even available by default.

Keep in mind that despite having the name "estuary" attached to it, this skin is not part of the official Kodi repository and the developer is no longer providing support for it. So if it stops working, there is no one to turn to for help. I tried using the Estuary Mod addon on a windows PC and it worked fine in my testing, but your experience might be different. Still, this is currently the only way to add new menu items to Kodi that are not available "out of the box."

Estuary Mod is part of the Guilouz repo. Here are the steps to install it:

How to use the Estuary Mod skin to add menu options

Once you've got the Estuary Mod installed, you can add new menu items by taking the following steps:

The possible actions you can make a menu item out of are divided into nine folders, each with multiple options. Here is a list of some of the most interesting actions I found:

Watch live TV
Play DVD
Eject disk tray
File manager
Play a particular file
Play a particular playlist
Select a particular source
Select a particular addon
Rip audio CD
Reboot
Shut down
Update video library

Related article: The 15 best Kodi skins

Conclusion

Using these methods will allow you to customize Kodi's menu to fit your personal preferences. If you don't want to add any new menu options, you can use the "basic" methods described to delete menu options or change the background art, colours or fonts. If you want to add menu items, you can do so using the Estuary Mod skin described here.

If you've found this tutorial to be helpful, you may also want to read our other Kodi guides, such as how to watch HD movies on Kodi.