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Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

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Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#161

Post by Cougher »

ehsankia wrote: post #156
noisem4ker wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Android isn't intrinsically tied to Google, unlike iOS is to Apple. Once upon a time, Android had its own, neutral Browser app. It was then replaced with Google Chrome, just like Email was replaced with Gmail. A pointless branding exercise in my opinion.

> Android isn't intrinsically tied to Google Except Google spends billions in both engineering and infrastructure to develop, test and maintain it. Including those apps is part of how they fund said development. But these days, people expect everything to be completely free and tech companies to do things out of the goodness of their heart for no financial benefit.

This response says everything it needed to say in the first sentence without the gratuitous snark of the second.

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#162

Post by Cougher »

dna_polymerase wrote: post #68
auxym wrote: post #29

See: Android One https://www.android.com/one/ No bloatware, updates available.

This is a testament to how messed up Android is these days. Have a look at iOS. The minimal set of Apps they ship their phones with aren't bloated or anything besides useful. Guaranteeing updates if the vendor decides to ship them? It's basically an example of how Apples strategy with tight grip on their platform makes so much sense. iPhone owners don't have to worry about any of that. Generally phones are supported…

Does Apple allow you to make your own ringtone for your own phone yet? Or copy your own songs to your own phone for your own listening?

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#164

Post by layoutIfNeeded »

Waterluvian wrote: post #28
ahartmetz wrote: post #24

Motorola (edit: and Google, Nokia, probably other) phones come without bloatware - vote with your wallets. (The preinstalled Moto apps are very small and actually quite useful, like accelerometer-based gestures for quick acces to camera or flashlight) I buy phones as a platform for software, so it makes sense to pay attention to more than the hardware.

I got a moto because of this. It has _almost_ no bloatware. LinkedIn, DropBoxNativeClient, and a few other apps I don't use cannot be uninstalled. Edit: some others I can't uninstall from my international, unlocked Moto G6: Google Drive, Duo, Chrome, YouTube,

“It has _almost_ no bloatware. LinkedIn, DropBoxNativeClient, and a few other apps I don't use cannot be uninstalled.”

Sounds like a serious case of Stockholm syndrome.

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#165

Post by jay_kyburz »

ehsankia wrote: post #155
kmonsen wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's your opinion, but most users want a phone that comes with reasonable apps that makes it easy for them to do what they want. I hope you see this is not black and white, there is a grey area here where apps are bloatware for some people but legitimate useful for some people. To take Chrome for example, for Google to ship an Android phone without what they consider the best browser for the platform would be borde…

I don't know why you're downvoted. If I, as an average consumer, bought a phone that didn't come with a browser, maps and music software, I'd think there was something wrong with it and would return it. There may be an argument to make about allowing the user to pick their browser during onboarding, but calling the browser "bloatware" is completely ridiculous. You may not want Chrome, but 99% of people buying a Pixel…

But that is the definition of bloatware. Software that you don't want on your device. Might not be bloatware for you, but it is for me and the op.

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#166

Post by Justsignedup »

at-fates-hands wrote: post #137
wpietri wrote: post #116

Does anybody understand the economic point of making apps nonremovable? From the point of view of a vendor paying for access, presumably their goal is to spark interest and shift default choices. So I get why LinkedIn would pay to be on the phone when it leaves the factory. But if somebody doesn't want it, what do they gain by preventing removal? To me it seems kinda like DRM: I'm sure some executives get woodies at…

The interesting thing I always found with Windows phones was how easy it was to remove any and all bloatware on their phones. Don't the One Plus and Android One phones come pretty clean with only a few Google apps on them?

The problem was that android makers were cooking these apps into the core OS build. Without root you couldn't disable them. An initially it was to allow for custom needs to be implemented, but they of course took advantage.

Google added a disable feature. Funny thing is you can disable the disable feature for certain apps.

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#167

Post by ahartmetz »

Barrin92 wrote: post #120
ahartmetz wrote: post #24

Motorola (edit: and Google, Nokia, probably other) phones come without bloatware - vote with your wallets. (The preinstalled Moto apps are very small and actually quite useful, like accelerometer-based gestures for quick acces to camera or flashlight) I buy phones as a platform for software, so it makes sense to pay attention to more than the hardware.

>Motorola (edit: and Google, Nokia, probably other) phones come without bloatware - vote with your wallets. Yes, vote with your wallet, but also vote with your actual votes. I'd very much like to see a decision from the EU or FCC to finally stop this practice of making it impossible for people to remove the software from the phones they own. Consumer rights when it comes to mobile devices which are arguably already t…

Oh, I'm not against rules that enforce good behavior.

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#168

Post by ralphie02 »

ehsankia wrote: post #155
kmonsen wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's your opinion, but most users want a phone that comes with reasonable apps that makes it easy for them to do what they want. I hope you see this is not black and white, there is a grey area here where apps are bloatware for some people but legitimate useful for some people. To take Chrome for example, for Google to ship an Android phone without what they consider the best browser for the platform would be borde…

I don't know why you're downvoted. If I, as an average consumer, bought a phone that didn't come with a browser, maps and music software, I'd think there was something wrong with it and would return it. There may be an argument to make about allowing the user to pick their browser during onboarding, but calling the browser "bloatware" is completely ridiculous. You may not want Chrome, but 99% of people buying a Pixel…

Quite frankly, I think the post should get downvoted more. It's not an opinion, it's a fact that those apps are NOT necessary for the phone's functionality. The user even mentions that the apps are a 'want' to some users, not a need.

What makes the bloatware annoying is that they cannot be fully uninstalled, only disabled. I'm one of the users who disabled these google apps and it annoys me that I cannot remove them.

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#169

Post by ShorsHammer »

goguy wrote: post #160
jfengel wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, and they start in the $300+ range. The others are paid for unremovable bloatware, which lets them come in at a lower price point. The Xiaomi Android One line does manage to price in the $150 range without bloatware, and I'm not sure how.

Chinese spyware that doesn't even show as an "app"

You have any proof whatsoever for that or just a general uninformed guess?

I have an A1 and have logged it's network requests all day for fun. There's absolutely nothing remotely resembling "spyware". Compared to prolific unremovable bloat than many premium phones have it's an excellent phone. Ended up buying another for safekeeping if something ever goes wrong with it.

Android One, monthly security updates, official bootlock unloader, some of the best LineageOS support around. Compared to nearly everything else on the market (besides Pixels or Nokias) it's an absolute joy to actually have control over my phone.

Re: Google pushed to take action against Android bloatware

#170

Post by throwaway41597 »

at-fates-hands wrote: post #137
wpietri wrote: post #116

Does anybody understand the economic point of making apps nonremovable? From the point of view of a vendor paying for access, presumably their goal is to spark interest and shift default choices. So I get why LinkedIn would pay to be on the phone when it leaves the factory. But if somebody doesn't want it, what do they gain by preventing removal? To me it seems kinda like DRM: I'm sure some executives get woodies at…

The interesting thing I always found with Windows phones was how easy it was to remove any and all bloatware on their phones. Don't the One Plus and Android One phones come pretty clean with only a few Google apps on them?

No. First objectively a non-removable Youtube (/Google Search/Play Store/Play Services/Chrome/Drive/Files/Gboard/Gmail/Maps/Photos/Daydream...) app is bloatware, even if made by Google.

Second, the manufacturer is still allowed to put some apps, especially background system apps. I'm not sure what the standard is but it seems to be about user experience rather than security/privacy/user freedom/space.

Third, I suspect a lot of the above fit a common description of spyware. They collect my data without my consent or at best with some fine print.

Android One is to Google what TouchWiz (or whatever it's called) is to Samsung.

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