Bloatware in Galaxy S4

[Hadron]

If you are rooted and can actually uninstall an app, then there's a point to doing it. Absent that though, it just seems like a waste of time (with a chance of unintended consequences) . Yes, people can choose to waste their time, but most won't if they understand that an Android phone is not a Windows PC.

Can you explain why uninstalling an app has a purpose but disabling it from running does not? And if disabling can have consequences surely uninstalling can have too - and disabling is easier to reverse, and usually not offered for truly essential apps.

If you say it doesn't matter whether it's disabled or not, why is there a point in uninstalling? Just trying to follow the logic.

 

[Petrah]

Note none of this was to speed up my phone. It was all to deal with a specific issue. A list of apps you can disable won't really help you with that sort of thing.

The OP wants to know if they can disable certain apps because they do not use them. Not to speed up the phone.

 

[lotus49]

The OP wants to know if they can disable certain apps because they do not use them. Not to speed up the phone.

While I wouldn't argue that everyone is free to do as they wish with their phone, not using an app is not a reason to uninstall it. If you don't use it, just ignore it. Apps (except some games and a very small number of others) are tiny so uninstalling them won't do anything useful at all.

I have seen numerous threads about so-called bloatware but despite asking repeatedly, I have yet to see a single good reason to do anything about it at all.

FWIW, my advice would be not to bother about it. Leaving it as it is will do no harm and uninstalling or freezing it will serve no useful purpose.

 

[ironass]

I have seen numerous threads about so-called bloatware but despite asking repeatedly, I have yet to see a single good reason to do anything about it at all.

I, and others, have noted your repeated demands for scientific proof that de-bloating has any effect on performance, battery life, usability, etc; and, I suspect that like me, they simply cannot be arsed to get into a long, pointless, discussion as there is no scientific way to prove it that I know of on 2 separate phones in 2 separate locations, on 2 separate frimwares, on 2 separate sets of apps, on 2 different sets of usage.

All I would say is that it works for me and for a lot of others who have tried it, not to mention the esteemed and knowledgeable developers who take the time and trouble to issue modified and separate Slim, de-bloated, versions of their ROMs to meet the demand from rooted users.

Bottom line is... suck it and see!

 

[Goodspike]

Can you explain why uninstalling an app has a purpose but disabling it from running does not? And if disabling can have consequences surely uninstalling can have too - and disabling is easier to reverse, and usually not offered for truly essential apps.

If you say it doesn't matter whether it's disabled or not, why is there a point in uninstalling? Just trying to follow the logic.

It's just a matter of free space. Of the 16GB of storage space on a typical S4, I believe slightly more than half is filled with the OS and the carrier bloatware. Uninstalling the program would create more free space which you could use for other programs/data.

Think of it this way. On a Windows computer the manufacturer may have installed a version of Quicken. You might be able to "disable" Quicken by preventing some service it needs from starting. That won't speed up your computer (unless maybe that service starts on boot and isn't otherwise needed). If you don't use Quicken, uninstalling that application won't speed up your computer, but it will create more free disc space.

 

[Goodspike]

All I would say is that it works for me and for a lot of others who have tried it, not to mention the esteemed and knowledgeable developers who take the time and trouble to issue modified and separate Slim, de-bloated, versions of their ROMs to meet the demand from rooted users.

Bottom line is... suck it and see!

This is not about custom ROMs! It's about disabling apps on a phone that has not been rooted.

I don't think anyone is making the claim that there is no speed difference between different ROMs. That would be like claiming that there's no speed difference between 4.2, 4.3 and 4.4.

And technically I don't think we're saying there's no difference. If some bloatware is loaded and has to be unloaded to allow another app to load, there would be a tiny speed difference in the loading of that app. But with the S4 having 2GB of ram, that's both insignificant and pretty rare.

 

[Goodspike]

The OP wants to know if they can disable certain apps because they do not use them. Not to speed up the phone.

Okay, yes I am assuming that they want to do that in the belief it would speed up the phone. I'm not sure what the point of such a list would be otherwise the OP could have just asked "How do I disable the _____ app?"

 

[lotus49]

I, and others, have noted your repeated demands...

I have simply asked (certainly not demanded) whether there is any evidence it makes any difference. These requests have been met by a deafening silence and it's not hard to guess why.

 

[Goodspike]

I have simply asked (certainly not demanded) whether there is any evidence it makes any difference. These requests have been met by a deafening silence and it's not hard to guess why.

Actually, it's somewhat surprising.

Using another Windows situation as being analogous, maybe 15 years ago a lot of people were claiming that they could speed up their computers by deleting all the files in the "prefetch" directory. The claims made were that Windows didn't adequately deal with cleaning up those files, so deleting them allowed it to start over and would speed things up. Unfortunately, none of those claims were true--it would actually slow down your computer for the next several boots, despite people attesting to the process.

Once you spend time doing something, you tend to see some improvement from what you did, even if the improvement is actually a degradation in performance.

 

[ironass]

This is not about custom ROMs! It's about disabling apps on a phone that has not been rooted.

I don't think anyone is making the claim that there is no speed difference between different ROMs. That would be like claiming that there's no speed difference between 4.2, 4.3 and 4.4.

I realise it is not about custom ROMs... honest! I was using that to illustrate that skilled and knowledgeable ROM developers go out of their way to offer de-bloated, apps removed, ROMs to save users having to do it themselves. I doubt very much if they would go to all that time, trouble or effort if they were convinced there was no gain.

These requests have been met by a deafening silence and it's not hard to guess why.

I should hope so, as I explained...

I suspect that like me, they simply cannot be arsed to get into a long, pointless, discussion as there is no scientific way to prove it

On the contrary, would it not be better instead to prove your allegation that de-bloating by disabling, freezing or removing apps, does not improve the phone in any way, shape or form.

 

[lotus49]

On the contrary, would it not be better instead to prove your allegation that de-bloating by disabling, freezing or removing apps, does not improve the phone in any way, shape or form.

No it wouldn't. I take it that you are not familiar with Occam's razor.

However, in defiance of a principle widely accepted by philosophers for 800 years, I put forward this piece of analysis carried out by a well-respected member of the XDA community that does indeed support my contention that it makes no material difference at all http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1888149.

In my admittedly brief search, I could find no evidence that disagreed with my thesis.

 

[Hadron]

It's just a matter of free space. Of the 16GB of storage space on a typical S4, I believe slightly more than half is filled with the OS and the carrier bloatware. Uninstalling the program would create more free space which you could use for other programs/data.

However, the pre-installed apps generally live in /system, and removing stuff from there won't create space in the /data partition (which the user sees as the internal storage), so all you gain is space used by the dalvik element. You'd need to repartition to reclaim the space, or move apps to /system, to gain more.

 

[Petrah]

Hello...

I just got a new Galaxy S4 today and it's great... love the screen. I have one question.. which apps are safe to disable?

Thanks!!!

See the spreadsheet in item #10 of the Bloatware removal - Dummies Guide

I guess that the ones in green are safe to disable... right?

As per item #11 of the guide, they are safe to disable.

Thank you Ironass! Great answers as always. :rock:

Pretty sure the rest of us can do our best to get back on topic.

 

[ironass]

No it wouldn't. I take it that you are not familiar with Occam's razor.

I feel I must definitely correct you there lotus49... I am indeed familiar with the principle of, "Ockham's Razor"... as my post 3 days ago, here, proves...

I like your root request theory. I think it's a case of Ockham's, (Occam's), Razor.

However, in defiance of a principle widely accepted by philosophers for 800 years, I put forward this piece of analysis carried out by a well-respected member of the XDA community that does indeed support my contention that it makes no material difference at all Removing bloatware and battery/permormance improvement - xda-developers.

In my admittedly brief search, I could find no evidence that disagreed with my thesis.

Sorry, but there are a lot more developers and hundreds of thousands of users worldwide who would disagree with that, as indeed they do in the thread you quote.

As I said at the outset... "I can't be arsed!" End of.

 

[ironass]

Hello guys... I just installed Android 4.3 and would like to know which bloatware is fine to turn off...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

These are the ones that are running -Which one of these I can disable?

Hello Sdahe! Apologies... I seem to have got a little side tracked.

As with any of the apps in your list it depends on...

1. Is this a, "must have", system app that is required for your device to function... such as Settings for instance.

2. Is it something that another function, that you yourself use on your device, needs in order to operate. (see, Unified Daemon(EUR), below)

3. Is it something that you find useful on your device. (see, WatchON, below)

As there are currently 18 models of Galaxy S4 and thousands of different firmware versions, as discussed in 18 Galaxy S4 models - know yours?, it is impossible to cover every eventuality and operator add-on in a spreadsheet such as the one mentioned in #10 of the Bloatware removal - Dummies Guide. Particularly since Android 4.3 has introduced some Knox security apps as well.

Things such as the Samsung keyboard depend on your own usage and whether you have a third party app, alternative. Others, such as WatchON are an easier, straightforward choice for the user.

The AT&T software update would, if disabled, prevent you receiving firmware updates from the carrier. This feature is OK to disable if you are rooted and on a custom ROM that does not rely on carrier updates but needs to be enabled otherwise.

Other apps such as, "Unified Daemon(EUR)", require the use of Google search before you attempt to make a decision. In this case, it controls the built-in news, weather and stock functions and I have it disabled as I use third party alternatives.

The key thing to remember is... if in doubt... do not disable it!

Hope that helps.

 

[lotus49]

I feel I must definitely correct you there lotus49... I am indeed familiar with the principle of, "Ockham's Razor"... as my post 3 days ago, here, proves...

Fair enough but you will then know why I said "No." in my post above. The first unsupported assumption made was that removing bloatware does make a difference.

Sorry, but there are a lot more developers and hundreds of thousands of users worldwide who would disagree with that, as indeed they do in the thread you quote.

Maybe there are, maybe there aren't but like the dissenting voices in the thread I linked to, none of them seems to have any actual evidence, which is my point. Lots of people believe task killers speed up their phone, but they are wrong.

As I said at the outset... "I can't be arsed!" End of.

I have had reason to be grateful to you in the past (and have thanked posts of yours several times) and I had no intention of trying to place any expectation on you or anyone else specifically, but the fact remains that the only evidence anyone has come up with so far supports my contention. If someone produces evidence to the contrary, I shall read it with interest and an open mind.

 

[Mikestony]

Whether or not disabling or removing apps improves performance of the device is not the topic of this thread.
Let's respect the op and focus on his question
Thanks.

 

[Goodspike]

Whether or not disabling or removing apps improves performance of the device is not the topic of this thread.
Let's respect the op and focus on his question
Thanks.

So, for future reference, if someone asks what the best task killer is, we shouldn't tell them that task killers don't do any good and only waste battery?

I'm sorry, but the OP will likely have a much better experience with their phone and will have fewer problems in the future if they don't go off and start disabling apps left and right. Perhaps disabling an app might not cause a problem now, but it might when they download or upgrade an app, and that that point to solve the problem they'll have to figure out not only that it's a disabled app causing the problem but also which of the 10 or 20 apps they disabled are causing the problem. Not an ideal situation when the benefit of disabling the apps is extremely limited, if it exists at all.

If they want to speed up their phone they should do things that actually work, like turn off some of the Samsung features that use sensors to monitor what you're doing.

 

[Mikestony]

So, for future reference, if someone asks what the best task killer is, we shouldn't tell them that task killers don't do any good and only waste battery?

As long as it doesn't get into a debate about it without the OP involved
I felt like this thread was turning into a "does disabling apps make the device perform better?"-discussion.

I'm sorry, but the OP will likely have a much better experience with their phone and will have fewer problems in the future if they don't go off and start disabling apps left and right. Perhaps disabling an app might not cause a problem now, but it might when they download or upgrade an app, and that that point to solve the problem they'll have to figure out not only that it's a disabled app causing the problem but also which of the 10 or 20 apps they disabled are causing the problem. Not an ideal situation when the benefit of disabling the apps is extremely limited, if it exists at all.

Totally agreed! And could have been offered that reasoning earlier. And if the op decided to pursue that topic, so be it.

If they want to speed up their phone they should do things that actually work, like turn off some of the Samsung features that use sensors to monitor what you're doing.

Also agreed. But again, if the op wanted to discuss that, they would have pursued it.

My PSA was nothing personal, nor was it meant to cut short any discussion of the OP's topic.
We cool
Any questions, feel free to p.m. me

 

[Goodspike]

The OP hasn't posted anything here since the 14th. The sidetrack didn't occur until over ten days later. From that we can only conclude:

1. The OP is gone;
2. The OP doesn't care; or
3. The OP accidentally bricked his phone disabling a necessary app.

 

[Mikestony]

Edit: it seems as though the OP's question has been answered now.

As I have stated, feel free to p.m. me.

/thread closed