If your phone is not rooted, should you limit your apps, and if so, to which ones?

[MamaBear]

I'm envious of all the clever apps out there and of the highly customizable look of the android, so I've been playing with a bunch of apps. I have cut them down from what I had, but phone is still so laggy no matter what I am trying to do with it. (HTC Hero). My phone is not rooted and I don't want to root it.

But I'm wondering if downloading and using apps other than the default ones compromises the functionality of the phone too much? How much space is it OK to use for non-default apps?

But if a few are OK, what are they ones worth using? (I'm not looking for recommendations for specific apps, but rather advice of which kind of apps you would change).

i'm hoping this post is clearer than I think it might be . . .

Thanks in advance!

 

[MamaBear]

I"m running GoLauncher, K-9 Mail, Jorte for calendar and Youlu for contact management. Is that too much for an unrooted phone?

 

[snapper.fishes]

Having too many apps will definitely slow your phone down, but the definition of "too many" varies from phone to phone.

I have LauncherPro as my primary launcher, Go Launcher as my secondary launcher (when you mess around with launchers as often as I do, you need at least 2 launchers), K9 as my email client (I uninstalled the stock client). I have WhatsApp, but I still use the default sms client.

 

[Usta]

@MamaBear,
Hero has been around for a while, so rooting and using a custom ROM might simply fix your problem.

Otherwise, you are limited to very few choices. You will have to search for apps that are lighter and run faster.
Just for comparison purposes: I have 145 apps on my phone and I do not experience any lags (HTC Desire).

 

[takeshi]

But I'm wondering if downloading and using apps other than the default ones compromises the functionality of the phone too much?

While it is possible to compromise functionality by using non-stock apps it's not simply a matter of "stock" versus "non-stock" or "rooted" versus "unrooted". Bad apps are bad apps. Not having enough free space is not having enough free space. Whether you're rooted or not and whether you're using stock apps or not really don't matter.

How much space is it OK to use for non-default apps?

There's no fixed number. This isn't a question with a one-size-fits-all answer. You really have to consider the amount of space you're using and how much you need to keep free for your particular usage.

But if a few are OK, what are they ones worth using? (I'm not looking for recommendations for specific apps, but rather advice of which kind of apps you would change).

Worth is always highly subjective and it applies to everything in life. Even if you're talking types of apps it's still highly subjective. I'd suggest keeping up with this subforum to find apps to try out and to decide for yourself what's worthwhile and what isn't.

i'm hoping this post is clearer than I think it might be . . .

Your post is certainly clear enough. The actual problem is that your questions are very open-ended. We'd need more of your specific details to answer the questions specifically for you. There are no universal answers to the questions you're asking.

Having too many apps will definitely slow your phone down, but the definition of "too many" varies from phone to phone.

...and user to user. It's really not just a matter of number of apps (i.e. at X apps, your device is guaranteed to have problems but at X-1 you'll be fine). There's bit more to it.

 

[exmeaguy]

I use to have the Incredible and it was rooted and I probably had about 100 apps on my phone with no problems