BLOATWARE: How much should be expected?

[emergenic]

Does MS limit or block addition of Carrier BLOATWARE addons before release of phones?

If carrier addons are included with the upcoming release of WP8, are they removable???

 

[gwydionjhr]

So far, ALL of the bloatware on WP7 has been easily removeable. And it does get removed, not just hidden from view as on some Android phones.

 

[HeyCori]

Yes, so far I haven't seen a single carrier app or OEM app that couldn't be removed.

 

[Big Supes]

So far, ALL of the bloatware on WP7 has been easily removeable. And it does get removed, not just hidden from view as on some Android phones.

THIS. As long as it can be removed, I really don't care what the carriers put on.

 

[Old_Cus]

I can honestly say that I was able to remove every bit of AT&T bloatware (except my AT&T, wanted a easy way to access my account).

 

[Laura Knotek]

I deleted all of the AT&T apps.

 

[Big Supes]

I guess the only positive thing about O2 not caring about WP is that they didn't bother with any bloatware.

 

[HeyCori]

I can honestly say that I was able to remove every bit of AT&T bloatware (except my AT&T, wanted a easy way to access my account).

Haha, I use myAT&T too. It's an easy way to track data usage and billing.

 

[tk-093]

The only bad thing about potential bloatware is if it could slow down updates, I guess.

 

[a5cent]

You could argue, that WP allows no such thing.

Anything a manufacturer or a carrier pre-installs on a WP7 or WP8 device can be completely removed by the user. Always! So, if you don't like the HTC Hub or AT&T push to talk (or any other non-OS app), all you need to do is go to the apps-list and uninstall it... gone. Microsoft has technically and legally ensured this won't change.

There is a second definition of the term bloatware, simply meaning all the apps that slow your device down. Android has a lot of these apps, mainly because any app can do any amount of background processing at any time. For WP however, Microsoft has ensured that you can keep these situations in check too. See this post for details.

Hope that clears things up. Cheers!

 

[vp710]

The only bad thing about potential bloatware is if it could slow down updates, I guess.

You'll be able to pull updates directly from Microsoft on WP8.

Like everyone said, the only "bloatware" type allowed on WP are apps that can be easily wiped out of the phone.

 

[tk-093]

You'll be able to pull updates directly from Microsoft on WP8.

Like everyone said, the only "bloatware" type allowed on WP are apps that can be easily wiped out of the phone.

EDIT: Nope, I think I'm wrong!

I don't know if that is totally true. I think when they've talked about it they've been pretty vague about the exact details, and we've kinda hoped that is what will happen. Yes, they have come out and said updates are coming OTA. I'm still very, very skeptical that MS will simply be able to bypass the carriers. So far only Apple has had that clout. Even Google doesn't have that kind of power with Verizon.... and Google pretty much made Verizon the smartphone powerhouse it now is.

 

[Mystictrust]

EDIT: Nope, I think I'm wrong!

I don't know if that is totally true. I think when they've talked about it they've been pretty vague about the exact details, and we've kinda hoped that is what will happen. Yes, they have come out and said updates are coming OTA. I'm still very, very skeptical that MS will simply be able to bypass the carriers. So far only Apple has had that clout. Even Google doesn't have that kind of power with Verizon.... and Google pretty much made Verizon the smartphone powerhouse it now is.

The only thing I know that MS discussed is that the 7.8 update will bypass the carriers and can be downloaded directly through them. That's it. I assume any talk about MS bypassing carriers for every update for everyone is a gross misinterpretation of what they are doing with 7.8.

I imagine that the "enthusiast program" will bypass the carriers, but we have no details on that - including who can get in :/

 

[selfcreation]

Carriers and OEMs are NOT allowed to add any thing to the WP OS,
OEMs can only release apps witch goes into their dedicated Marketplace ( on the phone )
And carrier must submit apps like any other DEV and then install them , witch means they can ALL be removed.

Carrier bloatware is what causes 90% of Android Fragmentation , Hence why MS and NOKIA are the ONLY 2 company's with access to the core of the OS ( by contract )

Elope from Nokia Even said he would never play with that access because he wanted to avoid problem in the future!


so to answer your question. Yes , MS blocks ALL bloatware , the only thing carriers can add that you cant remove is Firmware/Drivers to make sure the network works properly with the OS/phones.

 

[1jaxstate1]

The only bloatware I had on any of my phones was from AT&T. It was easily removed. Unlike Android, when you had to root the phone to remove the bloat.

Does MS limit or block addition of Carrier BLOATWARE addons before release of phones?

If carrier addons are included with the upcoming release of WP8, are they removable???

AT&T has preloaded apps on the phone.
http://www.windowscentral.com/att-bloatware-getting-better-windows-phone-7

No sure how much this would slow down a phone though. I only deleted it because it was an annoying orange color.

 

[vp710]

The only thing I know that MS discussed is that the 7.8 update will bypass the carriers and can be downloaded directly through them. That's it. I assume any talk about MS bypassing carriers for every update for everyone is a gross misinterpretation of what they are doing with 7.8.

I imagine that the "enthusiast program" will bypass the carriers, but we have no details on that - including who can get in :/

Also the full details about the "enthusiast" program are not out yet, it is just that: bypass carriers and pull updates directly from Microsoft, through your MS account. All you'll have to do is register and get the update (it won't be "pushed" to your device). It will void any kind of carrier support though but you'll be able to get the updates before the carriers release them (and everybody knows they take their sweet time to do so). It won't be supported by 7.8 unfortunately.

 

[bobsentell]

myAT&T is the only bloatware I use. The rest were deleted the first time I turned it on. (I used it to practice getting the hang of deleting apps).

 

[a5cent]

EDIT: Nope, I think I'm wrong!

I'm still very, very skeptical that MS will simply be able to bypass the carriers. So far only Apple has had that clout. Even Google doesn't have that kind of power with Verizon.... and Google pretty much made Verizon the smartphone powerhouse it now is.

Google could literally buy Verizon and still not be able to deliver Android updates directly to Verizon customers. It's not about having enough clout with the carriers! Its about OS policies/problems that Google is no longer at liberty to change.

On Android, you NEED the manufacturers to deliver updates, because they literally rewrite parts of the Android operating system to get it running on their hardware. Android device manufacturers also develop a LOT of the low level drivers. All the additions/modifications the manufacturers make get inherently intertwined with the basic OS (on the lowest possible levels of source code). What that means is that every Android handset model has it's own unique version of the Android OS, which is only upgradeable as a whole. Google can't do that. If they tried, they would instantly brick every Android device out there because they would reverse all the modifications made by the manufacturers. That is just how Android works. That is the price Android pays for having ultimate flexibility in hardware (anything goes). That is one of the reasons Microsoft doesn't allow manufacturers to fiddle around with OS source code and mandates standardized hardware.

For WP however, it is only about Microsoft's clout with the carriers. So far, Microsoft hasn't had much luck with that (at least not when it comes to representing their customers interests). We all know Microsoft claims to have update-policy-improvements on the way for WP8, but so far I haven't heard any details. I'm not as skeptical as you are though. I think we have good chances that WP8 updates will come directly from MS without carrier intervention. I'm still skeptical about manufacturer's firmware updates though.

One last thing:

Every WP7 and firmware update we ever received came from a Microsoft server. Microsoft just isn't allowed to distribute those updates without carrier authorization. If the carrier doesn't provide that authorization, then Microsoft is legally bound to withhold that update from the carriers network (unfortunately). That is how it has worked so far.

 

[paulm187]

It is a requirement for all bloatware to be easily uninstalled. And the great thing about the WinRTP/WinRT platform is that these apps are sandboxed and self-contained that when you remove them there is no rubbish left behind like in the desktop apps - everything is gone!

 

[TenTwelve]

This is good to know coming from iOS and being used to a clean phone upon purchase.