I highly recommend lineageOS, or better yet lineageOS with microg.

Running a completely degoogled android phone right now, and it feels smooth as butter. Microg has gotten so good, the vast majority of playstore apps work completely fine even without Google services, including things like my banking apps.

Feels liberating as fuck, not gonna lie.

Only apps that don't work for me are ones that require IaP's. About 30% of those I can crack with LuckyPatcher. I can also crack other paid apps with license protection.

Mostly I havent needed to do any of that though, because I've found that there are so many great open source apps that do the things I need.

Is it weird that I'm partially relieved seeing this post? I found all these weird apps on my phone the other day and thought I had been hacked or something. whew...?

Might be the wireless carrier bundling it in with the firmware on an update to the android OS?

I have an unlocked s23 and don't have any bloatware. Is yours unlocked? Which region?

T-mobile absolutely pushed crap on my phone - it's why I went unlocked at my next chance.

Wow. Such thing never happened to me on my Samsung phone. What's your model?

I got really tired of that shit, so I got a Google Pixel when it was time for my upgrade. By far the best phone I've had since my Samsung Intensity.

What model + what country + did you get your phone subsidized by a carrier? Literally never had this happen on any of my multiple samsung phones.

Disable "Mobile services manager". Samsung phones are lousy with crapware these days so I would avoid them like the plague. An eldery relative asked me why he kept seeing ad popups and his device had something called "Samsung Free" that cannot be disabled or completely turned off which pushes news articles, ads and other shit at him. I just turned off as many "interests" as I could and attempted to opt out of the software but it's still there and swiping left on the home page re-enables it. Samsung phones are absolute dogshit these days. I wouldn't go near one unless they could be rooted and flashed out of the box.

That's why I quit Samsung, too much bloat.

I love my Pixels. Just solid, clean Androids.

Proprietary software moment...

This should be illegal!

I swore off Samsung for this reason after I had the S3. I thought the bloatware situation had gotten better over the years…

Had a few devices with stock Android that I really liked (such as the Nexus 5 and Moto X) over the years, but even then it’s difficult to escape some of the built-in bullshit.

Kind of gave up on that and switched to iPhone a few years back… You still get the mandatory vendor apps, but at least now I also get the ecosystem benefits.

On the same page, last android device I had was a Samsung. Great hardware but really shitty software. It had two office suite (MS and Samsungs), Facebook and what not. All those I couldn’t uninstall only disable. Why the fuck I need to have Facebook installed on my phone?

Samsung makes nice phones that I don’t buy for this reason. Apple doesn’t allow this. Pixel is another option if you don’t wanna go through the hassle of changing ecosystems.

It's been happening lately on my S22 Ultra. Very annoying. If I didn't think I'd brick my phone, I would root it. Well first I would figure out what rooting is... :\

T Mobile keeps trying to have me install their crappy suggested apps every time they do a software update. And I cant make the pop up go away till I go through their shit and uncheck everything.

Just my 2 cents I am on an unlocked S20 and don't have these apps getting installed

Great. As an appliance salesman I’ve been saying about Samsung that “well at least they make great phones and TVs” but now I can’t even say that.

LOL welcome to Samsung. This is why I stopped buying them after the S6.

you can disable the app manager thing and it should stop these.
or just buy an S series phone, they don't come with any non-samsung bloatware. A series are partially bloatware-funded.

edit: this looks like carrier bloat to me

I had been using Samsung for the longest time before my current device and lemme tell ya, even with their flagships they pull this shit, I'm always having to go in and delete whatever shit they download, like, no, I have no desire to play fucking ROYAL MATCH please stop asking me

When will the Lemmy phone launch? I'm ready to cancel anything now

I have had the recent S series Samsung phones and no bloatware was uninstalled via updates like this, that's still disappointing to see