I also can't stand the official YouTube client, not necessarily because it's so bad, but because ReVanced simply has so much more QoL features that I can't live without now.
What does that even have to do with this?
That's late for a company that only has two phones, but I guess it's a small company.
Only thing OP said is "Algae from a customer's unit that eroded the aluminium and ruined his pump"
If you just want to uninstall system apps, you do NOT need to root your phone. You can use ADB to uninstall or disable any system apps (regardless of if your phone allows that in settings).
You can also just download any GIF and convert it into WebP using an online converter like this. Then you can set that converted WebP as your profile picture.
It's the same mentality as people just pressing "Next" in an installer and wonder why their browser homepage is hijacked or why there are programs that they never installed. People see the "Block" or "Accept" options in the notifications dialog and press Accept without even reading, especially on mobile browsers (Chrome) where it asks you as if it's a system message.
They exist so that your granny or mom won't fall (or atleast be warned) for stupid scams that want you to install an "official bank app" or something to steal everything. Same deal with Play Protect. Yes, they suck for power users but atleast normies or the elderly will be warned or protected. You can still bypass them, they still give you the control. That's better than what Apple does.
Not mine, but it comes pre-installed with pretty much every prebuilt or laptop
It's a Google thing, not necessarily an app thing. Apps will have a minimum SDK level (basically the oldest Android version the app can run on) and a target SDK level (the Android version that the app is optimised for, which is usually the latest Android version). Google keeps increasing the SDK level requirements for apps to be published on the Play Store, so if an app is too old and hasn't received any updates, you will see that message. But chances are that the app will run just fine if you install it from an APK file.
It may seem ridiculous but it's good because it prevents people from installing super old apps, which may leave room for exploits in modern versions of Android.
I hate these types of ads too, and they're so common.
Also there are some ads which make the normal 5sec skippable video ads more like 30sec skippable ads. They're usually game ads, where they show you a skippable ad after 5 seconds, then they make you play a mini-game of sorts for 10+ seconds and then it shows you a splash screen with the name of the game which you're only able to skip after 5 seconds. Wastes so much time.