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Remove the bloatware or lose my business

bimmerm3

Didn't really know where else to put this since I couldn't just find an e-mail address or form for general feedback, so I'm sticking it here.

Dear Verizon,

I've always loved your service. With a few rare exceptions, it's been miles ahead of your competitors everywhere I've been. However, I'm sick of being stuck with Gingerbread because my manufacturer won't update the OS and I'm sick of the terrible bloatware that you force on your customers. I mean, for heaven's sake, who would want to PAY extra money for VZ Navigator when Google Navigation is included for free on the device. It's a shoddy marketing technique to take advantage of uninformed customers.

Now that Google's Nexus phones have improved in quality and they are going to begin offering other manufacturer's phones with pure Android, you guys are behind the times. If you don't start offering pure Android phones by the next time I get a new phone (I'm currently on a month-to-month contract, by the way, so I can leave as soon as I want), I WILL change carriers. That is not debatable.

If you want to lose a long-time, loyal customer because you insist on giving your customers sub-par technology, then continue doing what you're doing. If you want me to stick around, GET IT RIGHT like the other carriers are starting to do.

Cheers,

BimmerM3

Comments

NATEUSMCSVT

i think they should drop it aswell. thank of the savings they would have if they trimmed the fat.

Ann154

I hope you realize that you posted this on the peer to peer customer forum. Whether or not someone from Verizon Wireless will see and be able to act on it is debatable.

Also bloatware can be disabled if your phone is running 4.0 or higher. For older versions, if you don't open or use them the phone learns to not load it into the memory. As for the space they take up, it hasn't bothered me all that much through five android devices.

Jakeman1

Also a key point here for why Bloatware is even on the phones (and I will state for the record I hate Bloatware as well). Bloatware outside of Verizon Bloatware (VZ Navigator, My Verizon, Backup Assistant) is on the phone so Verizon can subsidize the phone for the end users. Verizon gets paid for every phone the Bloatware is on which allows them to offer the phones at a greatly reduced price to the end user. Now for me, I would much rather be allowed to remove it altogether, but since we cannot I am left with the choice.

1) use the phone with the Bloatware on it and disable the bloatware so it does NOT get in my way

2) Pay full price for the phone

3) Change Carriers

For me the savings of $400-$500 on the phone by having the Bloatware on the phone far outweighs the flip side of no bloat and pay $700 for the phone. Changing carriers is NOT an option for me as I have been with all of the others and Verizon by far offers the best service and options to MOST of its user base.

bimmerm3

I am aware that this is a peer to peer forum. I posted it here because I couldn't find a simple way to provide feedback. On the "Contact Us" screen, I only see phone numbers (don't really want to call, but I might anyway), mailing addresses (really? who sends their support issues via Snail Mail?), and the Chat option (where, conveniently for Verizon, no representatives are available).

It's almost like they don't actually want customer feedback.

I can't run 4.0 or higher because Verizon (or Samsung) stopped issuing OS updates for my phone, which is just another issue that would solve itself if Verizon got it's head out of the ground and offered pure Android phones (since updates would come directly from Google and be immediately available).

It certainly does make a difference though. I've rooted a phone and installed a custom ROM before and the phone was significantly faster with the custom ROM. When I reverted back to stock, it was immediately slow again, so it wasn't just the fresh install that caused the speed increase. It probably doesn't make as much of a difference to you since it sounds like you upgrade frequently and get better hardware, but for those of us who keep our phones for awhile (I'm currently on a 2 year old Droid Charge), it makes a big difference.

Considering that other carriers offer (or are soon offering) better phones, are cheaper than Verizon, and I live in a major city where all carriers get good service, there's not a whole lot of incentive for me to stick around.

bimmerm3

I guess I gave this topic a bad title. I really want pure Android, not just removing bloatware. Lighter OS, faster updates, etc.

And do they actually remove the bloatware if you pay full price for the phone?

Ann154

The closest option for pure Android device on Verizon Wireless was the Galaxy Nexus or the Xoom tablet.

No they don't remove the bloatware if you purchase at full retail price.

unknown

Makes no difference if you pay full price (like I do) orf buy it subsidize the bloat ware is on there. Both my wifes Motorola Razr and our emergency phone which is an LG Spectrum is riddled with it. My iPhone however is verizon bloatware free because Apple does not allow Verizon to screw around with their devices of technology. Thank you Steve Jobs for doing that service to your customers.

Like Ann154 states you can disable the apps from updating but they are deeply entrenched in the phones. I have removed these via methods found on the Android forums.

japetty

If a pure so to speak android phone was to operate on the VZW network Google would do a deal with VZW but with the past experience of Google and VZW had with the Samsung Galaxy Nexus phone, I just doubt Google wants anything to do with it. You can read in the forums here about some of those nightmares and a few had good luck with their Nexus. I had a Nexus after it was out for about 1 month. I only kept that phone for about 7 days and then took it back and went back to my Droid X. I even had to pay a $35.00 restock fee but getting rid of that phone was the best thing I did for myself in a longtime. I own other Nexus devices and I am very happy with them. VZW I have heard won't get another one of those phone on their network until they become a pure 4G/LTE network and then it remains to be seen. I would say they would be bought from the Google play store and then VZW approved for its network. You probably won't see a phone which would be subsidized by VZW without some bloatware. This is how the help subsidize these phones. You know how to take care of your issue with the bloatware and make yourself happy with your phone and you should by all means do it and not discuss that here as it is against the TOS and it gets removed.

commonsense101

I called my cable company and told them to stop showing commercials during football games, they laughed at me... anyway on a more serious note..

"bloatware" is more just ad-ware, nothing they put on the phone causes any problems, none of it uses any active memory if you dont open them, they take up disc space but you are more than enough space.. Please tell me what carrier you are planning to switch to that meets your absurd requirements

unknown

Makes no difference if it takes space on the device or not. The phone is being purchased by the customer, it is not a toilet for companies to place apps that cannot be deleted.

Like my iphone its ad and crapware free. My space is my space. It would be like your neighbor comes into your home and leaves his things there. It is your home, your space and your choice.

That is what the OP is getting at.

bimmerm3

I can switch to T-Mobile today and buy a Nexus 4. Or I can wait until June 26th and get the Google Editions of the S4 or the HTC One on either T-Mobile or AT&T.

Pretty absurd, eh?

japetty

Not really, Tmob and at&t have similar phone technology to the rest of the world GSM, VZW has other technology which these companies are trying to catch up with VZW in their technology. If they give you the service you need then by all means do what you need and will work for you. What might work for you does not always work for others, a phone with bloatware which can be disabled just does not affect my life that much as it seems to you. I subscribe to Satellite radio because they don't have all the advertisements but as far as I am concerned those DJ's talk to much about what I can find on other channels as well. I don't care for that. I pay for the service to hear music not to listen to the DJ's BS about what is on other channels of Sirius/XM but I get what I get.

bimmerm3

Exactly. I'd like to stick with Verizon because their service is the best, but at the same time, I live in a major city where all the carriers get pretty good service, so I'd rather have the phone I want than the added service in areas that I never go to. Back when I was travelling for work, no way would I have considered switching.

And I'm not here to try to convince anyone else to follow suit. I just know that if one of my company's customers was considering leaving for a competitor, I'd like to know why. Hence this topic. I'm honestly just trying to provide customer feedback to Verizon.

Superman302383948

Hi, how do I remove there programs (Navigator, etc) from my SG3?

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