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US Carriers Are Removing Select Applications and Features From the Gal

US Carriers Are Removing Select Applications and Features From the Galaxy S6

Pictured: Christopher Dal Porto
By Christopher Dal Porto
April 14, 2015
Featured image for US Carriers Are Removing Select Applications and Features From the Galaxy S6

Carriers have been known in the past to modify the software and content packages that ship with phones, and with the latest Samsung flagship phones there are no exceptions. With the release of the Samsung Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy S6 Edge, users are reporting fairly large differences in not only the apps that are bundled with their phones but also with some features as well. The Samsung S6 Reddit community have patched together an extensive list of apps and features that vary between T-Mobile, AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon.

AT&T removed various features and apps such as the download booster, smart manager, simple sharing features, and the Microsoft apps. Sprint decided to let users keep the Microsoft apps and the 100GB of free OneDrive storage that comes along with them. Sprint did however, choose to disable Wi-Fi calling by default while also deleting the download booster application. Luckily, for users with spotty coverage in their home or at work, Wi-Fi calling on Sprint can be enabled again in the phone settings.  T-Mobile has made a few interesting choices starting by locking the S-Finder and Quick Connect tiles from the device’s drop down menu. In other modifications by T-Mobile, it also appears that users are unable to disable the lights on the capacitive buttons. Lastly, Verizon has taken a slightly more conservative approach deciding only removing the smart manager app as well as all Microsoft applications.

While the majority of users will not be effected greatly by these changes the cellular carriers are implementing, there are still some notable removals taking place here likely to bother some. The download booster for example, is a built in application meant to allow the device to simultaneously utilize LTE and Wi-Fi for ultimate speed results. The Simple Sharing feature of the Galaxy S6 adds capabilities making it easier to share larger files. Lastly, the Smart Manager application bundled with the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 Edge was intended to aid users in managing battery life and storage capacity. Overall judging by the list of applications removed, it would appear carriers are just making an attempt to sell handsets with less bloatware out of the box.