Facebook bloatware in OnePlus phones worries users, but there is a solution

NIRMAL YESODA

Bloatware has been co-existing with Android since the day the OS was launched. It should be noted that there could be at least one bloatware in any smartphone you purchase, and it could be in the form of Facebook, Microsoft, or sometimes any other third-party application.

Now, Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus has bundled Facebook-owned apps on the OnePlus 8, OnePlus 8 Pro, and the OnePlus Nord. The move from OnePlus has not gone well with many users, and they claim that the presence of Facebook-owned apps is badly affecting their experience using these smartphones.

What is Bloatware?

Bloatware is something that is subjective in nature. An application that is considered bloatware by someone could be very useful for others, and as a result, we cannot blatantly call any app in a smartphone a ‘bloatware.’

Besides the main Facebook app, the Messenger application, Instagram, and Netflix, new OnePlus smartphones get shipped with the Facebook App Installer, Facebook App Manager, and Facebook Services as system apps. A pre-installed app in a smartphone offers monetization possibilities to the mobile manufacturer, and it is quite essential for the survival of the company.

Several people complain that this bloatware cannot be removed from the phone, and they believe that the unwanted existence of Facebook on smartphones could interfere with their privacy.

How to remove bloatware from OnePlus smartphones?

As the presence of Facebook bloatware continues worrying users, XDA Developer’s senior member Saiger has put forward one suggestion to remove these unwanted apps.

In order to remove these apps, the user should first connect their smartphone in PC, and should pull up a command prompt window. Later, the user should enter ‘adb devices’ to determine whether the device is connected properly to the PC or not.

After ensuring proper connection, the user should type the below-mentioned command line by line in the command prompt.

adb shell

pm uninstall -k –user com.facebook.appmanager

pm uninstall -k –user com.facebook.services

pm uninstall -k –user com.facebook.system

Please note that the user may be compelled to repeat the steps again after an update installation, but that is much better to follow the repeated steps than carrying bloatware in your devices.