Ditch the iPhone junk folder: Apple may let you remove stock iOS apps in time
Tired of Stocks and Tips? Tim Cook says default app removal is under consideration
Apple thankfully doesn’t load its phone with obnoxious third-party bloatware – but some of the first-party apps the company includes on its iPhones and iPads seem awfully superfluous, or are easily bested by third-party alternatives.
And there’s no way to delete or properly hide them. As a result, many of us have those unneeded apps tucked away in a folder somewhere; however, they’re still taking up space and bothering our minimal sensibilities. So it’s welcome – and truly, surprising – news indeed to hear that Apple might give you the option to kill those apps. Eventually. Maybe.
BuzzFeed News had a quick chat with Apple CEO Tim Cook this morning and covered a wide array of topics – one of which regarded particularly inessential apps like Stocks and Tips. Cook initially claims it’s not a simple fix, calling it “a more complex issue than it first appears.” But he understands the complaints.
"There are some apps that are linked to something else on the iPhone. If they were to be removed, they might cause issues elsewhere on the phone," Cook told the site. "There are other apps that aren’t like that. So over time, I think with the ones that aren’t like that, we’ll figure out a way [for you to remove them]."
"It’s not that we want to suck up your real estate; we’re not motivated to do that. We want you to be happy. So I recognize that some people want to do this, and it’s something we’re looking at," he added.
Would Apple actually let you fully delete its stock apps? It seems unlikely, given the history ’til now in that regard. A more likely alternative might be the ability to simply hide the apps via Settings, like you can do on the current Apple TV. In any case, it’s not something that’s happening right away – so in the meantime, make a folder, stick those apps on the second page, and try to forget they’re even there.
[Source: BuzzFeed News via The Verge]
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Andrew Hayward
Freelance Writer 
