These days every manufacturer loads up the device with many apps aka bloatware or crapware which eats away our precious space and consumes lots of resources. The worst thing is most of them are useless to max no of users but we have no choice and have to live with them as device manufacturers disable uninstall option for them.

But here’s the catch. Earlier i used to root my phones and install root uninstall the app to uninstall all of the bloatware. But what about those who do not want to root or are still under warranty? We have a solution to uninstall all of them and even those of system packages which we find useless like the brand-specific app store, text to speech, live wallpapers, google apps, email, etc. Its all done via adb ie using the command line.

Earlier we needed to install full android SDK to access the device via adb, but some geniuses at XDA developed tools to access it via small package.

Enough of introduction let’s get down to work.

Bloatware apps or packages which have uninstall option

Some useless apps & packages can be directly uninstalled from settings -> installed apps -> select app -> uninstall

This step is safe, as only noncritical apps can be uninstalled. Critical ones or the ones which smartphone developer does not want you to uninstall have uninstall option disabled. Many preloaded apps come under the noncritical category but uninstall option for them is disabled.   For those, continue reading.

Bloatware apps or packages which don’t have uninstall option or its disabled

Apps & services which are stubborn & don’t have uninstall option can be uninstalled via adb tool. Some prior knowledge of working with the command line necessary here.

a) First, install adb on the system, you may install it system-wide to access it from anywhere via command prompt. Also, give a yes to adb driver installation here.
Download tool from here. For more details or latest version refer: XDA

b) Also, install device drivers or the best way is to install a device-specific official pc suite as it will have the necessary drivers to let pc communicate with the device, in case necessary drivers are not installed in step a. So you can skip this step in the first try & return if the device is not listed when command “adb devices” is issued in step h.

c) Switch on developer mode in the handset. Tap on build no 7 times and you are good to go. Now, this ‘build no’ entry is hidden in different locations in different devices, but generally, it’s in about section in settings, hidden somewhere. Mi devices do it differently. In about section, tap on the MIUI version 7 times. So you may need to explore it a bit.

d) Search for developer options in settings & switch it on. Again its is device-specific. Some have it directly in settings, at the last or some have it hidden inside. Like in MI devices its 
settings->additional settings->developer options, in Honor devices its settings->system->developer options

e) Switch on USB debugging.  (settings->additional settings->developer mode-> USB debugging)

f) Connect the device via USB. In some devices, adb works in charging mode while in some it works in file transfer mode. So make sure to check both if not working.

g) Authorize ‘Allow USB Debugging’ on the smartphone whenever it appears on the screen. Probably it will appear when adb commands are issued as the system tries to communicate with the smartphone via adb.

h) Start command prompt windows+R, type cmd and enter commands one by one. 

Getting on to command line via adb

I. adb devices
II. adb shell
III. pm list packages
IV. pm uninstall -k – -user 0 com.xyz.abc (Where com.xyz.abc is package name. Also note that before ‘user’ there is double dash without space)

The first command will first start the daemon, if not running. In such case, you will need to enter it again if the device with device code is not listed. (bd9586e device here)

The second one will connect you to that device with shell access & now you are good to go. Your device shell access will be enabled with codename displayed (eg whyred:/ $ here)

The third one will list all packages installed in your device. Copy this list somewhere as it will be helpful to copy-paste package names in the next step & decide on which to remove which to keep.

The fourth one is used to remove the desired package. You will get a ‘Success’ message after successful uninstall.

P.S. Proceed with caution as uninstalling any critical package may produce error & you will be forced to reset the device.

Here is a quick list of packages which can be removed without any trouble

com.android.dreams.basic (for screensaver)
com.android.dreams.phototable (for screensaver)
com.android.egg (android easter egg)
com.android.noisefield (live wallpaper)
com.android.phasebeam (live wallpaper)
com.android.providers.partnerbookmarks
com.android.stk (network operator sim tool kit)
com.android.wallpaper.holospiral (live wallpaper)
com.android.wallpaper.livepicker (live wallpaper picker)
com.android.email (stock email app)
com.android.soundrecorder (sound recorder)
com.android.printspooler (for printing via mobile)
com.android.printservice.reccomendation (for printing via mobile)
com.google.android.apps.books (google books)
com.google.android.apps.cloudprint (google cloud print)
com.google.android.apps.docs (google docs)
com.google.android.apps.fitness (google fitness)
com.google.android.apps.photos (google photos)
com.google.android.apps.plus (google plus)
com.google.android.apps.tachyon (google duo)
com.google.android.googlequicksearchbox (google search widger)
com.google.android.play.games (google play games)
com.google.android.videos (google play movies)
com.google.android.talk (google talk)
com.google.android.tts (text to speech)
com.google.android.onetimeinitializer (one time setup, needed initially)
com.google.marvin.talkback (talkback feature in accessibility)
com.google.android.inputmethod.latin (gbaord keyboard, can be removed after you install desired alternative like swiftkey)
com.google.android.setupwizard (one time setup, needed initially)
com.facebook.*** (all of facebook apps & services)

Other than these, there are many device brand-specific apps & packages which can be easily removed. Just list them up & remove the ones not required. You can also google package names to know more. The packages you are not sure of to remove, simply skip them to avoid any troubles later on.

Voila, you have freed up a lot of precious space on your device along with resources & ram by uninstalling bloatware apps & unnecessary packages. As a result, your device will be smoother to operate with more free ram & resources.

Enjoy!