Sprint steps up the bloatware game in a bad way with BlackBerry KeyOne

August 14, 2017

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Sprint steps up the bloatware game in a bad way with BlackBerry KeyOne 3

Getting a new smartphone from a carrier usually means putting up with the bloatware that carriers install. This can be in the form of the carrier's own specific apps that it believes you just cannot live without or it can be third-party apps from vendors the carrier has struck business deals with. The bloatware landscape has improved a little bit over the years and users can now disable or remove some apps in many cases. However, reports of what Sprint may be doing with the BlackBerry KeyOne may point to a disturbing new escalation in the field of bloatware.

According to a user on Reddit, the SprintID app that comes on the BlackBerry KeyOne is set to check for the presence of bloatware app approximately every 15 minutes. Upon finding an app missing, it will trigger a re-intall and if it finds an app has been disabled, SprintID will re-enable the app. Besides losing whatever performance gains were achieved by deleting or disabling the apps, the process of constantly re-installing and re-enabling is causing a significant performance hit on the affected devices.

Thus far, neither Sprint nor TCL, the manufacturer of the BlackBerry KeyOne, have responded to requests for comments. Sources do note that the issue does not seem to be affecting all BlackBerry KeyOne owners on the Sprint network, so it is potentially a bug only impacting some people as opposed to an intentional move by Sprint.

source: gigatigga2 (Reddit)
via: Android Police

Jeff Causey Author

Raised in North Carolina, Jeff Causey is a licensed CPA in North Carolina. Jeff's past Android devices include an HTC EVO, a Samsung Note II, an LG G3, and a Motorola Moto X Pure Edition along with a Samsung Galaxy Tablet 10.1. He currently uses a Samsung Galaxy S8 and (very rarely) a Nexus 7 (2013). He is also using a Verizon-branded Motorola Moto Z Play Droid supplied by his job. Jeff used to have a pair of Google Glass and a Moto 360 Sport in his stable of gadgets. Unfortunately, his kids have all drunk the Apple Kool-Aid and have i-devices. Life at home often includes demonstrations of the superiority of his Android based devices. In his free time, Jeff is active an active runner usually training for his next marathon, owns a Mazda MX-5 Miata, and plays Dungeons & Dragons. Jeff has three grown kids and a golden retriever.

3 comments

swtrainer says:

August 15, 2017 at 9:20 PM

Just one more reason I will never use Sprint again…I did years ago and the coverage was lousy. I left it for AT&T and the coverage improved, but was still lousy. I left AT&T for TMO and the coverage was slightly better, then a year or so ago, TMO blossomed! I’m not a TMO fanboy…they offer so much more at so much less…Love TMO!

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Richard Dennis says:

August 15, 2017 at 3:18 PM

Disable SprintID.. That will fix it.. But then you will need to do it again when it updates to the newest version.. About every 8 months..
My best advice.. Dont buy a carrier branded device.. Get all the devil out of the phone.. A non carrier Nexus will do just fine for me.

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Erik Tyler says:

August 14, 2017 at 2:22 PM

To even suggest that this isn’t intentional from the loser carrier in the US, one that should be shut down for fraud (their claims of network performance and reach are an outright lie), is very naive…

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