- Nothing has announced that it will allow users to fully uninstall Meta apps in Nothing OS 4.0
- The move follows backlash after the Nothing Phone 3a Lite, which shipped with non-removable Meta Services features
- The fix will launch at the end of November
Nothing, the UK-based phone maker led by OnePlus founder Carl Pei, faced controversy this week after users spoke out against pre-installed bloatware on the brand’s Phone 3a series of mid-range and budget smartphones.
As Android Authority reports, Nothing recently rolled out the Android 16-based Nothing OS 4.0 update to its current lineup of smartphones, and while the entire lineup got new features and fixes with the update, Nothing also made it impossible to remove pre-installed apps on the new Phone 3a Lite, including apps like Meta Services and Meta’s Facebook app.
It naturally caused a stir among the passionate Nothing fan base. As a smaller phone brand, Nothing makes a point of privacy and simplicity – and whatever you think of the Meta, there’s no doubt that the tech giant doesn’t exactly share that reputation.
Even worse, there’s no way to remove Meta Services, Meta App Installer, and Meta App Manager from a phone running Nothing OS 4.0 — although, as 9to5Google explains, users can fully uninstall Facebook and Instagram.
Fortunately, nothing has pulled a U-turn on this problem and released a fix. In an update to an earlier statement on the Nothing Community forum, Nothing co-founder Akis Evangelidis announced that users will be able to completely uninstall Meta apps, Meta App Installer, Meta App Manager, and Meta Services with an upcoming update.
Nothing is targeting the end of November as a deadline to start rolling out the fix.
In the updated post, Evangelidis wrote: “Previously these were [apps] could only be deactivated. Although we recommended keeping them active for better stability of pre-installed apps like Instagram or Facebook, we understand that some users prefer full control over what stays on their device.”
Solving an avoidable problem
To be honest, it’s disappointing that Nothing would push pre-installed apps after having such a good year when it comes to hardware.
We’ve been impressed with the Nothing Phone 3, Phone 3a and Phone 3a Pro (which are among the best budget phones), so this issue has made the launch of the Phone 3a Lite more flat in comparison.
That’s why I hesitate to give Intet much credit for this latest fix – it’s a solution to a problem that should never have existed.
I understand that economic pressures can cause phone manufacturers to accept payment from big tech companies to pre-install apps, but not allowing users to completely uninstall said software is the real flaw here. It takes bloatware from a one-day annoyance to a real problem you might consider before buying a phone.
In any case, I’m glad that nothing has corrected this – if you’ve been affected by this Nothing problem, let us know in the comments below.
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