Do you have an ‘iCrap’ folder? Well prepare for it to get even bigger.
Following the release of iOS 8.2 earlier this week and the unpleasant surprise that the Apple AAPL -1.25%Watch app is a mandatory install, it has now been revealed that this is just one of two apps Apple will be imposing on all users.
Developer Hamza Sood has discovered iOS 8.2 also installs ‘Activity’ – another app designed to work with the Apple Watch and track movement and exercise activity. Why has no-one spotted this before? Because Apple hides the Activity app from view until you pair an Apple Watch. At that point it magically appears on your homescreen.
If you plan on owning an Apple Watch the Activity app looks useful. It’s UI matches the style of the Watch and it breaks user activity into ‘Move ’, ‘Stand’ and ‘Exercise’ rings. It also has ‘Achievements’ which mimic similar gamification elements of rival exercise trackers. Note: it cannot be used with any other wearable than the Apple Watch.
Activity App – a secret install on iOS 8.2 – image credit Hamza Sood
Read more – Apple iOS 8.2 Has Two Nasty Surprises
The Controversy
As useful as Activity appears to be for Apple Watch owners, why it needs to be installed on every iOS device (let alone in secret) is the main talking point.
Users have already been freaking out (not my terminology) over the pre-requisite installation of the Apple Watch app, so adding a second mandatory app in secret stretches credibility. Especially when there is nothing stopping both apps downloading (even automatically) only once an Apple Watch is paired.
What reactions can we expect? Well those prone to ‘freaking out’ no doubt will do so again, while others won’t see the issue. That said there is a point to be made over hypocrisy here.
Apple Watch app – another mandatory (but visible) install on iOS 8.2 – image credit Apple
Apple has taken pot shots at Android handset makers (fairly) for filling their phones with bloatware that damages performance and wastes storage space. Whether Apple’s bloatware impacts performance is currently unknown but it certainly wastes an increasing amount of storage, particularly for owners of the 8GB iPhone 5C and 16GB iPhones. Remember 1-2GB of their capacity is already taken by the iOS installation footprint.
Whether Apple will now face pressure to make one or both of these Apple Watch apps uninstallable remains to be seen, but if Apple were to comply it would open up a hornets nest over which other iOS apps should be removable (I’m looking at you Stocks app).
Watch this space…
Read more - Apple iOS 8.2: Should You Upgrade?
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Gordon Kelly is an experienced freelance technology journalist who has written for Wired, The Next Web, TrustedReviews and the BBC. He can be followed on his Facebook Page
