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So I just got done reading that 26% of all applications installed across iOS, Blackberry OS, Android, and Windows are used once and then uninstalled. That’s a pretty hefty chunk, but not too surprising. It’s interesting, nonetheless, and makes me look at my own habits: how long do I keep apps installed? Which ones do I tend to keep and which ones do I tend to discard?
Myself, I only download what I absolutely know I’ll need and use. I traverse every piece of information that the market entry provides – from the amount of users, to its ratings, to two weeks’ worth of comments – before pulling the trigger on an app, free or otherwise . My personal number would probably be less than 5% because I won’t even waste time installing an application that I absolutely can’t see myself using longer than a couple of hours.
What about you folks, though? How often do you download applications, and how often do you see yourself uninstalling them? Are you “no nonsense” types where you won’t even open the market entry for an application that has no practical use in your every day life? Or do you like to install random apps that you can get a kick out of at certain boring patches in a typical day? [via LA Times]
[polldaddy poll=4483407]
I put quite a bit of research into apps before installing so not too many are the one-and-done kind of apps
I find a lot of apps get uninstalled simply because they are broken.
One thing that app developers commonly do is assume that you only have one Google account on the phone so it ends up not being able to sink the right one if you have 2 or more.
I like to keep my phone running lean and mean, so I only have a few apps installed, ones that I use on a daily basis. When I had my OG Droid I downloaded everything under the sun and after awhile it slowed my phone way down. After uninstalling most of them I noticed a big improvement in speed and performance. When I bought my Galaxy S, I only installed what I needed and left it at that. Runs as smooth as the day I bought it and I intend to keep it that way.
I like to form my own opinion on apps. Sure you can get a general idea on reading comments/reviews, but only a fool would trust those 100%. Never hurts to try
im usually good about downloading good apps i research except for the grenade whistle app hahah which is great but still got uninstalled
Droid X, 8gb internal storage, I load them up!
Which category would the headline fall into? Is 26% “often”?
I’ll usually install a few apps that do what I’m looking for and then uninstall all but the best. After that I almost never remove them, though.
Forgot a category for those of us with gigs of internal storage (who needs Apps2SD?).
The only time I uninstall something on my Tab or Galaxy S is when it’s causing problems.
100th vote :P
48%1
37%2
15%3
I have about 100 apps that I just don’t want to un-install. I have taken off a lot of apps but those are the ones that I like and I have been downloading apps since November 2008.
Depends on the app and my need. E.g. I went to London a couple of weeks ago and tried out 2 tube map type apps and used both for the duration of my stay and uninstalled them on my way home. Others i’ll get thinking i’ll use them quite a lot but end up not doing so but i’ll usually not bother to uninstall them until I need space.
I am so OCD about installing apps on my phone. I have 18 apps on my phone which I use on a regular basis. Oh and I dont have a single game on my phone
I agree with James, load up the apps that perform a specific function, try them all out, and keep the best. Therefore, I guess I contribute to that 26% number quite a bit. Additionally, as functionality migrates from an app into a webpage I’ll uninstall the app as well. As an example, I uninstalled Weather Channel app as Google Weather does a great job.
There are certain ones I use a lot and always reinstall but if I update my ROM I tend to only reinstall things that I use a lot. If I wasn’t using it then I don’t reinstall it. Only real annoyance is apps that run at startup. Otherwise it’s not using up anything other than space and I have plenty of that on my SD card so no biggie.
Mine is option 1. I treat my phone like my PC.
My droid x knows when to uninstall them for me… Wish I could tell you but my phone is just “that” bad ass. It even installs ones it knows I would like at the same time. Its a multitasking self thinking power house! Droid FTW!
I’m with James on this. I try to do my research on this, but a lot of times you hear good reviews on similar apps. There’s plenty of twitter clients that have positive reviews, I only need one. So I try a couple different ones, and eventually whiddle them down to the one I use the most.
For the most part, I keep what I have though, except games. If I notice I haven’t played a game in awhile, I then think about getting rid of it.
My droidx has plenty of room for apps. IF I download it, I keep it. I dont download fart apps though.
Where’s the option for “My phone has plenty of internal storage”? Because mine does.
Now that I have a Tab, I’m cleaning up my phone and moving a lot to the tablet instead. Some I’ve had since my first G1 because I use them every day. Typically only games get deleted because better ones hit the market. Bottom line though, I don’t delete apps a lot because I don’t install things I probably don’t need or will never use.
I keep 40 apps on my sd card and 15 necessary ones on my phone.
I can’t seem to stop trying new roms on my G1, so I have to keep reinstalling the same apps over and over :D
“4. I install very few apps, but still have to uninstall some from time to time because my phone’s running out of memory”
Fifteen minutes and twenty seconds. D’oh!
I use most Apps and from they’re getting less and less instead of more: after updating, some apps need more space, so that my phone will start comlaining about memory again and again. HTC Desire with stock modaco-Froyo – though oushing everything I can to SD, there’s very little space …
Sucks! Waiting for some Gingerbrad releases and will then pick one with the most space left for my own Apps.
20 seconds if I have to fight my way through trying to use it. After that it gets deleted regaurdless if it is considered number 1 in a category or not.
im limited to space on my N1, but if Facebook, Flash and all the big apps out there would be so kind to add save to SD on there applications. it would allow me/us a chance to play with more apps. instead i have to worry about what to install and uninstall all the time. my next phone will have to have lots of internal memory and no im not getting a sucky samsung!
I have the Epic and I have 143 apps, i hardly erase my apps unless they don’t seem practical at all or don’t work. I do wish i could install my apps to my sd card though, the internal memory is incredibly low, but it still runs incredibly smooth so I won’t be erasing my apps.
There’s a missing option: Until i need more space…
I got a Motorola Milestone so not a lot of storage. I do have a lot of apps which I keep installed. Sometimes I try other apps which do the same (though they claim it is better) and sometimes I swap to them. Lately I have been buying less and less apps since I got something for everything I need :)
I usually have a lot of apps installed, even if I only use them once a month. I think I currently have about 70-80 apps installed.
I have been installing a lot lately but I use most of the apps so I don’t mind. If an app really sucks or I fond one that works better then I dump the useless one. Or if I find I don’t use an app as much as I thought I would then I realize it probably isn’t worth keeping.
I’m very picky. If an app doesn’t help me organize my life, I’m not interested. Selected news apps count toward organizing my life.
Got 8gbs in my droid x specifically for apps, I install anything and everything I want.
I’m usually looking for a type of app and try 3 to 5 and keep the one I like the best. I also tend to dump huge apps that I rarely use. I know I can always put it back if I need it.
Lol yeah I hope people who like to download random apps are smart enough to know if they get a virus its the fault of no one other then them…not so sure if viruses on phones is a big thing as of now but…still my statment stands
WOO HOO I was the 1000 vote! I picked 2 describes me perfectly…
1 – 57%
2 – 30%
3 – 13%
It’s seems I downloaded so many apps the left over apk files are eating up alot of my SD card does this seem right?
Lucky for me an app is an app and so I wont be researching an app.. because its just a fucken APPLICATION!!! I install it, run it.. if I like it.. I keep it, if not.. Its gone.. simple as that. People make big things out of nothing… If your researching an app, and or reading up information about it.. your doing too much..
I freely download but mostly things that could possibly be better than stock apps never have had to remove any because of memory issues.
I picked the most strick choice in the voting however I am somewhere between the first and 2nd choice. There are apps I have had a very long time, and then there are short time use apps like Benchmark 2010 where I install, run, view, whimper at how slow I am, then delete. I may reload same app when checking against a friend’s phone just to delete after I run it.
I also have apps for my son to play, they stay for a while (a month or more) then I delete to make room for something else.
I research an app first. If I decide to install it, then it either gets deleted fairly soon, or it gets kept for a long time.
my phone is 16G i didnt face any problem with space
but i always remove apps that i dont use them usually