By 
Microsoft is about about to be on a lot of devices soon. The company has just announced that 11 different Android device makers have agreed to preinstall various Microsoft apps and servers on their phones and tablets.
Notable parties on the list include Samsung (whose participation will be limited to their range of tablets) and Dell. The other 9 guys are either regional manufacturers who make devices to be sold in their country, or original device manufacturers who make devices for others to rebrand and sell. Here’s the full list:
- Global OEM Samsung
- Global OEM Dell
- OEM TrekStor of Germany
- OEM JP Sa Couto of Portugal
- OEM Datamatic of Italy
- OEM DEXP of Russia
- OEM Hipstreet of Canada
- OEM QMobile of Pakistan
- OEM Tecno of Africa
- OEM Casper of Turkey
- ODM Pegatron
The list of apps isn’t huge — Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, OneDrive and Skype, is all — though we aren’t yet sure if they can be fully uninstalled by the user. We’ll be looking to find out from the horse’s mouth soon enough, but let us know how you feel about these deals straight ahead.
[via Microsoft]
It’s coming down to the most important thing, software and user control. Haha wow this is going to be something. I wonder if HTC, Samsung etc. still have to pay a fee for every phone they sell to Microsoft? I think it should be the other way around now.
They have to pay a fee and have MS software installed on their devices. How convenient for MS?
To which I promptly root and delete.
Good Docs handles it all. Hangouts can handle Skype. I have Dropbox, etc.
Google Docs*
Yeah… http://www.google.com/docs/about/
Never tried Good Docs. Is it… good?
*makes I-made-a-pun face*
*Yes, I’m aware it’s a typo*
Naw. Like most things, it doesn’t live up to the name. It’s just ok
I CANNOT do this!! The amount of pun is just too much. Or did you not realize it?
It’s just “ok”? So it’s “Ok Doc”? Bwahahahaaaa!! I can’t.
Docs Rocs….
I use it daily. Tons of docs, spreadsheets, images, files and I can share or collaborate with others. And, all the same key functions as the MS Word suite – I know, I use the Word suite (Word, Excel, Outlook, PP) daily also,
I used them both. Word for Android destroys docs. I rather open source stuff like Libre office and try to use them most of the time but word is definitely the better program. It’s like gimp. Gimp is a good program but it doesn’t compare to photoshop
Google docs is pretty good, but I prefer Excel to Sheets. I keep getting this weird bug where equations take a long time to compute, even if they are simple summations. It seems that the equation is computed server side rather than client side.
iCloud office on the other hand… fuck that shit.
*That moment when you realized you commented to the wrong person*
I have zero problem with this – more choices for everyone. You can’t ignore that Microsoft is a huge force in the technology world, so having their apps standard is nothing but good for Android users in general. Personally I probably won’t use them and will delete them if possible (or through root), but for the average user that picks up an S6 over an iPhone 6, this could be a nice perk.
You should have an issue with this. This does not make any new/more choices for you or anyone. The choices already exist, you want them, go download them.
BUT to have a bit of your memory taken by having apps preloaded up for you. Not good. As well, if you are cool with this it starts at 5 preloaded apps. Then 11. Then 18. You still cool with this?
We have a store, you want apps, go download them on your terms and what you want. It is not cool to have this taking place IMHO and adds nothing for the user they cannot go get it they want it. This is NOT for us, so don’t fooled. This is a revenue stream for the manufacturers. They are not trying to benefit us.
Yes, this is true. At first it wasn’t a bother, but then the list of preloaded apps slowly grew.
If you disable them (or uninstall if possible) it won’t take up any memory just storage space, which is the concern. I agree though that this is bullshit as I can’t stand Microsoft and don’t use any of their apps. Samsung would have been better off paying Microsoft what they would have had to for losing the court case then making this deal. I and I’m sure others won’t touch any of their devices effected if these become unable to be uninstalled or disabled and with how bad their updates time line seems to have become (still waiting for lollipop on my Note 4)they’re already pushing a number of people away and will lose even more of their customers. I can’t wait to get my new M9 and ditch Samsung, just tired of their recent ways.
I know what to do…. you know what to do… do other non geeks like my mom or friends or the millions of other non geeks know what to do? Not likely. So, they just “live with it” and that is what they count on. You’ll just accept it and live with it. And then it grows.
Most users who get emails with Word Documents or Excel spreadsheets attached will try to open them on their phones. Why not preload the software to do so? It will make the phone easier to use and “just work” for the average user.
This is exactly why I won’t buy Samsung phones anymore. I don’t need duplicate apps for browsers, email, app stores, calendars, messaging and whatever else wasting space.
> Personally I probably won’t use them and will delete them
What if you cannot delete the preloaded crapware from Microsoft?
Based on your own words, you should be strongly against preloaded crapware.
If having Microsoft apps is nothing but good for Android users, then why not just put those apps into the Google Play Store like other apps — so that users can easily install them. Then we would see the truth — that is, the actual download numbers for those wonderful crapps that nobody really wants on Android.
If preloading unwanted Microsoft apps is such a good thing, then it would seem even better to preload the entire Google Play Store onto your phone and make it non-removable. Wouldn’t you agree? You say you have zero problem with this. Or is Microsoft more equal than others?
i dont see the big deal here….gives us a chance at trying some of their apps out, by force I guess, but hey thats what root is for! ROOT & DELETE!
Jk as paid ms troll and other ms trolls u all dont mind but for android user no one wants pos ms apps. Not every android user root their phone. Another evil ms Trojan move, no wonder ms Ken phones are at 2% market share.
Got that tin foil hat one real tight there huh? Better watch it for those black helicopters and drones flying over your house bro.
Wow your ms is like north Korea
After observing Micro$oft’s incredibly devious tactics for decades, suspecting someone is their paid troll is hardly a sign of paranoia. Doubting that M$ would stoop so low is a sign of ignorance – or perhaps of complicity. M$ is known for using paid agents to post comments on forums when it has a critical need to push some aspect of its agenda to the public. The SCO case and ISO scam are but two examples where it used paid agents in an attempt to blunt its critics and advocate for its strategic aims.
This is a ‘big deal’.
If Microsoft wants to ‘give us a chance at trying some of their apps’, then Microsoft can put their apps into the Google Play Store like everyone else*.
What Microsoft wants is no less than ‘to give us a chance to try’, just like they do on Desktop PC’s. That is, they want to force it down our throats while pinching our nose.
Another argument:
If preloading non removable apps to give us a chance to try is a good thing, then it would be fantastic thing to force preload the entire Google Play store catalog of apps and make them non removable! That would be wonderful!
*oh, but doing that would reveal to all that nobody wants Microsoft apps, just like nobody wants Microsoft Surface, Windows Phones, or the new ‘modern’ UI on PCs.
good point =)
What a kick in Google’s crotch.
Glad to see Motorola(Lenovo) is not on this list.
I am not into any of the Microsoft apps,or windows OS,period!
Yea, I’ll stop buying even a Nexus if MS comes any closer.
MS Orifice Subscription probably required to make them actually do something other than take up space. It will probably come complete with a “BUG” designed to slow the Android OS to a crawl, and of course Microsoft can now accuse all Android users of pirating their software along with all of their regular customers.
On the other hand, if the apps come with a free trial subscription it will be an awesome thing to see. It’s not too far fetched either – my galaxy tab s comes with 6 months of free Economist subscription.
Jeebus samsung, ENOUGH with the fucking bloatware! Now in addition to the other garbage you’ve saddled your devices with you’re going to add 1GB of MS Office trash?
Yep, I think after ~5 years as a loyal samsung mobile fanboy, this is the nail in the coffin for me. Time to find a new mobile brand to send my hard-earned money to. Idiots.
So far I have tolerated Samsung’s crapware that periodically gets in my face.
If Samsung preloads Microsoft crap that cannot be removed, then I will begin considering what other brands of phones I might want when it comes time to replace my Galaxy S5.