App updates can be like Christmas. New features, new content in games, perhaps a fix for that bug that has been bothering you – they’re generally worthwhile. There are of course exceptions, where the developers either break the app or make some questionable choices, but generally speaking updates are great.
So, why did I hit uninstall on yet another app today, after seeing a new update was available?
Truth is that app updates can get bothersome. The app I uninstalled today is Great Big War Game, a game I played a lot when it first came out. I don’t play many games these days, but I’ve kept it around just in case. Thing is though, it’s 100MB. Even with a phone where storage is no issue and a 100/100Mbit connection, downloading and installing updates for it is a drag. The developer is great in that it releases updates quite frequently, so the game is a frequent visitor to my update list. Android doesn’t have a way to quickly update all apps except a few, and no way to ignore updates, so I always end up updating it. At some point, which happened to be today, having the game around wasn’t worth the hassle anymore.
I’ve done this to quite a few apps, sometimes causing me to have to re-install the app at a later point because I needed it. I have a lot of apps, so I have a lot of updates, and I like to keep on top of the ones for my core apps. Another related issue is that Android resets default actions when an app that can be tied to that action updates, causing you to have to re-confirm default actions all the time. Dolphin browser has probably had 20 updates over the last few months, each time making me check to use Dolphin as the default browser for links and bookmarks afterwards.
I’m not saying developers should update apps less frequently. Pushing updates to core users has to take priorities over not spamming casual users, period. Like always I blame Google for not making the update system a bit more intelligent, allowing you to either ignore updates for a specific app or remove it from the bulk update list. Right now the only “solution” is automatic updates, which is the last thing I want. Updates going off left and right, changing the apps I use without giving me a chance to see what changed? No thanks. The default action system also needs fixing, so that it differentiates between an app update an an app install.
So, have you ever uninstalled an update because it gets updated more often than you want to bother with?
I’ve uninstalled most of the “GO” apps (go locker, widgets, keyboard) because of too frequent updates. I dont remember what the app was, but at one point an app i had was getting an update every other day. I uninstalled that one too.
I thought one of the new features from the play store was that you can removed items from your “my apps”. Wouldn’t it be possible to simply remove the items you don’t plan on updating then hit update all?
Hmm, can’t see such a feature in any obvious place in GP. Either way, wouldn’t that have consequences outside just updating?
I’ve definitely disabled some of the stupid stock apps that I’ll never use. The browser for example. Also Blockbuster and Nascar. Sprint wanted to update those all the time.
No, I don’t think I’ve ever uninstalled due to too many updates. I have turned off automatic updates for those that seem to update a little too frequently though.
Yes, I’ve uninstalled apps that have a large file for update, most of it was a games.
I’ve never uninstalled an app because if too frequent updates. I tend to just ignore it if I don’t want to update it.
It personally doesn’t cause me mental turmoil to do this. I know some people what all their apps completely up to date or not have them at all.
I haven’t either but I did get really annoyed last week when an app had an update two or three days in a row
I would usually go through the update details before accepting the update. Often I tend to get along when it says “Bug Fixes”
Have definitely uninstalled due to frequent updates. Have automatic turned off, but I check every few days just in case that major update for an app I love has come out.
I wonder if it would be possible for a dev to build an app that could check versions of apps on your phone vs the latest in the pay store, and possibly even create an interface to update or ignore specific apps (over the play web store if not through the native app).
Not being a dev myself, I wouldn’t know were to start, but I think it’s a decent idea until Google improves the system.
If I recall correctly (not at tablet just now) you could just detach the offending app from the market using titanium. Anyway, frequent app updates don’t bother me though at times I’ll skip updates for a while and then do a pile at once. I’d much rather have frequent updates than no updates