Samsung is rumored to be working on a much improved version of TouchWiz, its modified version of Google's Android platform, and one of the first things to go will be the annoying software that come pre-loaded into its Samsung Galaxy phones.
At Samsung's March 1 Unpacked event at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, the South Korean smartphone maker is expected to unveil its next flagship smartphone, the Samsung Galaxy S6, and we can expect to see a brand new version of TouchWiz fully optimized to Nexus 6 levels with no bloatware.
A report by SamMobile cites a Samsung insider who says one of the biggest changes Samsung is about to introduce next month is the removal of Samsung bloatware in the Samsung Galaxy S6. What the sources did not specify, however, is exactly which apps Samsung will be getting rid of, although it is possible that the company will remove apps such as S Health, S Voice, S Note, and Scrapbook.
To be clear, Samsung will not be shutting down these apps. Users will still be able to download them from the Google Play Store if they want to use them, but the new flagship smartphones will come bloatware-free right out of the box.
SamMobile's sources also say that Samsung will not remove all pre-installed apps. In fact, one of the biggest surprises about the Samsung Galaxy S6 could be that it will come pre-loaded with Microsoft's suite of productivity apps, including Office Mobile, which comes with a free Office 365 subscription, OneNote, OneDrive, and Skype.
The report comes just a week after Samsung and Microsoft reportedly patched things up over the two company's patent-licensing woes in an undisclosed settlement that ended Microsoft's legal pursuit of Samsung for Android-related royalties.
Microsoft is largely struggling with its own Windows Phone hardware business, so it is looking to leverage software to make its services more accessible to users. Earlier this week, the Redmond, Washington-based software maker distributed 1.1 million subscriptions to Office 365 ProPlus to students and teachers in New York City. With the rumored new partnership with Samsung, Microsoft could be looking to reach more subscribers in people who use Samsung devices.
Other TouchWiz changes said to be in the works include the adaptation of Material Design effects, coloring schemes, and animations debuted in Android Lollipop and the addition of more themes. SamMobile's source says the dialer app, in particular, looks as "green as grass." Meanwhile, the default keyboard app will supposedly look like the lovechild of the Galaxy Tab S keyboard and the iOS keyboard, and the music app will still run in full-screen mode at all times.
The source also claims that TouchWiz will run faster and smoother than Android Lollipop on the Galaxy Note 4.
