Adding and Removal of Apps - How Does it Affect Performance and Phone Stability?

[LaskoFan]

A little background is in order. I am new (Turbo on order via work) with Android. I am coming from a Blackberry and the only experience I have had with Android is when my daughter had a Samsung Galaxy 3 a few years back. That did not work out too well and she complained a lot of the device being sluggish and not stable. She of course had some apps on it but I could not tell you which ones.

I have been reading all about the Turbo this past week and I can't wait to get it. I have got 10 or so apps watch-listed on my play store based on my reading around the web and of course this fine forum. I like to keep my operating systems clean, regardless of the device, to preserve its performance. Of course, having all those apps at our disposal to personalize our phones is a great selling point for Android. No doubt I will be adding apps, but I will walk before I run.

This all leads to my questions, say I install a few apps that do not work out for me. I am sure they can be removed, but what remnants remain? And how does it affect the performance? Finally, is there an easy way to do a factory reset to bring the phone back to its original state and start anew?

Thanks in advance for your advise. This is a great forum and I can't wait to get my new phone.

 

[salmanahmad]

Samsung Galaxy devices usually have a bad history with performance, rest assured you will not get the same sluggishness on your Droid Turbo primarily because it runs a pure unadulterated version of Android.

I wouldn't worry too much about downloading and installing apps to your heart's content however apps do leave some "cached data." This shouldn't really affect your performance however it may start taking up a lot of memory.

An easy way to clear the cache is simply to open the settings app, navigate into "Storage", scroll down and tap "cached data" and clear it. It should look a bit like this:



This is the only thing I would recommend doing, and do it every month or so.

Android isn't really the only OS that requires some tuning to keep it running well, Windows Phone also has similar issues and so does iOS however Android makes it the easiest to clear you unimportant data.

Enjoy your new phone!

 

[mightyfacundo]

I use an app called Clean Master that allows you to clear cache and will alert you to any files remaining after you uninstall an app. A window pops up saying "Angry Birds (for instance) left 2 files. Would you like to delete them?" Then you just hit yes and they're gone. It's an easy way to keep your phone clear of the clutter that builds up over time.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[LaskoFan]

Thanks for the reply and details. Since there are cleaners out there it seems there will be remnants left by apps installed. I guess it depends how well the developer takes care of this when you uninstall an app.

 

[travaz]

I came from the Droid MAXX and now have the turbo and it honestly was never a problem. I am great for installing 2 or 3 of an app (like a weather app) and then picking the one I want to keep. I do clear the cache now and again. Also the Ballistic Nylon version that I got has 64GB storage.