Is AT&T bloatware really that bad?

[Sparksnorth]

From the looks of a recently posted article about the AT&T moto x pre-order, 8 reasons to buy the pure edition, the screenshot shows 8 AT&T apps as the reason to buy the pure edition... is that the only problem with buying a carrier edition of a phone because I can definitely deal with losing 30mbs of space.

What is so good about buying the pure editions besides saving 30mb of space?

 

[Almeuit]

Most people just really hate bloatware. AT&T does like to throw in all their apps ... but I think the main "bloatware" piece people hate is usually they put "AT&T" at the top left of your screen (taking up valuable notification space).

 

[Sparksnorth]

Lol, interesting. Okay, but other than that, that's about it? Phone will still perform quick and I'll get android OS updates at the same rate as someone who purchased the pure edition?

Another question/statement: It's really lame that AT&T isn't give access to the moto maker, but I saw they did this with the 1st gen of the phone. Can you assume they're only giving limited customization options right now since the phone is new, or something like that?

 

[Almeuit]

Lol, interesting. Okay, but other than that, that's about it? Phone will still perform quick and I'll get android OS updates at the same rate as someone who purchased the pure edition?

Another question/statement: It's really lame that AT&T isn't give access to the moto maker, but I saw they did this with the 1st gen of the phone. Can you assume they're only giving limited customization options right now since the phone is new, or something like that?

1 - You will get updates but only when AT&T pushes them out. This is why some people like the GPE editions since they get updates from Google rather than having to wait for the carrier.

2 - It doesn't surprise me they aren't doing this. Carriers sometimes don't offer everything for a phone and sometimes will remove features that the phone should come with if they don't think you should have it. Such as the Galaxy S5 with the "Download Booster" (uses Wifi / LTE at the same time to download big files) has been removed from all carriers versions except T-Mobile's version.

 

[Sparksnorth]

Hmm, it appears that I can use the moto maker on the motorola website, and am able to upgrade my contract from there. We'll see...

 

[phalanx_x]

The point is, is that AT&T is engaging in what is known as "false advertising". On their site for the 2 year contract Moto X (2nd gen)

Key features include:
5.2” HD display
Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 801 quad-core processor
13MP camera with 4K capture
Pure Android™ experience
Moto voice control



OOPS! OOOPS! DOH!

"Gee, let's hope that our ***** customers don't know what pure android means."


Let me make this clear.

IF IT DOESN'T COME OUT OF THE BOX EXACTLY THE SAME AS THE PURE EDITION, THEN IT'S NOT A PURE ANDROID EXPERIENCE.