OnePlus pulls Facebook bloatware from the OnePlus 8T

OnePlus is removing Facebook bloatware from the OnePlus 8T after the company was criticized for pre-installing Facebook’s apps and services on the OnePlus Nord and 8-series. OnePlus confirmed the news to Input, meaning the new phone will only come with Google, OnePlus, and Netflix software pre-installed.

Part of the reason for the outcry was that although the Facebook, Messenger, and Instagram apps could be uninstalled from the 8-series and Nord phones, background services like Facebook’s App Installer and App Manager couldn’t be removed completely, as AndroidPolice reported at the time.

OnePlus justified this by saying that including these services allowed it to offer “higher battery efficiency.” But users objected to them on the grounds that they cluttered up OnePlus’s streamlined OxygenOS software, and there were reports that they would also use small quantities of data in the background.

For those wondering, OnePlus says that Netflix comes preinstalled on the OnePlus 8T to allow for HDR optimizations. The company stopped short of confirming to Input that it would never preinstall Facebook’s apps and services again, and it declined to comment on how existing Nord and OnePlus 8-series owners could uninstall them from their devices.