Critics of so-called "bloatware" will have new fodder thanks to Samsung's forthcoming flagship Galaxy S6 smartphone, which will come preinstalled with a total of 56 applications, including third-party services like Microsoft OneDrive and Whatsapp.
The plethora of built-in apps shipping on the device was highlighted by Gizmodo on Thursday. Samsung's custom "TouchWiz" interface goes above and beyond Google's own native Android apps, adding proprietary offerings like S Voice and S Health.
But third-party apps are also part of the mix, with Whatsapp and Instagram joining the likes of Microsoft OneDrive. There are even six carrier-specific apps installed for T-Mobile customers, and similar variants are likely applicable with other carrier partners.
TouchWiz has been updated to Android 5.0 Lollipop, which does give users the ability to disable -- but not uninstall -- the apps.
"This removes them from the app drawer and the homescreen, but not from the phone entirely," author Eric Limer noted. "You're basically opting instead to put them in a sort of stasis, out of sight but not out of storage."
Apple does not preinstall any third-party software on its iPhones, and in an effort to rid its reliance on Google even removed the native YouTube application from iOS.
But Apple is not immune to complaints of "bloatware," as its own native applications cannot be uninstalled from the iPhone either, leaving users to instead hide them away in folders. The latest round of criticism came with the launch of iOS 8.2, which debuted the Apple Watch app -- yet another native piece of software that cannot be removed.
The Samsung Galaxy S6 and its counterpart, the Galaxy S6 Edge, were revealed earlier this month with a premium metal and glass design that critics have said closely resembles Apple's own flagship iPhone 6 series. The company also drew additional copycat critiques for introducing Samsung Pay, its response to Apple Pay.