Activating and deactivating Android system apps

If you don’t want to use preinstalled system apps on your Android smartphone, you can simply deactivate them and reactivate them later.

Android: How to deactivate and activate system apps

Your Android smartphone comes preinstalled with all sorts of apps, but many of them you don’t need. System apps often can’t be deleted on Android, but they can be deactivated.

• Open the “Settings” app.

• Scroll down a bit and find the “Apps” menu item.

• Now you will see a list of all your apps. Select a system app that you want to disable by tapping on the name.

• Tap “Deactivate” at the bottom of the screen and confirm the action.

• To reactivate apps that have been switched off, swipe to the bottom of the same menu and select “Activate”.

Changing system apps: What you need to be aware of

If you disable a system app, you will see a warning. This is for a good reason.

• Your system may no longer run stably if you disable a system app. To avoid data loss, you should therefore never switch off necessary functions such as media storage, the Android keyboard or Google services.

• To disable system apps on your device, you need extended access rights on your smartphone or tablet for older cell phones up to Android 4.0. However, rooting may void any warranty claims.