Gizmodo: bloatware

Acer's Bloatware Adds 2+ Minutes to Boot Time, HP, Dell and Sony Not Much Better

Adam Frucci — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:49:50 EDT

PC Pro looked into the bloatware included on new laptops by major manufacturers, measuring how memory, HDD space and boot times are negatively effected. And good lord, it's worse than you thought.

Bloatware, the crap software that manufacturers pre-install on their computers that include demos, media software and other junk you never use, is infuriating. And seeing the numbers, it's even more insane that these companies are crippling their own products with this junk. Here's how the worst offenders break down, compared to clean installs on the same machines:

Acer: 2:01 longer boot time, 952MB larger memory footprint, 2.4GB less HDD space
HP: 1:35 longer boot time, 1.06GB larger memory footprint, 2.18GB less HDD space
Dell: 0:52 longer boot time, 1.18GB larger memory footprint, 3GB less HDD space
Sony: 1:54 longer boot time, 1.11GB larger memory footprint, 1.3GB less HDD space

Pretty repulsive stuff; at least Microsoft isn't including this garbage on PCs sold in their stores. Be sure to check out PC Pro for the full study and results. [PC Pro via Slashdot]

Microsoft Retail Store PCs Will Be Crapware-Free, But I'm Still Unsatisfied

Rosa Golijan — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:20:00 EDT

No one likes uninstalling bloatware, trialware, and craplets from their freshly unboxed PCs. Microsoft finally acknowledges this by skipping the unnecessary third-party software in Microsoft retail store PCs. That's truly great, but they should do a little more than that.

I realize that the key reason behind all that preinstalled junk is to make a profit. After all, there are people who'll spring for subscriptions because of anti-virus nagware or purchase a full version of an application after playing around with the trial. For most of us though, we just plain take a mocking from Mac users as we hit the uninstall button over and over again.

All PC users suffer this process unless we jump through hoops like pleading with Dell or Toshiba during the ordering process, paying Sony off, or purchasing a cheap Walmart product. But now, we've finally got official agreement that the crapware doesn't belong on our PCs and a place to purchase PCs with sparkly clean installs. This is an incredible move by Microsoft, and it must've taken quite some balls for someone to propose actually going through with it. Only trouble is that we'll still see bloatware on PCs purchased from other retailers or through direct channels from makers.

So, dear Microsoft, you're doing something wonderful in your retail stores, but it needs to go one step further. Please cajole everyone else to sell PCs without the crapware, too. Pretty please. [Electronista via Crunchgear]

Every Sony Vaio TZ Will Get Bloatware-Free "Fresh Start" Option

matt buchanan — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 11:15:26 EDT

Sony's bloatware-nuking "Fresh Start" option gets a little bit better every day. Originally, it cost $50 and was only available on their businessy TZ2000. Then it got free. Now Sony says it'll be available for every ~~computer~~ Vaio TZ by the end of the summer. Hey, maybe next they'll make it the default. Oh yeah, not a chance. [Pocketables]

Sony Has the Balls to Charge You $50 to Not Install Bloatware on Your New PC

Adam Frucci — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 10:56:23 EDT

We all know that bloatware, the crappy, useless software that computer manufacturers load up their new computers with, sucks. It clogs up the pipes and makes your brand new computer run slower right out of the box. Well, Sony feels you. That's why it's offering a new "Fresh Start" option that wipes all the bloatware from a new computer. And they're so generous, they'll only charge you $50 to not have all that garbage on there. Boy howdy, thanks Sony! It's only available on the TZ2000 so far, but I'm sure Sony'll be willing to take your money to not install software on your new computer for many more models in the near future. [Engadget]

Why Vista Will Suck in 20 Bullet Points or Less

johnb — Fri, 02 Jun 2006 12:49:11 EDT

I know were getting nasty about Vista—actually, it's just me, but I speak for the trees, etc.—but this very long article puts that haterage and disappointment into quite a few words.

What don't I like about Vista? Well, it's just XP with a nicer interface. Microsoft has done this countless times—dumped the same load of code into a prettier package and called it a sexy upgrade. Also understand that I used Windows exclusive since the days of 3.11, so I've had a bit of experience with this. Sure, on the admin side, I'm sure Vista will have all kinds of perks, but there's not much I've seen thus far to make it look like anything more than more bloatware.

Flame me all you want—I'm reading as much as I can on Vista and I'm trying to see what's in store for me as a geek in terms of Vista coolness, and I'm just not seeing it. Maybe I'll give Travis, the noted Windows user, these posts to write.

Visual Tour: 20 Things You Won't Like About Windows Vista [ComputerWorld]