Samsung Galaxy S4 owners get just HALF the storage they paid for because of apps added before you even buy the phone



Unwanted 'bloatware' and system files take up 45% of the handset's internal storage

Samsung responds to criticisms by telling owners to buy extra storage

Samsung Galaxy S4 buyers are getting much less storage than they pay for because the device is sold full of 'bloatware'.



Bloatware includes apps and files that are added to handsets by the manufacturers and networks before they are sold to customers.



The S4, which costs around £550 SIM-free, is advertised as having 16GB of internal storage, yet because or these preinstalled apps, operating system files and network features, this is almost halved to 8.8GB.



The Galaxy S4 was launched in March and has already sold 10 million handsets, according to figures from Samsung. The S4 Mini is a compact version of the S4 with many of the same software features. Its hardware features are more like the Samsung Galaxy S3

WHAT IS BLOATWARE?

Bloatware is the name for any unwanted software or apps that are preinstalled onto phones, tablets, or computers.

As well as taking up space that can be used for photos and other personal files, bloatware can also slow down your device.

Bloatware can also refer to extras that come with wanted software including browser toolbars, desktop widgets or other unwanted additions.

Some of the preinstalled Samsung files are needed for its new features, such as eye tracking, air gestures and voice commands.

Others, however, are unnecessary or unwanted utility apps, games and the S Travel and S Health hubs.

To add insult to injury, many of these apps and hubs can't be removed.



It is common practice for phones and tablets to go on sale without the full amount of storage advertised because a certain amount is always taken up by the essential operating system files.

Yet this usually leaves around 70% to 80% of storage left, as is the case with the Google Nexus 7, for example.

HTC and Motorola handsets traditionally have 60% of space left after bloatware and system files are taken into account.

Some of the preinstalled Samsung files on the S4, pictured, are needed for features such as eye tracking, air gestures and voice commands. Others, however, are unnecessary or unwanted utility apps, games and the S Travel and S Health hubs. Many of which can't be removed

But the worst offenders are Samsung's Activ 8 tablet that is advertised with 64GB of internal storage, but only has 30GB free.

And Microsoft's Windows 8 tablets that offer 64GB, but owners can only use about 23GB.

Samsung has responded to the criticisms about the S4's storage capacity.

Although, the reply just states what files are taking up the space, and advises people that a solution to the problem is to buy a MicroSD card if they want extra storage.

Samsung said: 'For the Galaxy S4 16 GB model, approximately 6.85 GB occupies the system part of internal memory, which is 1 GB bigger than that of the Galaxy S3, in order to provide a high resolution display and more powerful features to our consumers.

'To offer the ultimate mobile experience to our users, Samsung provides a microSD slot on Galaxy S4 for extension of memory.'



The Samsung Galaxy S4 went on sale in the UK at the end of April.

It comes with a MicroSD card slot, which means owners have the option to increase the storage up to 64GB.

SAMSUNG GALAXY S4 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Height: 136.6 mm (5.38 inches) Width: 69 mm (2.72 inches) Depth: 7.9 mm (0.31 inches) Weight: 130 grams (4.59 ounces) Touchscreen: 5in Pixel density: 441 per inch Display: 1920-by-1080 pixels Network speeds: 3G and 4G LTE Lite Camera: 13 megapixel in back-facing camera, 2 megapixel in front-facing Voice recognition: Can translate nine languages and utilizes voice-activated tools that can dictate, reply, forward or save text messages Built-in apps: Video chat; internet browser; Gmail; Google Talk, Google Play Store; infrared LED; Google Maps; YouTube Processor: 1.9GHz quad-core processor or 1.6GHz octa-core processor Internal memory: 16GB; 32GB; or 64GB Other memory: Data stored in Samsung's HomeSync - a household cloud service Battery: 2,600 mAh Operating system: Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean





