.How do I disable the built-in What's New app? It's irritating me.

[Bol]

What's new, nothing! This app is still irritating. How do I uninstall it?

[nolramlb]

you can't since that is a system app, some app updates are handled by what's new app. you can delete it only if you root access. you can disabe notification by going to what's new>settings> disable show notifications

[BTJ]

The update to WHAT'S NEW is now appearing under software update.  I don't want the updates and I don't use the app.  Sony support said I could disable the app and this would stop the updates.  However the DISABLE button is lightened and not available. I can clear the cache and clear the data and force a stop but the disable button is never enabled.

How can I disable the WHAT'S NEW app?

[uliwooly]

@BTJ

You could try something like this

http://forum.xda-developers.com/android/software/debloater-remove-carrier-bloat-t2998294

[Vee_Crabtree]

When I go to the app settings, the "Show Notifications" button is greyed out and ticked, so, there is no apparent way to turn off notifications. It's a useless app, and I hate having it.

I wonder if Sony puts rubbish like this on our phones, to force us to root the phones and break warranty.

This has by a long way got to be THE most disliked app on Sony phones.

Someone help us get rid of it!

[uliwooly]

@Vee_Crabtree

What if you disable it ?

[Vee_Crabtree]

The "DISABLE" button is greyed out. It sits there, right next to the ticked "Show notifications" checkbox (also greyed out), teasing the huge number of users who hate it, and can do nothing about it. Bloatware :-(

[Vee_Crabtree]

Oh I did post this to the Experia M2 Aqua forum, but they've "usefully" moved it here, so no-one can tell what phone I have... am on Android 5.1.1.

[uliwooly]

@Vee_Crabtree

Don't create duplicate posts, you can contact directly with your feedback >>> Local support

[Vee_Crabtree]

farnz started a thread asking how to DISABLE What's New in 2015 Feb, and unfortunately no-one has been able to help - his thread lasted one year.

steph17 then asked a different question - how to REMOVE What's app, in 2016 Feb. The admins mistook her question to be the same as how do you DISABLE the app, and merged the threads. Either that, or they were trying to hide negative feedback (but surely, they wouldn't do that, as honest human beings).

Because steph17's post was merged into the "How do I disable..." thread, other users end up asking the same question.

So in 2016 March, Bol asked "How do I uninstall this irritating What's New app"... and in 2016 Apr, BTJ also asked how you disable it.

In 2016 Apr I asked how do I TURN OFF NOTIFICATIONS. The admins mistook this question to mean the same thing as asking how you DISABLE the app, so my thread got merged too.

So I explained all this in May sometime, but my post has been deleted... leaving everyone in the dark again about what this thread is about!

So in summary, presuming that the threads have all been merged intentionally, does anyone know:

(1) How can you UNINSTALL What's New?
or, failing that,
(2) How can you DISABLE What's New?
or, failing that, my original question:
(3) How can you disable notifications?

And assuming you can't, a new question (I'll ask here, to save the admins having to merge it into this thread):

(4) How can I disable updates for What's New?

I do occasionally click on "Force Stop" on it but that makes little long-term difference.

(5) What's New is a waste of processor cycles, a waste of WiFi usage, and a waste of local storage on the device, and all it ever does is push adverts at me for things I'm not interested in. Ideally, I don't want to break warranty by rooting the phone, but is it Sony's intent that rooting the device is the only way to remove What's New?