Phone storage almost full? Google tries telling users what apps to delete

Google is testing a feature that tells users which Android apps to uninstall when running low on phone or tablet storage space.

Currently, users who try to download an app from Google Play when they don’t have enough space are informed that the install failed due to lack of free storage. From there, each user must decide between deleting apps or media and skipping the new app altogether.

In the test, Google Play makes figuring all that out much easier. When there isn’t enough space, a pop-up alert tells users how much space they need to free up. The prompt also shows users where they can delete media files. Beneath that, there is a list of least-used apps and how much storage each one takes up. Users can tap a check box next to each suggested app they want to get rid of. As the new app installs, those apps go away.

The Google Play app store test is being conducted with “a very limited group of users,” a Google spokeswoman said. As of now, Google hasn’t decided if or when this experiment will make its way to everyone who uses Google Play. “We have no timetable to roll this out to all Google Play users globally,” the spokeswoman said.

Nevertheless, the tested feature points to a key issue as available bandwidth and software download sizes are expanding faster than most phones’ internal storage. More and more space is being taken up by virtual-reality apps, desktop-strength productivity apps and rich console-quality games.

While Google’s tests could affect hundreds of millions of Android devices world-wide, many of those devices already come with SD card slots allowing users who run out of space to inexpensively add storage. Nextbit Inc., a San Francisco startup founded by former Google and HTC engineers and designers, sells the $400 Robin,an Android smartphone that can automatically uninstall unused apps and photoswhen free space runs out—then bring them back whenever a user wants.

Apple needs to explore a system of its own for dealing with at-capacity iPhones and iPads: Not only are there no MicroSD card slots, but the entry-level models are notoriously skimpy on storage space.

(WSJ)