‘Delete’ Default Apps On Your iPhone — iOS Developers Program Allows Users To Hide Unwanted Apps For A Steep Fee

Apple appears to have offered a way to “delete” apps that come bundled by default. With Apple’s latest iOS 9.3 beta software release, meant for iPhones and iPads, there seems to be a legitimate way to at least hide the apps.

Apple has long resisted the very idea of allowing users to uninstall or hide any of the apps that it bundles with its device running on iOS, the company’s operating system for its mobile devices. While millions of iPhone and iPad users swear by the efficacy and smoothness offered by iOS, there are many who have repeatedly and openly wished they could do away with the apps that aren’t needed. But, Apple has staunchly refused, saying that each of the apps that the company so painstakingly develops is absolutely essential to the user experience.

Interestingly, the adamancy within Apple’s insistence that all of its apps will remain firmly in their place appears to have mellowed. As evident from the latest beta release of the iOS, iteratively named iOS 9.3 beta software release, Apple has offered a way to hide the apps that company ships its devices with.

Unlike previous reports that indicated the apps could be deleted, it has been established that the apps aren’t uninstalled completely. However, as pointed out by a YouTube video uploader, there’s a way to you can hide them from your home screen, reported Cosmopolitan.

It’s not as simple as uninstalling a third-party app and you’ll need to connect your device to a PC, but at least it’s now possible, beginning with iOS 9.3, reports the Epoch Times. Additionally, in case you are one of the few who have impatiently waited for the ability to banish apps into obscurity, you will have to fork out a steep fee to be able to do so, before Apple releases the feature, via an update, to the masses.

The trick to “delete” the apps will cost £79 because it is only available to Apple tech developers, but if you are an Apple developer, then you probably know about this anyway. Additionally, the procedure will only work if you’re running iOS 9.3, which hasn’t yet been released to the public. There are other ways to get the beta iOS 9.3, reports BGR, but the procedure isn’t for the faint of heart. Though the procedure isn’t very risky, there are possibilities of glitches and those who insist using only fully-tested software releases should stay away. Unfortunately, not all the features that Apple tests end up in the final stable iOS release.

A Reddit user, who discovered a way to ensure the apps stay hidden, even after a reboot, put up a relatively simple tutorial, which reads as follows.

“[iOS]9.3 adds the ability to hide applications on the home screen based on the bundle ID. Create a configuration profile in Apple Configurator 2.2 Beta with a restrictions payload set to ‘Do not allow some apps’ under ‘Restrict App Usage’ in the Apps section of the Restrictions. Add the necessary bundle IDs like com.apple.tips, com.apple.stocks, then plug in your device and apply the profile. The icons will simply disappear from the home screen.

“I’m still working on finding the bundle IDs for the rest of Apple’s default apps. Post them here if you figure out more.

“Just to note, you have to configure the General section in order to save the configuration profile. When you plug in your device, right click it, then Add > Profiles… Then navigate to the profile you just saved. You might have to then accept the install on the iOS device itself.”

The procedure requires users to put their device in “Supervised” mode with Apple Configurator 2.2 Beta. Additionally, since the hiding of the apps requires wiping the device, it is critical to back up all the data.

Although the latest trick to hide apps in the iOS ecosystem does call for a slightly complicated procedure, the fact that Apple has chosen to allow it is an indicator of things to come.

[Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images]