Prime Day is a great time to buy a new phone if you’ve been on the fence, with steep discounts on Amazon’s lineup of Alexa Built-In phones. Whether you pick up a Moto Z4, LG G8, or any of the dozens of other options, you’ll be getting a great deal on a new phone, but it’s not quite the same as buying an unlocked phone elsewhere. Amazon preloads its Alexa Built-In phones with, as the name suggests, a number of Amazon apps and services.
Our favorite Alexa Built-In phones
- Balling on a budget: Moto G7 ($200 at Amazon)
- Hands-free flagship: LG G8 ThinQ ($500 at Amazon)
Uninstalling preloaded apps
Luckily, many of the Amazon apps that come preloaded on Alexa Built-In devices are completely removable without any hassle. You can uninstall most of them — including apps like Prime Now and IMDb — the same way you’d uninstall any other third-party app.
From the home screen, swipe up to open the app drawer.
Find the app you wish to uninstall, then touch and hold the icon.
Tap App info in the popup window.
Tap Uninstall to remove the app.
The exact method of uninstalling an app will vary from phone to phone, but in most cases, you can save a step by simply dragging the icon of the app you wish to uninstall up to the top of the screen after step 2, then lifting your finger over the Uninstall text. If that text or the Uninstall button in App Info is grayed out, that means you unfortunately can’t uninstall that app — luckily, there’s a workaround for that.
Disabling preloaded apps
For most apps that can’t be completely uninstalled, you can still typically disable them to hide them from your app drawer, minimize the storage they occupy on your phone, and prevent them from accessing any app permissions. Thankfully, that process is pretty simple, too!
Open your app drawer once again.
Find the app you wish to disable, then touch and hold the icon.
Tap App info in the popup window.
Tap Disable.
Confirm your action by tapping Disable app in the popup confirmation window.
That’s it! Your phone will immediately delete as much data from the newly disabled app as possible, including any updates it might have received since initially setting up your phone. Once disabled, you should no longer see the app in your home screen or throughout the system.
Re-enabling disabled apps
Should you decide you want to give an app you’ve previously disabled a second chance, there are a couple of ways to re-enable them. The simplest way is to search for the app on the Google Play Store, then tap Enable where you’d typically see an Install button, but if you’d prefer to see a list of your disabled apps, that’s easy too.
Open your phone’s Settings app.
Locate the Apps section (the exact name will vary, depending on your phone).
Tap See all apps.
Tap the All apps dropdown menu.
Under the list, tap Disabled app.
Locate and tap the app you wish to enable.
Tap Enable.
You should immediately see the app reappear in your app drawer, but keep in mind that any data from prior to disabling it is gone. You’ll need to set the app up all over again, and there will likely be updates available the next time you check the Play Store.
Our favorite Alexa Built-In phones
Balling on a budget
Moto G7
$200 at Amazon
One of the best affordable phones you can buy..
The Moto G7 has clean software, respectable internals, and high-end build materials, and comes in at only a couple hundred dollars. You won’t find a better deal on a great affordable phone.
Hands-free flagship
LG G8 ThinQ
$500 at Amazon
A flagship that unlocks with your veins.
The LG G8 is a standard fare Android flagship, with a Time of Flight sensor that allows you to unlock the phone or control music playback simply by hovering your hand over the screen. It also features a wide-angle lens for creative shots.
