5 useless Android apps you probably still download (and why you should stop)

Android has come a long way since its inception. Back in the day, doing even the most trivial things, like using the LED next to the rear camera as a flashlight, required third-party flashlight apps. However, that has changed over the years: the operating system has evolved significantly, and it now bundles many advanced features and apps to reduce reliance on third-party apps.

That said, many Android users still download third-party apps for various things. Some users do it out of habit — having been installing them on their phones for years. Meanwhile, others aren’t aware that their phones can handle such tasks natively.

Whichever boat you’re on, though, you should stop installing these apps on your Android phones.

Document scanner and OCR

For the longest time, digitizing physical documents on an Android phone required third-party document scanner apps. You also need these apps or dedicated OCR apps if you wanted to copy text from an image or real-world object. However, if you use a phone running Android 14 or later, you no longer need either app, as your phone’s stock camera app can do both.

To scan a document, place it on a flat surface. Then, open the Camera app and point it at the document. The Camera app should automatically detect the document and display a button labeled Scan or similar. Tap it, and it will scan the document. On a OnePlus phone, go to the More tab and select Doc Scanner to use the feature. Once you’ve scanned a document, you can either save it or scan more pages by tapping the appropriate option on the screen. You can even edit the scanned copy before saving it.

If you want to extract text from an object in the real world, such as a pamphlet or banner, it’s easy, too. On a Samsung phone, open the Camera app and point it at the object. Tap the T button that appears on the screen, and it will process and display the text. Tap the text to select, copy, translate, or share it. You can also use the feature on existing photos

On the other hand, if you use a Pixel or a OnePlus phone, first take a photo of the text. Next, open it and find and tap the Google Lens button on the screen. Finally, select the text, then choose Copy, Translate, or Search as required.

QR code scanner

Android phones not only lacked support for scanning documents, but they also couldn’t scan QR codes, requiring users to install QR code scanner apps separately. But with Android 13, Google introduced the ability to scan QR codes natively. You can access it in the stock camera app and via its dedicated Quick Settings toggle.

With the QR code you want to scan in front of you, open the Camera app on your phone and point it at the code. You’ll see a tiny strip on the screen showing some of the contents of the scanned QR code. Tap it to reveal more information. You can copy, share, or open it (if it’s a link), depending on your phone. Alternatively, you can tap Scan QR Code (or a similar toggle) in your phone’s Quick Settings, and it will scan the code and display its content.

Clipboard manager

Accessing copied items on an Android phone has always been a chore: you could paste the copied item, but there was no way to view all the items you had copied previously unless you installed a third-party clipboard manager app. As things stand, though, that’s no longer the case, as you can now view your clipboard history without a third-party app. Of course, those with advanced needs, like keeping their clippings organized, would still need such apps.

Google’s Gboard — the default keyboard app on most Android phones — has a built-in clipboard manager that lets you access all your copied items in the last hour. Samsung Keyboard also has it, with one big advantage: unlike Gboard, it doesn’t require you to pin an item to save it for more than an hour.

To use Gboard’s clipboard history feature, you first need to enable it. Bring up the keyboard and tap the gear icon to go to its settings. Scroll down, select Clipboard, and toggle on the options next to the items you want to copy. Once done, the next time you copy an item (text or image) to your clipboard, Gboard will save it. To access and use it, tap the clipboard icon in the toolbar at the top of the keyboard. All your copied items will appear here. Tap on an item to paste it. Or long-press it and select Delete or Pin to delete or pin it. Be sure to pin items you may need later.

Samsung Keyboard, on the other hand, has the clipboard feature enabled by default. To access your copied items, bring up the keyboard and tap the clipboard icon in the top row. Tap an item to paste it. Long-tap an item, then tap the pin or trash icon to pin or delete it.

Blue light filter

Long exposure to blue light from phone screens can strain eyes and affect sleep. Blue light filter apps are a great way to deal with this. These apps apply a warm tint to the screen to filter out blue light, allowing you to use your phone comfortably at night. However, it turns out your Android phone has a built-in blue light filter. It’s referred to by different names depending on your phone: Google calls it Night Light, whereas Samsung and OnePlus call it Eye Comfort Shield and Eye Comfort, respectively. Irrespective of the name, though, the core functionality remains the same.

To set up a blue light filter on your phone, go to the Settings app, then select Display or an equivalent option, depending on your phone. Locate the setting and tap it. You may need to enable the feature to see all its options. Once done, you may configure the color temperature or intensity as required.

You can even schedule the feature, after which it will toggle automatically. Alternatively, you may choose to enable it manually when needed.

Caller identification

Picking up an incoming call only to realize it’s spam is quite annoying. This is where caller identification apps like Truecaller come in handy. These apps identify the phone number and tell you the name of the associated person or company before you answer the call. This way, you can decide if you actually want to take it. Lately, though, a dedicated caller ID app is no longer required: the dialer app on most Android phones offers a caller ID and spam protection feature to handle it.

Enabling this feature is easy. Depending on the phone you use, open the Phone app and access its settings. Locate the Caller ID and Spam Protection or a similar option on the screen and turn it on. On some phones, you can even customize the kinds of incoming calls you want to block.

Although a built-in caller ID feature is nice to have, carriers in some countries use a network-level caller identification system that eliminates the need for a dedicated app. India, for instance, calls it CNAP (Calling Name Presentation), which pulls the caller’s legal name from their official government records and displays it. Since identification happens at the carrier level, the system works without the internet. As a user, you don’t have to toggle any switch for it to work.

You still need third-party apps for certain tasks on Android

It’s nice to see Android getting essential features to handle various tasks natively, but it still lacks many features. As a result, certain tasks still require third-party apps. For example, looking up word definitions, converting currencies, and performing unit conversions aren’t natively possible on Android yet.

I’d like to see these functionalities integrated into Android’s universal search, as Apple does it with Spotlight Search on iPhones. Surprisingly, although Samsung’s Finder search is quite capable of handling many trivial tasks, it, too, can’t do it.

Another trivial Android task that requires a third-party app is locking apps. Thankfully, it’s finally expected to arrive with the Android 17 QPR2 update later this year.