What bloatware should I delete from my Toshiba Satellite Pro 550?

rocket123

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hi, i know that a lot of computers come with a lot of bloatware but i'm just not sure what i should keep and what i need? if anyone knows what isn't important i would really appreciate it if you could let me know so i can speed up my computer by deleting them. i have a Toshiba Satellite Pro 550-something, i would appreciate any help.
also i might be getting another laptop in about a month an asus G73JH, so if their is some type of rule of what is bloatware and what isn't so i can also delete it from that one also i'd appreciate if you can let me know.
thanks.
 
Solution
1--Yes
3--In the Start Menu, type in the Run box msconfig enter. Then click Startup tab

4--Cleaner part (shows the brush) Check all applicable boxes that you want deleted, then Analyze, then Run

Then do the registry section,

Tools section-use Startup tab. The Uninstall is done better by RevoUninstaller. There should be more details at www.piriform.com

5--TFC
http://www.geekstogo.com/forum/TFC-Temp-File-Cleaner-OldTimer-file187.html

rocket123

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hey thanks for the quick reply, but are you saying this because you have a toshiba or because the rule is that all of this software is useless?
thanks.
 

graywolf

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1--If it's new, you can delete all the trialware with PC DeCrapifier.

If it's not so new, and you did#1 ages ago, skip it
2--Uninstall any programs you never, ever need.
3--Run Msconfig>Startup tab and remove anything unnecessary from your bootup.
4--Run CCLeaner.
5--Run TFC (Temp File Cleaner)
 

graywolf

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Not necessarily so. You don't know if his system is screwed, or if just has too many programs or too much temp system junk. You don't know if he has backups, copies of all his drivers, installers for all his programs. Fresh installs are a last resort, not a means of regular maintenance.

Rocket, you didn't specify anything about your system's age, what your symptoms are, or what YOU consider to be unnecessary. Tell us more about the Satellite.

On the new computer, run PC Decrapifier at the beginning.
 

huron

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+1 to the advice graywolf - both PC Decrapifier and not doing a fresh install unless necessary.

I'm also a fan of Revo Uninstaller - deletes the temp info and items in the registry tied to the program install.
 

rocket123

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hey thanks for the great info, i just have a couple of questions.
is #1 the PC DeCrapifier downloaded off of pcdecrapifier.com, i just want to make sure that i'm downloading the right thing.
and what are the steps to do #3?
what is CCleaner? and how do i run it?
and is the temp file cleaner called disk cleanup?

i just got the computer at the end of last year, and it has all of the basic toshiba software. i brought this from the uninstall programs in the control panel.
1. toshiba face recognition
2. toshiba value added package
3. toshiba pc health monitor
4. toshiba disc creator
5. toshiba hardware setup
6. toshiba eco utility
7. toshiba recovery disc creator
8. toshiba internal modem region select utility
9. toshiba extended tiles for windows mobility center
10. toshiba agreement notification utility
11. toshiba flash cards support utility
12. toshiba quality application
13. toshiba service station
14. toshiba application and driver installer
15. toshiba web camera application
16. toshiba upgrade assistant
17. toshiba resources page
18. toshiba assist
19. toshiba software modem

thanks a lot for your patience.
 

graywolf

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1--Yes
3--In the Start Menu, type in the Run box msconfig enter. Then click Startup tab

4--Cleaner part (shows the brush) Check all applicable boxes that you want deleted, then Analyze, then Run

Then do the registry section,

Tools section-use Startup tab. The Uninstall is done better by RevoUninstaller. There should be more details at www.piriform.com

5--TFC
http://www.geekstogo.com/forum/TFC-Temp-File-Cleaner-OldTimer-file187.html
 
Solution

graywolf

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You'll have to go through the Toshiba programs and remove what you don't need. I can't judge all of those. Some will be running in the background constantly, and if you later find they're just a nuisance, remove them as you go along. Don't remove any Toshiba drivers.

But you can apply what I said to any of the outside programs too. TFC and CCleaner should be part of regular maintenance after that, maybe weekly.

Digit--I need a laptop expert here.
 

digitalprospecter

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hatsandcats

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Hi, I know this is an old thread but it keeps coming up in google searches. Several points:

-- PC Decrapifier (as of 2.2.5) does not remove Toshiba utilities.
-- On the Toshiba Satellite laptops I've been working on, at least one Toshiba utility is needed for the Fn key to work, and the Fn key is necessary to turn of the WiFi. I cannot readily determine which Toshiba utility that is. I believe it's Toshiba Flash Cards as indicated in msconfig, but Revo shows no entry for Toshiba Flash Cards.
-- I use Revo Uninstaller and like it a lot. But when removing at least one of the Toshiba utilities, Revo also removed files and folders for multiple other Toshiba utilities, which crippled them. Note: I was using Revo 1.9.1 at the time; an update might correct this problem. I'm not willing to go through 20 uninstalls in various permutations and combinations to try to see which ones are mishandled by Revo. I did successfully remove Toshiba activation, Toshiba Book Place, Toshiba Apps, and Toshiba online backup.
-- Performance on these machines was quite satisfactory for ordinary everyday office work, so I left about 10 of the Toshiba Utilities running.

--Bob
 

DxUxCxK

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Hi I just wanted to say that I just bought a new Satellite p750 and really liking it so far (day two). I installed TuneUp Utilities 2012 which I used to see what programs were actually taxing the system, removed some of the "launch at start-up" programs and used a lot of other features as well. I am going to be putting this on every computer I own from now on.

They have a free trial of course (I think 15 days) which will be plenty of time to rid your system of bloatware. Also if you like the program and are thinking about buying it I would suggest uninstalling it before the end of the trial and that should trigger a pop up to their site with an offer to purchase it at about 1/2 cost.

I am not trying to push their software - just saying it worked great for me.

http://www.tune-up.com/

I also installed CCleaner, Spybot - Search and Destroy, AVG 2012 and Ultimate Defrag 3.0.
If you are trying to clean out your system (and keep it free of adware) I would suggest looking into these as well.

(Protip- Based on other posts here, I would use the uninstaller utility from Control Panel to remove the unwanted Toshiba software packages. Less risky than having an automated program do it for you.)

Side note: I was actually impressed by the relatively little bloatware on the system. There were a few junk game utilities, a really annoying ad pop-up program (called DealPly - I think) and some "apps" from Toshiba that were junk. Much much less than some other companies I know of (cough, cough, acer. ahh-hm).
 

MCLelliot

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Hi, adding to the thread, I just got a Toshiba Satellite Radius 11. I want to get rid of everything I won't use, but I'm afraid of deleting something necessary for the running of the computer. This is some of what it has pre-installed:
Toshiba display utitlity
Toshiba Eco utility
Toshiba function key
Toshiba manuals
Toshiba password utility
Toshiba PC health monitor
Toshiba recovery media creator
Toshiba service station
Toshiba system driver
Toshiba system settings
Toshiba tempro

Is it safe to get rid of all of it? Many thanks,

MCLEllliot
 

SMChaney

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I would keep:

Toshiba system driver
Toshiba function key

I think it's pretty safe to uninstall the rest unless you are planning to use them. A really neat program you can download is Should I Remove It?
. It will give you a list of all your installed programs and an explanation of what it is on their website. It also gives ratings, uninstall % and a bunch of other info. I stumbled upon it about a year ago. Did I mention that it's free!
 

catatized

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I have a Toshiba Radius P55W-B with Win 10. I have the following:

Brightness Utility, ECO Utility and Display Utility I kept for better battery management, though you can delete them if you want.

Function Key is needed to use the FN function capabilty...do not delete
HDD Protection protects against vibration and shock...do not delete
Service Station automatically updates installed Toshiba utilities...I kept for convenience. If you check for updates manually on a regular basis you can delete, but I suggest keeping it.
System Settings is Toshibas default settings software. It runs on startup and is quite extensive. Here is a link... http://www.shouldiremoveit.com/TOSHIBA-System-Settings-9656-program.aspx
I don't have it on my system and everything works just fine.

Woody
 
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laptop owned: Toshiba P500-ST6844

DO NOT get rid of the following ECO utility, and Toshiba Value Added Package. the eco utility allows for a low power mode for the laptop, and the value added package, contains the flashcards program, as well as a hardware driver - Toshiba x64 ACPI-Compliant Value Added Logical and General Purpose Device.
TVAP and ECO programs are linked. Also if you have Toshiba health monitor as well as the Toshiba HDD protection program, do not delete them. they will help protect the system HDD if you happen to bump your system while the HDD is spinning. obviously if you have replaced the HDD with a SSD you don't need it, but the HDD protection is linked to the system 3d gyro sensor and contains a hardware driver - Toshiba HDD Protection - Shock Sensor.

this is personal preference, but I would also not get rid of Toshiba Disc Creator. It contains some Power saving utilities for the optical drive.

If you upgrade from win7 to win10 you will need to add the the Toshiba System Driver and Toshiba System settings as well as Toshiba Function Key, if its available for your system, that is. these two programs allow the TVAP/flashcard/FN keys to work properly. for whatever reason the win7 method of them working does not work in win8/10.

also.... DO NOT uninstall the Toshiba Recovery Media creator. It is your only link to creating the factory restore media. if you uninstall it, the ettings for the program are lost, so even if you manage to reinstall it, you can no longer make recovery media. if you ever need to do a factory restore and have not made the recovery media yet, this program and the recovery partitions are needed to do a factory reset.

as for performing a clean install on a brand new laptop with a perfectly functioning copy of windows already installed, that's just silly imho. but all this said, I when i bought my laptop, i did use the decrapper to uninstall what little bloatware did come with it, I.E. Norton and McAfee trials, Google toolbar, internet service offers(net zero, etc.) and so on. anything that was a trial or basicly an ad for a service (netzero internet offer) I axed, anything that was a full version or a Toshiba utility, or program I kept.