iOS 18.2 allows some Users to delete the App Store

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Existing for a long time, the Photos app could be removed starting on the next iOS update called 18.2 for the people in the European Union; besides, the fundamental preinstalled applications such as the App Store, Safari, and other native applications might be deleted as well.

This is one of the many developments touching iPhones that came about as a result of the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). Before, some pre-installed apps such as Calculator, Calendar, Music, and Notes could be removed by the user. The first beta release of iOS 18.2 extends this gesture by letting EU users delete App Store, Camera, Safari, Messages, and Photos. This change responds to one of the DMA’s core tenets stating that technology firms must make it easy for clients to uninstall any application they want. Apple had earlier in August acknowledged in 2024 that it would incorporate this feature in a new iOS release.

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In the EU, users can download other app stores as an alternative to the App Store. Apple has placed a button in the settings that lets the user restore the App Store whenever it is deleted. It provides lots of freedom to users from that region and allows competitors to create app stores for Apple devices if they wish. This may be what users from the US could expect from Apple in the future because the US is exploring whether or not Apple is an Illegal Monopoly. This also affords those in the US a glimpse of what Google could offer if their elongated break is over since Google has been compelled to open up the Android’s Play Store.

Other changes for users outside the EU are also available in the iOS 18.2 update as follows. It brings a new menu to open the settings for default apps in terms of their utilization in email, messages, calls, browsing, passwords, and keyboards. Also, the update to iOS 18.2 brings Image Playground, Genmoji, ChatGPT integration, and Visual Search for the iPhone 16 series.

Currently, the iOS 18.2 beta version can only be installed on devices with Apple Intelligence, and only on iPhone 15 Pro and later, along with M1 iPads and later models.