Bye-bye Apple Maps and Mail: iOS 10 will let you delete (most) stock apps

BY KARISSA BELLJUN 14, 2016

Apple is finally fixing one of the most annoying features of iOS.

The next version of iOS will allow you to delete the vast majority of pre-installed stock apps from your iPhone and iPad. 

When iOS 10 rolls out later this year, Apple will no longer force you to use its Mail, Maps, Weather, Contacts or Notes app. In fact, the vast majority of the company's stock apps — long a big complaint among iOS users — will now be optional.

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Look at all those deletable apps in iOS 10 

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Some stock apps remain mandatory, including Messages (slated for a massive overhaul in iOS 10), Phone, Safari, Photos and the App Store, as these apps are considered essential for iOS. 

Though Apple didn't formally announce the change during its WWDC keynote Monday, the company quietly slipped many of its apps, including Mail, Maps, Notes, Weather and Calculator, into the App Store ahead of the keynote.

Apple CEO Tim Cook hinted last fall that the company may start giving users more flexibility in which apps they use.

Though Apple is letting you remove the apps from your device, on a support page the company warns that deleting the app "can affect other system functionalities." Removing the Podcasts app, for example, will prevent you from being able to listen to podcasts from CarPlay.

Here's a full list of the apps that you'll be able to delete as of iOS 10:

• iTunes Store
• iBooks
• Podcasts
• Maps
• Compass
• Tips
• Calculator
• Watch
• Voice Memos
• Contacts
• Stocks
• Weather
• Calendar
• Mail
• Music
• Reminders
• FaceTime
• Notes
• Videos
• Find My Friends
• Home (new to iOS 10)
• News
• iCloud Drive