How to Disable Automatic App Updates on Galaxy S7

Samsung’s stylish Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge are available all over the world, and new users have many questions. When you first get the Galaxy S7, it will have multiple apps in the Google Play Store that need to be updated. However, more will emerge in the weeks and months that follow your first days with it. Users who don’t want to bother with notifications to update apps or want to check which updates are available, here we will explain how to manage or disable automatic app updates on Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge.

The new Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge are a beautiful and powerful device packed with features, options and advanced controls that can be a little confusing at times. One thing that is always asked is apps that update automatically so here we will explain how to disable this on your new Galaxy.

If you don’t want the Galaxy S7 to update apps on its own, or if you don’t want to be bothered by tons of notifications to update apps daily, there are a few easy ways to stop it. Below we will detail settings that are easy to find and change in the Google Play Store to fully control the Galaxy S7. This can be useful for first-time Android smartphone owners or someone who has recently switched from an iPhone.

Out of the box and by default, the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge will automatically update apps, making it the easiest way to use it. At the same time, many want to check it out and know what’s going on with the apps and why they’re updating. This could be saving data and updating over WiFi only, or checking what’s been updated and knowing what’s new or changed. Google’s Play Store even automatically adds an icon for new apps to the home screen and we can disable this obnoxious feature in this settings menu as well.

Whether or not the owners do this is up to them, and everyone has different wishes or preferences. Those who want full control will want to follow the steps below.

Instructions

Fortunately, this isn’t a setting in the Galaxy S7 and its huge list of settings, but rather a quick change to the Google Play Store, where we get our apps, games, and music. Go to the Google Play Store by tapping the icon on your home screen or finding it in the app tray.

Once in the Google Play Store, users can select the top left (3 lines) menu button next to the “Google Play” search bar and scroll down to “Settings” and select it as shown in our image below. Everything we need to change for everything mentioned before is in this Google Play Store settings menu.

This is the general settings for the entire Google Play Store. One of the first options listed is “Auto-update apps” and you will want to tap that. Choose what works best for you here. By default, it will be set to automatically update apps over Wi-Fi, which most users should leave on. Especially at first or if users install big games like Clash of Clans, Asphalt 8 or others, we don’t want the data to be updated while using the data as it can use up a full 2-4GB data plan very quickly. Choose instead.

This option means that users will be constantly notified in the notification bar at the top that apps need to be updated, rather than just updating on their own. But this gives control to see what’s updated, check the change logs to find out what’s new, and stop updates. Some apps users may want to keep the old version and it is not possible to stop it if it is set to automatic.

Our recommendation would be to leave it set to update apps over WiFi to save data, so it will update automatically but not with your data. However, you are here to stop it, so choose the option to not update automatically. Then, as we mentioned above, here you can also uncheck the feature that automatically puts icons on the home screen when an app is downloaded. It’s a nice feature to have, but not everyone wants their screen to be full like an iPhone.

What Should You Choose?

Casual smartphone users or those new to Android may want to let the smartphone do everything for them. My family hates getting daily notifications for updates so they set it to automatic. Personally, I prefer to check for what updates, look at change logs and permission requests, so I do it all manually.

If you’re using automatic updates, you won’t know what’s new or what might change in your favorite apps. Users will notice changes made to popular apps like Facebook, YouTube, and even games you might enjoy.

In the end it’s all about personal preference. Do what suits your needs, what’s easiest for you and enjoy your Galaxy S7 or S7 Edge.