One of the best things about Android is the sheer variety of handsets available to users. Different phone manufacturers are constantly trying to outgun each other, and that’s a good thing − most of the time.
Doing something different for the sake of doing something different can damage the user experience, and Android skins are probably the best example of this.
Read more: Best smartphone
Stock Android is a beautiful thing, but several major Android phone manufacturers tend to tamper with it, in order to put their own spin on the software and promote their own (often far inferior) apps ahead of some of Google’s.
Most of us at Trusted Reviews much prefer an unskinned Android experience, and over recent weeks we’ve been polling our readers in partnership with Apester, to find out if which Android skins they dislike the most.
7810 people voted in total, with 2914 of them (37.31%) declaring that Huawei makes the worst Android skin.
The company’s EMUI skin, which features on the Huawei P20, has long been criticised by both tech journalists and users, with the most common complaints being apparent performance issues and its overall look.
Recent versions of EMUI are generally considered to be less offensive than older builds (for instance, you can keep the app drawer now), but clearly there’s room for more improvement. Or simply less tinkering.
Huawei is rumoured to be preparing to reveal the latest version of EMUI, the Android Pie-based EMUI 9, at IFA 2018 this week, and we’re looking forward to seeing what the company has in store.
Read more: Android Pie 9 phones
Back to the poll, 1841 people voted for Samsung (23.57% of the vote), 1615 people voted for LG (20.68% of the vote), and 1440 people voted for Sony (18.44% of the vote).
The more subtle the skin, the smoother the experience, it seems. Who knew?
Are you a fan of Android skins? Share your thoughts with us on Twitter @TrustedReviews.
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We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
