10 best Android launchers
Advertisement
Spend more than three minutes with any Android fanboy, and you'll quickly learn that the real beauty of Google's operating system lies in the potential to customize it.
Any problem can be solved by downloading enough apps. Nowhere is that more true than for Android's homescreen – so we've rounded up the best alternative Android launchers for your modding pleasure.
On an Android phone, the launcher is the app responsible for the home screen, the app 'grid', and launching the aforementioned apps. Phones generally come with either the stock Google launcher, or more commonly, a launcher whacked on top by a hardware manufacturer likeSamsung .
But, if you don't get on with your phone's default launcher, installing a new one just takes a quick visit to the Google Play Store.
1. Google Now Launcher
Google's very own stockAndroid launcher is now up for grabs – but just because it's the Android standard, doesn't mean it's boring. For your money (well, actually, it's free), you get easy access to Google Now, button-free voice controls, and enough transparent window-bars to make you think you're back in Windows Vista.
It's compatible straight out of the box with all Nexus and Google Play Edition devices, and two minutes with a computer will get it running on all Android 4.x handsets. Just be careful what you say around it – the Big G's always listening, probably.
2. Nova Launcher
Nova and Apex are the two standout Android launchers – both strike an excellent balance between having enough features to customise things, without bogging you down with unfeasibly long options lists and 17 levels of sub-menu hell.
3. Apex
Apex Launcher, just like Nova, blends smooth performance and ease-of-use with a good level of customisation to create a genuinely appealing alternative to most standard Android launchers.
Standout features on Apex include a superb tablet mode (finally allowingNexus 7 owners to rotate the home screen); and the Pro version has the fantastic Apex Notifier service, which pushes notifications to a widget on your home screen. (Although, Notifier requires running an extra app in the background, which is a small drain on battery life.) Once again, the Pro version does cost money, so it's worth downloading the free version first.
4. Launcher Pro
Although it lacks some of the bells and whistles of its more advanced stablemates, Launcher Pro is a solid upgrade from the stock launcher, with much faster scrolling and more customisation options, and even some sleek tricks like unlimited widget resizing in the full-fat, paid-for version.
5. Buzz Launcher
Buzz Launcher packs the standard set of customisation options, but with a killer advantage: a user-created library of thousands of themes and widgets you can browse, download and tinker with. Whereas other launchers feel like masterpieces of efficiency – trying to find you the app you want, with minimum hassle – Buzz is all about the aesthetics.
There are certainly more powerful launchers out there, but if you're all about matching the colour of your shoelaces to your cravat (and don't have aniPhone ), then this is probably the launcher for you.
6. Action Launcher Pro
Action Launcher has some nifty, unique features – stuff like a quick-access set of shortcuts (all customizable, of course), special gestures for launching apps from within folders, and a cool one-touch method of creating widgets from apps.
Sadly, you have to pay the requisite couple of quid for the premium version if you want to get your hands on the goodies.
7. ADW Launcher
ADW's probably the ultimate modder's launcher – anything you want to tweak is tweakable, from the particular shade of Gmail red, to the precise gesture needed to open an app.
Sadly, it all comes at a price – ADW is complicated to use and sluggish compared to other offerings. More worryingly, development has ground to a halt, with no new releases to support versions of Android after 4.1.
8. Facebook Home
Facebook Home isMark Zuckerberg 's mess of a Facebook takeover for Android. It serves a single purpose: making sure you share every waking moment of your life with your 639 closest friends.
As such, Home turns your lock screen and home screen into a torrent of Facebook statuses; whether or not that's an improvement depends on how witty your friends are. On the upside, though, it's a beautifully designed app, with slick graphics and user interfaces, provided your handset's got the horsepower to run it.
Some will consider Next Launcher jaw-droppingly cool – a 3D launcher that's completely different to the standard grid-with-some-widgets-whacked-on-top. Of course, it's insanely impractical and a complete battery hog, but it might just impress a girl at the bar on Friday night. However, it costs more than a Blu-ray, which is money that could be better spent buying drinks at the aforementioned bar instead.
10. Zeam
Zeam is at the other end of the spectrum to the rest of these launchers – all the developers seem to care about is speed. It's the stripped-out racing version, ditching pretty much all the customization options or swanky floating menus of the other versions, in favour of a minimalist code-base.
The upside of course is super-smooth performance, even on the oldest, crummiest phones around. If you're looking for a speed boost for a handset running Gingerbread (that's Android 2.x to you and us), Zeam fits the bill pretty well, and it's also free.
Chris Mills
Advertisement
Any problem can be solved by downloading enough apps. Nowhere is that more true than for Android's homescreen – so we've rounded up the best alternative Android launchers for your modding pleasure.
On an Android phone, the launcher is the app responsible for the home screen, the app 'grid', and launching the aforementioned apps. Phones generally come with either the stock Google launcher, or more commonly, a launcher whacked on top by a hardware manufacturer like
Complimentary Tech Event
Transform talent with learning that works
Capability development is critical for businesses who want to push the envelope of innovation.Discover how business leaders are strategizing around building talent capabilities and empowering employee transformation.Know More
1. Google Now Launcher
Google's very own stock
Advertisement
It's compatible straight out of the box with all Nexus and Google Play Edition devices, and two minutes with a computer will get it running on all Android 4.x handsets. Just be careful what you say around it – the Big G's always listening, probably.
2. Nova Launcher
Nova and Apex are the two standout Android launchers – both strike an excellent balance between having enough features to customise things, without bogging you down with unfeasibly long options lists and 17 levels of sub-menu hell.
Advertisement
Nova's arguably the better of the two, with a few more options available in the free version (there is also a Prime version), and slightly better performance – but really, we're splitting tiny Android hairs trying to find a difference between the two.3. Apex
Apex Launcher, just like Nova, blends smooth performance and ease-of-use with a good level of customisation to create a genuinely appealing alternative to most standard Android launchers.
Standout features on Apex include a superb tablet mode (finally allowing
4. Launcher Pro
Advertisement
Launcher Pro is aimed at users with phones that are yet to taste the frozen goodness of Android 4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, and are still stuck with Gingerbread.Although it lacks some of the bells and whistles of its more advanced stablemates, Launcher Pro is a solid upgrade from the stock launcher, with much faster scrolling and more customisation options, and even some sleek tricks like unlimited widget resizing in the full-fat, paid-for version.
5. Buzz Launcher
Buzz Launcher packs the standard set of customisation options, but with a killer advantage: a user-created library of thousands of themes and widgets you can browse, download and tinker with. Whereas other launchers feel like masterpieces of efficiency – trying to find you the app you want, with minimum hassle – Buzz is all about the aesthetics.
Advertisement
There are certainly more powerful launchers out there, but if you're all about matching the colour of your shoelaces to your cravat (and don't have an
6. Action Launcher Pro
Action Launcher has some nifty, unique features – stuff like a quick-access set of shortcuts (all customizable, of course), special gestures for launching apps from within folders, and a cool one-touch method of creating widgets from apps.
Sadly, you have to pay the requisite couple of quid for the premium version if you want to get your hands on the goodies.
7. ADW Launcher
ADW's probably the ultimate modder's launcher – anything you want to tweak is tweakable, from the particular shade of Gmail red, to the precise gesture needed to open an app.
Advertisement
Sadly, it all comes at a price – ADW is complicated to use and sluggish compared to other offerings. More worryingly, development has ground to a halt, with no new releases to support versions of Android after 4.1.
8. Facebook Home
Facebook Home is
As such, Home turns your lock screen and home screen into a torrent of Facebook statuses; whether or not that's an improvement depends on how witty your friends are. On the upside, though, it's a beautifully designed app, with slick graphics and user interfaces, provided your handset's got the horsepower to run it.
Advertisement
9. Next LauncherSome will consider Next Launcher jaw-droppingly cool – a 3D launcher that's completely different to the standard grid-with-some-widgets-whacked-on-top. Of course, it's insanely impractical and a complete battery hog, but it might just impress a girl at the bar on Friday night. However, it costs more than a Blu-ray, which is money that could be better spent buying drinks at the aforementioned bar instead.
10. Zeam
Zeam is at the other end of the spectrum to the rest of these launchers – all the developers seem to care about is speed. It's the stripped-out racing version, ditching pretty much all the customization options or swanky floating menus of the other versions, in favour of a minimalist code-base.
The upside of course is super-smooth performance, even on the oldest, crummiest phones around. If you're looking for a speed boost for a handset running Gingerbread (that's Android 2.x to you and us), Zeam fits the bill pretty well, and it's also free.
Advertisement
By: Advertisement
- I got a $40K raise using this 30-second strategy. It made me realize loud work, not hard work, always wins.
- Qatar Airways' new CEO explains why it's sticking with the Airbus A380 as other airlines retire the costly superjumbo
- Prince Harry and Meghan found out about Kate Middleton's cancer diagnosis on TV like everyone else, report says
- Fresh photographs of Milky Way’s black hole Sgr A* reveal strong, twisted magnetic field similar to M87*
- 8 Lesser-known places to explore in Himachal Pradesh
- Markets end FY24 on buoyant note amid positive global cues
- SRM Contractors IPO allotment – How to check allotment, GMP, listing date and more
- Rupee falls 6 paise to settle at 83.39 against US dollar