Today is the start of a new regular series here on the Future Shop Community Blog. We'll be sharing tips, tricks and great apps for your Android device to extend the features, make it faster, and let you personalize it the way you want it.
This idea really came up after reading Krypto's review of the Samsung Galaxy Tab and seeing the concerns that were mentioned... I realized that a lot users (especially those new to Android) don't really understand that the amazing thing about Android is that it's merely a framework that can be built on and changed to the way you want it to be. Each article will contain two parts, one for your Android phone and one for your Android tablet.
Let's just dive right in to our first point of customization and personalization. For today's article we're going to talk about the homescreen, also referred to as the launcher.
HomeScreen/Launcher:
( HTC Sense) (Gingerbread) (Samsung Touchwiz 4) (Sony Xperia Arc) (LG Optimus)
Phone manufactures realized early on in the Android game that the aesthetics of the UI are a major selling point for consumers, and so they set out to stand apart from their competitors by creating and including their own 'look'. In the pictures above you can see the 5 major device launchers from HTC, Google, Samsung, Sony and LG, though there are many more. Acer, Dell, and Motorola (just to name a few) have all created a custom home launcher that runs by default on their devices.
They all have their own positives and drawbacks (believe me, I've used almost all of them), let's look at some of the alternatives available.
For Phones:
This is what the home screen on my Samsung Galaxy currently looks like. I prefer a minimalist feel and as you can see I've hidden the top bar, used text for the icons to launch my apps and today's relevant information is in plain text. All of this customization probably took about 5 minutes to complete once I had the necessary apps installed. Let's take a look at some launcher replacements that can do these simple customizations and so much more.
ADW Launcher Free:
Originally an offshoot of the default Android launcher, and still open source, ADW offers simple home screen customization. It's themeable with dozens of user created themes available on the Android Market, or you can easily create your own. For all the features and info check out the Android Market link where you can even one click install it to your phone.
Market Link
ADW Launcher: https://market.android.com/details?id=org.adw.laun
There is also a paid version available ADW EX which offers even more customization you can see the differences here
Adw EX: https://market.android.com/details?id=org.adwfreak
Go Launcher EX (free):
Go Launcher offers a huge selection of customizations. There are pre-made themes available on the market (some paid, some free), and it's easy to create your own. If you find you enjoy making themes the GO dev team even offers a template for download on their site that you can use to create and distribute your own GO Launcher themes. Some of the other features include;
3D transitions when changing screens or opening your App drawer
Changing the default font
Gesture support
Resizable widgets
Custom made widgets for contact management,
and much more. Check out the market link for all the details as well as user reviews
Market Link
Go Launcher Ex: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.gau.go.l
SPB Shell 3D (Paid) :
SPB has been developing home screen replacements for Windows Mobile based phones for some time, and just recently released their flagship Android home screen SPB Shell 3D. Offering a truly unique 3D interface with a full suite of custom built widgets SPB currently stands alone for it's interface.
While it is not as customizable as the previously mentioned launchers, and does not support 'Live Wallpapers' it has fantastic product support and excellent performance.
All this 3D goodness though does come at a price, the Android version costs $14.95 US currently on the market.
See the Android Market link for more information, screenshots and a video walkthrough.
Market Link
SPB Shell: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.spb.shel
For Tablets:
The App market for Android is driven by two things, the latest version of Android and availability of new tech. As the tablet form factor and Android 3.0 (honeycomb) are still quite new there are not a lot of dedicated tablet only launcher replacements though there's one project that I'll show.
VTL Launcher (Paid)
VTL Launcher is a fork of the popular (open source) Adw Launcher. And therefore includes most of the exact same features and is even compatible with most ADW themes. Where it stands out for tablet usage is by offering two configurable 'Dock Bars' to the sides. App shortcuts can be dragged to these bars to make it easy to launch them with your thumbs. Another of the most used features for me is the app cataloging feature. Instead of just having one huge long list you can sort your applications into categories. Then by swiping left or right on the app drawer you can navigate through them. This is the current homescreen on my Samsung Galaxy Tab and I find it super quick and easy to use. Follow the market link to see all of the features.
Market Link VTL Launcher: https://market.android.com/details?id=com.vtlab.la
Conclusion:
This is just a small portion of the home screen replacements available on the market and the customizations are truly endless. I've included an additional list of links to other home replacements have a look through them and see what's right for you.
Tune in next time when we start to dive into the basic programs for email, text messaging, web browsing and much more.
Additional Links:
Slide Screen (paid and free): https://market.android.com/details?id=com.larvalab
Spark (free): https://market.android.com/details?id=com.hiplogic
Zeem (free): https://market.android.com/details?id=org.zeam
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