Develop Bugs

[Q] What is your favorite launcher and why?

I've been through a few launchers now and am still undecided as to which will be my daily driver. For a long time it was GO Launcher from the market due to the amount of options baked in for free, but it was just too buggy, so I plunked down some cash to try Launcher Pro and it was pretty similar overall, but the lack of a true home screen chaps my cheeks. Now I'm wondering (after seeing so many different screenshots of YOUR amazing setups on your Epic...) what Launcher do you prefer, and why?

ADW Launcher is my cup of tea. It is very customizable from docks, downloadable themes/icons, to the overwhelming setting options to make it just how you want it. The free version is by far superior to the other free launchers by offering more ways of customization. you could of course support the Dev by purchasing the ADW Launcher EX which jams a lot more into it. From a themer stand point the ADW is a very workable Launcher for changing things around to fit your needs for the said theme you would like it to be included in. As stated above though, once you settle into a Launcher that you decide to stick with, support the Dev by buying the full version for all their hard work in bringing it to your disposal.

GO Launcher EX. I have them all (LP, ADW and Go) . ADW is a mess when you start going into the menu's. GO Launcher seems to have taken the best from LP and ADW IMO>

ADW is by far the most customizable imo. I use ADW EX and love it. Some people swear by LP. Try them out and use what works for you. As said above support for devs hard work and time is always appreciated.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App

Touchwiz, to me its really clean and I can't seem to stray to far from it when I change launchers.
There is a "true" gingerbread launcher out now its pretty sweet that I am currently using though...

ADW for me as well. I have the paid version but the free version is still an awesome find. Lots of great features and customizable themes and icons. I've tried just about all of them and most have a lot of the same features, but I always find myself going back to ADW.

Up until about a month ago I was using adw (free), then I upgraded to Adw EX. It's fantastic. The only complaint I had with adw was the pretty horrible menu organization...Adw EX has solved that! I will say there are a lot of fru-fru options in EX that I don't use (like changing the animation on home screen scrolling) but the dev is super helpful, found plenty of themes and on adw ex, anything I've seen in the "post your homescreen" area, I've been able to recreate.
Oh, and only other thing I didn't like in adw (free) was the inability to ovelap widgets... can do that in EX tho
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App

Launcher pro, I love the scrollable dock. It keeps my homescreens clutterfree.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk

Launcher Pro, the 3D drawer in this is stunning.

Launcher Pro. I love the smooth 3D drawer and the included widgets are actually pretty useful!

sheltem said:
Launcher Pro. I love the smooth 3D drawer and the included widgets are actually pretty useful!
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10 Char +1

Heelfan71 said:
GO Launcher EX. I have them all (LP, ADW and Go) . ADW is a mess when you start going into the menu's. GO Launcher seems to have taken the best from LP and ADW IMO>
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Ditto here. LP is nothing special (although pretty stable) and you have to pay for ADW to get the features and customization you get for free with GO Launcher.
I've had no issues whatsoever with GO Launcher. It's been stable, fast and has more options than I even know what to do with.

Sprint ID!...LMAO, J/K!!!....I'm TouchWiz for 4ever, LauncherPro is nice, but it doesn't have the widgets I like. ADW FC's and Crashes like a cheap paper airplane, GO is a close second.

launcher pro, clean and simple yet still alot of customizing available

I really like some of ADW's features but LauncherPRO's widgets are what keeps me using it, plus the developer is working on a complete rewrite of LauncherPRO to make it more efficient and lighter.

Interesting that no one had said anything about Zeam... Yes, it is light on features, but that also means it's light on resources as well (and I don't care how fast you overclock, lighter is always better for performance). Scrolling dock, gestures, and desktop resizing; simple and sweet.
Sent from my Desire HD using XDA App

I've tried launcherpro, adw, tw, and lately Go launcher ex. Right now I'm really liking go launcher ex. Clean, fast, stable, and features that I like.

Launcher pro plus for me. Like stated above, the scrollable dock and the included widgets you get with the plus version is nice. I downloaded a themed version that has all the widgets transparent with blue highlights and all the buttons at the bottom of the widgets instead of the top and they're also more finger friendly. Check it out there are other themed versions also. You have to buy the plus version to get full benefits of launcher pro IMO.
here is the thread if you or anybody alse is intrested: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=783427

Launcher 7
Sent from XDA app with 2.2 powered Epic 4g

I just switched to adw after 8 mths of touchwiz because of cm7. Adw has tons of options. If it was fc'ing there is an option for wallpaper hack that is suppose to make it not fc. I love adw and will not go back to touchwiz.

Launcher Questions

I would like to know some of your opinions. Please I am looking for a launcher that has very little to no battery drain. Very smooth. I used launcherpro but that thing never gets updated and the update they just had doesn't fix anything. So Any Suggestions?

tcooper85 said:
I would like to know some of your opinions. Please I am looking for a launcher that has very little to no battery drain. Very smooth. I used launcherpro but that thing never gets updated and the update they just had doesn't fix anything. So Any Suggestions?
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Get adw ex great launcher and its super smooth with better features
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA Premium App

Adw all the way. I was a fan of luncher pro but after a lack of updates and home screen Freeze up and other bugs, I'm now a fan of adw.

I choose launcherpro, uses the least amount of RAM of all the launchers. So its the fastest when multitasking
Sent from my always stock, EB13 Epic, awaiting EC05.

zanderman112 said:
I choose launcherpro, uses the least amount of RAM of all the launchers. So its the fastest when multitasking
Sent from my always stock, EB13 Epic, awaiting EC05.
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LauncherPro is my choice as well. But, OP, you should try all of the popular free options:
- LauncherPro
- ADW
- Go Launcher (new and getting more popular)
- Zeam (fast!)
- others, but those are the big names

I personally like either Go Launcher Ex (my current favorite) or ADW. The single feature that I cannot live without is the ability to organize the App Drawer.
Go Launcher lets you create folders to move items into. Also has a nice recent list and task manager built into the app drawer.
ADW lets you create categories to assign items to. Dock is a little more feature rich.

k0nane said:
LauncherPro is my choice as well. But, OP, you should try all of the popular free options:
- LauncherPro
- ADW
- Go Launcher (new and getting more popular)
- Zeam (fast!)
- others, but those are the big names
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I'll add some of the others: Open Home 6, Launcher7, HeLauncher, dxTop. And there are some extracted from other phones here on xda like: Acer Liquid Launcher, LG Home, Xperia Arc launcher.
Sent from my always stock, EC05 Epic 4G

+1 GO launcher.

i was using zeam and it was nice but then the orientation started acting screwy...so i deleted it and got adw launcher ex and what a difference! i absolutely love this launcher and they have so many different themes (free and paid) that change your phone and icons such as an ipad theme, htc theme, mac os, gingerbread theme. really great app and i haven't seen any type of battery drain. i used launcher pro but i was really a fan. and like i said zeam started misbehaving. you really can't go wrong with adw launcher ex and it barely touches your memory if you install themes which is nice!!!

Question Regarding ROM's

Hey All,
I have been looking at the numerous ROM's available for the T989 Galaxy S 2. Currently, I really like the look and functionality of the Tuesday ROM and the Paradox ROM. I like that you can scroll vertically in the app drawer since Touch Wiz is 90% removed. Great feature IMO.
I was just wondering, are there any ROM's currently available that has an endless drag 'n drop arrangable scrollable dock just like Zeam Launcher? I absolutely love that option.
If not, is there any way to add the endless arrangable scrollable dock to the Tuesday or Paradox ROM? Thanks.

You pretty much answered your own question in the third paragraph. It's the launcher, not the Rom. You can change launchers with any Rom. I use ADW ex. Many like the Go Launcher. I'm not sure of all the options of each but no you have a starting point.
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Vegasden said:
You pretty much answered your own question in the third paragraph. It's the launcher, not the Rom. You can change launchers with any Rom. I use ADW ex. Many like the Go Launcher. I'm not sure of all the options of each but no you have a starting point.
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My thoughts on launchers...
Go Launcher - Aestetically pleasing, seems to have a lot higher battery use then others. Too many frills.
ADW - Just never liked it, not sure why but it just somehow feels clunky to me.
Zeam - Little too stripped down to me.
Launcher Pro - My personal choice, good mix of everything.

avarize said:
My thoughts on launchers...
Go Launcher - Aestetically pleasing, seems to have a lot higher battery use then others. Too many frills.
ADW - Just never liked it, not sure why but it just somehow feels clunky to me.
Zeam - Little too stripped down to me.
Launcher Pro - My personal choice, good mix of everything.
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I actually tried out Launcher Pro as per your suggestion. Very nice Launcher I like it. I prefer Zeam just because I can switch the position of all my apps on the dock bar. The dock bar is infinite. Also I set it up to swipe to go to my app drawer. Love that feature. Launcher Pro would definetly be one of my top picks now for Launchers after giving it a try. Thanks.
Sent from my SGH-T989D using XDA App

[Q] What launcher do you use

Hey Guys,
I have been using Go launcher since its launch, but have been thinking about venturing outside of my comfort zone and trying something new. I've always liked randomizing transition effects, and being able to change the grid layout... as well as having folders in the app menu (which is a great thing I love about the stock touchwhiz experience)
I have heard a lot of mention about Nova launcher, and Apex Launcher, but no actual reasons as to why these are better than what I already use.
Can you tell me the differences between them, and why you use the launcher that you use?
Thanks all:silly:

I know Nova and Apex were built for ICS so they ran better at one time. I'm not sure since ADW and Go were updated if that is still the case. I have been using Apex but the last couple months its not running as smooth as it used to so I switched to Nova. I'm impressed with Nova so far. Lots of options and great performance. Best thing is just try the free versions and buy the one you like best.

i've stayed with stock tw because i like the extra screen that pops up when i use the s-pen

theraker007 said:
i've stayed with stock tw because i like the extra screen that pops up when i use the s-pen
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Agreed... I installed Nova since that was my choice of launcher but with all the new feats on the TW, i quickly switched back.
Coming from my S2, I do miss the profile option I had on that rom

Stock so far!
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk 2

Holo plus and holo hd. Runs great
sent from a galaxy note2 far far away

Been using GOOGLE for a long time..... Might be time to experiment

Nova.

ADW EX
I like making the icons smaller so they aren't so big and cartoonish on my Note II, as well as all the other various customizations.

Have yet to try my nova prime (run that on my atrix, OG note and touchpad). Leaving things stock atm...and its very hard to do.
Honestly...the only annoyance I have with the TW launcher is no option for 5x5 or 6x6. Thats why I will probably switch it
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda app-developers app

I've used ADW, Go, and Nova... Nova has been the best experience for me performance and options-wise but so far I'm using the stock launcher.
Would rather replace the navigation indicator with an extra row of icons but other than that, I'm quite content!
The power to choose between power and/or simplicity is the beauty of Android.

erick161 said:
Honestly...the only annoyance I have with the TW launcher is no option for 5x5 or 6x6. Thats why I will probably switch it
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That was my biggest gripe. I need to be able to have more icons on my home screen than TW allows, so much wasted space!

RojasTKD said:
That was my biggest gripe. I need to be able to have more icons on my home screen than TW allows, so much wasted space!
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I can't deal with TW. Maybe it's improved but Nova and others have so many useful features. Extra dock icons, grid sizes, gestures, drawer folders, etc.
What TW features are you guys attached to? With Nova I can still double click the screen with the pen to pop up a note at any time.

Apex baby FTW
You can still always push your S pen and double tap for a note

Apex, but it's not as smooth as it could be, and you can't use the stock Weather widget with it.

I tried Apex launcher since I had it on my s2, but it's super choppy compared to the stock launcher so I switched back. Unless they optimize Apex launcher for jelly bean ill stock with stock.

Phytrax said:
I can't deal with TW. Maybe it's improved but Nova and others have so many useful features. Extra dock icons, grid sizes, gestures, drawer folders, etc.
What TW features are you guys attached to? With Nova I can still double click the screen with the pen to pop up a note at any time.
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+1. It feels the same as TW on GS2 with Gingerbread. I'm giving Go Launcher EX another shot (this time on GN2) because its features but I hate the toyish feel/icons and BS it loads as well.
Apex will be next.
Anyway to get the lock screen to look/act like AOSP? I dont mind the ripple effect but the look (TW) is

I'm using TW but have applied this MOD that allows you to have 5X5 rows and columns. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1990801

Nova largely because of it's backup of layouts which makes it much faster to setup new ROMs etc. Apex I know does the same thing and I don't really have a preference between the two. I had switched to Apex when they were the first to update to 4.1 source which made it smoother than Nova, but switched back after Nova updated.

I like ssLauncher (the original). It's in the play store. It has the most customizable home screen I've ever seen. No more restraining yourself to grids or default icons. It has a bit of a learning curve but so, so much you can do! Send me questions if you're curious & I'll try and answer them.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I317 using xda app-developers app

What's your favorite launcher and why?

Just trying to start a discussion on what launcher people are using and why they like them as apposed to others. This thread would be useful for many who are trying to decide what launcher to use or switch to. I know that people can and should try them out for themselves however there are MANY launchers out there and it would be nice for folks to read this thread and get an idea where to start. So who's first?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

Nova. Always works for me and I can restore my icon layout. Makes switching Roms take all of 10 min
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

itpromike said:
Just trying to start a discussion on what launcher people are using and why they like them as apposed to others. This thread would be useful for many who are trying to decide what launcher to use or switch to. I know that people can and should try them out for themselves however there are MANY launchers out there and it would be nice for folks to read this thread and get an idea where to start. So who's first?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2
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I like Nova Prime with the Missed It! add on. It adds notification counts to the icons you specify. Like messages and mail for me. It's nice to see a little bubble on the icon.

Nova Launcher for me too, I have downloaded a few ut always go back to Nova, simply for the gestures and the stability of it. Action Launcher is good but lacks a lot of customisation.

I like Go. Folders in app draw, transparent Nav and status bar support.

I've used Apex launcher for a while because it is very clean and fast with a lot of customization options.

Nova is my favorite... Fast and Stable.

I'm in the minority with this but I like stock.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

Tried Nova, ADW, Go, Apex, Holo, and of course Stock
For now, Nova is the best IMO. Stock comes in the 2nd.

I don't believe in a favorite launcher. I believe they all of them are pretty much equal with each of them to their own uniqueness. It's more of favoritism.
I personally used Apex Launcher and switched to Nova because Nova Launcher Prime was on sale for <$1 so I switched. It also made it very easy to do because it imported my widgets and apps on home screens within one click.
Nova Launcher & Apex are both great choices. Can't go wrong with either or............ or you can use Trebuchet (CM's Launcher). Keep in mind if you use Nova Launcher, update to the latest beta!!! it helps, uses 4.2 launcher code

nova prime is my favorite. there's so much customizability, which makes it perfect for themeing. very fast and stable too. i want to get familiar with either ADW or Apex so I can toggle between themes very fast. Launcher8 has some potential too, but as of now its just too laggy.

Used ADW for a while... then switched to Nova. Nova restoring the widgets is a great feature when playing with multiple Rome.
Skickat från min Nexus 4

Ok, bit different but...
TSF Shell ..it's like butter even on my old Snapdragon 3 based phone
Next launcher.. new but good, desktop/home screens not quite as smooth as TSF
SPB 3d shell ..love it

someone make a poll! i bet over 50% of us, use nova launcher(prime)
is there beta version of Prime nova launcher optimized for JB4.21? or thats only for the NON prime version

zephiK said:
I don't believe in a favorite launcher. I believe they all of them are pretty much equal with each of them to their own uniqueness. It's more of favoritism.
I personally used Apex Launcher and switched to Nova because Nova Launcher Prime was on sale for <$1 so I switched. It also made it very easy to do because it imported my widgets and apps on home screens within one click.
Nova Launcher & Apex are both great choices. Can't go wrong with either or............ or you can use Trebuchet (CM's Launcher). Keep in mind if you use Nova Launcher, update to the latest beta!!! it helps, uses 4.2 launcher code
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Thanks mate, where can I find the beta for that?

Nova Launcher

itpromike said:
Thanks mate, where can I find the beta for that?
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nova settings - check for update - stack icon at the top right use beta

I use Apex Launcher
It is very near to stock, but still very customizable.
I also like the groups in the drawer, the reseizing of widgets to every size (which is sometimes ridicolous, but in some cases very useful) and the ability to hide the dock (that i dont need anymore because of GMD Gesture Control)
I've also tried some other launchers like Nova and Action Launcher (Really cool, too, but not as customizable as Apex) but at least I stayed at Apex.

Nova, but Apex very close
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

Used to be almost 100% Nova, but now I have been using Action Launcher.
It is different from the other launchers and I quite like the way the App Drawer is implemented.
And the "Covers" setting is brilliant, for me this makes it worthwhile!!
Stewart