With Samsung Smartphones moving ahead of Apple in Smartphone shipments and as a Smartphone maker, Android sees a better reception over pervious monopoly holder iOS. One of the better advantages that Android has over iOS is its customizability.[break]
Android users can customize almost everything on their phone, from default phone dialer to the entire interfaces of the home screen.
Although cellphone makers like Samsung or Motorola or HTC have their own customized version of Android and its home screen, there are other third-party replacements for your home screen should the stock turn to boring for your tastes.
Here, we bring you five home screens that could liven up your entire Smartphone experience.
LauncherPro
LauncherPro, developed by Federico Carnales, is one of the best home screen replacement apps for the Android. Very lightweight, at the same time offering powerful features like transition effects, 3D app drawer rendering and custom widgets for popular social sites like Facebook and Twitter. The custom widgets are available only on the paid version of the application, which sells for US$3.49.
GoLauncher EX
GoLauncher is one of the most famous replacements out there, with a wide range of themes and widgets available for download. Developed by Go Launcher Dev Team, GoLauncher is one of the most versatile and customizable launchers. With other products like GoLocker, GoContacts or GoSMS, the Go Launcher Dev Team has customizable applications for all the nooks and crannies of your Android phone. All of GoLauncher Dev Team’s applications are available on the Android Market free of costs.
Launcher 7
Launcher 7, a home screen replacement for Window Phone 7 UI lovers, mimics the tile-based home screen of Microsoft’s Windows 7 Mobile OS. Developed by Timo Kujala, Launcher 7 is the best option for Windows 7 launchers because of its better functionality and its feature of customizability of home screen tiles. It also gets a superior review amongst other windows 7 replacements because of its butter-like smoothness of the UI.
Zeam
If you’re on an old phone, then you probably have the misfortune of having low memory that does not support these high-end replacements. Not to worry though, developer Michael Bentz brings to your Android phone Zeam, the most lightweight launcher in the market. Zeam, although limited in major functionality, is a very good replacement for your stock home screen. A mere 400KB in size, Zeam is bound to work on even the oldest of Android phones.
SPB Shell3D
If you’re a person who likes lots of eye candy, then Shell3D is the perfect home screen replacement for you. Flaunting next-gen 3D graphics, like Carousel and 3D navigation between screens, Shell3D is the perfect solution for users who want that extra kick to their phones. Shell3D, however, is a very heavy app that will require you to have a very recent phone for it to work without lags, and costs a whooping US$15 in the Android market.
The upper hand that Android phones have over iPhones is this open-endedness of it. Where the user is given the opportunity to mod their phone in ways that they want it and if they don’t, they have the stock applications to fall back on to. It’s a platform for users to explore and discover new technology and that’s what drives human existence forward. Happy tinkering, Android users!
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