Northstar01

I am still on TW launcher and enjoying it! Thanks for the suggestion of using Halo Launcher HD! I will take a look!

drexappeal

So far, I'm liking Nova launcher for what it offers. integration with widgetlocker is flawless. l haven't noticed any missing s pen functionality.

__________________
For those that don't have the SGS3, but want pop-up video
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=gpc.myweb.hinet.net.PopupVideo#?t=W251b GwsMSwxLDIxMiwiZ3BjLm15d2ViLmhpbmV0Lm5ldC5Qb3B1cFZ pZGVvIl0

srikat

Thanks for all those that recommended Holo Launcher HD.

I am using it now and like what I see. There is no lag or battery drain that I notice of due to this app.

Here's how I have it set up:

I have placed all the icons that I need in day-to-day use on the home screen (desktop). When there are several, I placed them inside a folder.

The app drawer is one big list that can be scrolled vertically up and down.

When on the home screen, pressing Home button or swiping up brings up the list of currently running apps for easy closing.

Desktop Settings

Grid size: 5x5

Drawer Settings

Drawer style: Vertical continuous

Appearance Settings

Folder background: None

Gestures & Keys

Home key action: Recent apps
Swipe up: Recent apps

That's it.

Last edited by srikat; November 21st, 2012 at 12:27 PM. Reason: Added 'Appearance Settings' and updated screenshot.

dbpaddler

Go 6x5 on the desktop.

__________________
I can save you at least 10% on ProClip vehicle mounts and cradles. Send me a PM for more info. Check them out at www.proclipusa.com.

cophyor

I tried the ADW Launcher and it was good. But, I already put all of my apps in the folders on my stock launcher. So, im switching back to stock
Oh yea, another downside of using adw is that you cant uninstall the apps directly from the app browser

drexappeal

There's an app called desk migrate that can duplicate settings onto the new launcher. Maybe that will work to move your folder setup over.

ctxx24

Ppl still use launcher pro...crazy

__________________
OG Droid....HTC Incredible....Moto X
Fascinate....Droid charge..Thunderbolt...sg3...note 2 in march..
Wifi Xoom....ipad 1....ipad 2... with love...
HP touchpad cm9...ipad 4

drexappeal

Who's using launcher pro? As far as I remember, fede was re-writing because of compatibility issues with ics.

ctxx24

2nd post on this thread...lp died along time ago far as i care..was the first real launcher and was great back then...go is far ahead of the game

drexappeal

lol...well, last year it became obsolete. Was my favorite before. Go is good, but it's a battery hog.

ScandaLeX

I had those same thoughts regarding Go. I don't know what the Go Team has done differently but you might want to give it another look. Since reinstalling it, I haven't noticed any battery drain and I'm thinking Jelly Bean & Butter may have something to do with Go's optimization.

drexappeal

Hmm...I may give it another shot, but I already bought nova prime and is fine for my needs. Not as many animations as go, but still good.

dbpaddler

I don't really see the reason to go back to any of the older launchers. Apex, Nova and Holo have all trumped ADW and Go. You end up buying into one of them, and they pretty much run neck and neck adding features to keep up with the other. Go got caught sleeping with their bloated app. Now they're catching up. Don't see the allure to try them after settling on one of the three. Is there a feature in a y of them that is that unique? I do like the copy feature of Nova when switching from something else. That's why you should never try Nova first. Always second so you don't have to redo your desktop.

ScandaLeX

Understandable. I have them all; free and paid. I'm only using Go right now due to the customization I was working on before I went and messed it up.
Everyone uses their launchers differently. For me, they're pretty much eye candy.

Whiskeypawz

I had Hi Launcher on my Photon but it doesn't seem to be compatible with the Note 2. What I liked about it was that I could hide the app drawer & pull it up as I needed to. As far as I can tell, ADW doesn't have that feature. Does anyone know of a launcher that does? I like my home screen being clean & not cluttered with apps.

MiXoLoGiSt

Yeah for me they are eye candy as well. I can't really say I hated the look of touch wiz but Iove customization and making a device mine so I run Nova launcher on my Note 2. I may try out holo as well.

Phases

My only real problem with stock was when I made folders in the dock then launched something that was in the folder.. The folder would still be open when backing out of the app or hitting the home button. This was an annoyance as it caused an extra tap each time to close the folder.

Any one else notice this?

__________________
Every forum should have a Phases.

ScandaLeX

Hi paws. Quick questions- Once hidden how did you access the app drawer?

ScandaLeX

The plus side to that is if you have to go right back into that folder for something. I end of having to do that most of the time since I generally group app and may be using one; then need another.

drexappeal

Nova launcher has gestures to hide that and notification bar. I know go launcher ex did also. Apex might have the capability also. Not sure but Holo hd

ctxx24

When I get my n2 ill prolly keep stock on being the multi window prolly won't work with a launcher..

ScandaLeX

Yes, multi view does work with 3rd party launchers.

Whiskeypawz

Hopefully this will show you before & after what I'm referring to. In the first picture there are 2 little while arrows right above the middle icon. When you tap that, the drawer pops up & has multiple folders with your apps. It's easy to hide & easy to access.

Last edited by Whiskeypawz; December 2nd, 2012 at 02:38 PM. Reason: Fix pictures

ctxx24

Oh that's awesome..

note2

I have been messing around with a few different launchers over the last few days - I am going to stick with Nova.
I really like the 7 wide capability - no wasted space.
Same goes for App drawer - giant vertical menu of everything.
I am not much on fancy transitions - Card Stack method is perfectly adequate for me.
I don't even need a dock since everything I need is right there 7 wide.
Wayyy cool.
Good thread.
Thanks.

girolez

Hi

I think everything works in holo hd except:
Page buddy
Pinch within app drawer to show pages

Certainly all the s pen functions work fine

I like touchwiz but now really like the sliding dock in holo (which I was using on my old htc desire)

Roger

drexappeal

Sliding dock (e.g. scrollable dock) is available in Nova, Apex, and Go Launcher Ex, also.

womb raider

I don't know if it's still relevant, but on my old Desire running Go Launcher I removed the app drawer icon from the dock and instead opened it by swiping down on the screen. You could set different actions for swiping up and down with Go (or you could anyway, it's been a while since I used it).

ScandaLeX

As many of you know I use launchers mainly for eye candy and less about functionality. Last night I came across Nemus Launcher in the play store (never heard of it until I started Googling for something else and one thing led to another). Talk about minimal. I love this launcher simply because it doesnt spend a lot of time doing everything in the world.
One of the things that caught my attention is it high praises of using barely any battery at all.

I also installed MXHome Launcher. I had to go for one of the flashiest themes and it took all of 3 minutes to uninstall it. There was no way I could find to access my app drawer. The theme itself was super cool but a whole lot of good a cool theme will do ya if you cant get to your apps.

NeuDroid

Glad to see this thread is still open, wondered why it closed. I remember reading when I got my Note to use the stock launcher so one knows what they are missing once you make the jump to another launcher. I tired several today and am hooked on Holo HD but I'd say the most popular launchers are almost the same. I don't know why people poop on Touchwiz too much but I don't think it's that bad, just not as many options as the other launchers.

With the Holo launcher, while the pop up pad feature still works, the stock calender 4x4 widget does not. I've grown to like that particular widget as it shows everything I've saved to my calender. Hope they fix that since there is no other calender widget like it.

ren857

A lot of people poop on touchwiz because of how terrible it used to be on the original galaxy phone a few years ago. I hated TW then - it was an obvious iphone clone with very little functionality. Samsung finally figured that out and started improving TW and that's what we have today - a very much improved TW.

I actually like it. I was using another launcher, but a few days into it, I switched back to TW. Maybe I want things more simple in my old age. LOL

drexappeal

Only things that kept me from sticking with TouchWiz 1) Non customizable dock, and 2) No horizontal auto-rotate on homescreens.

Other than those reasons, I agree, TouchWiz has definitely improved. I still can't see myself using OEM launchers until they allow for more customization. I'm definitely happy with Nova Prime and what it offers.

ScandaLeX

Thread being closed was a mistake on my part.
I'm a big girl. I own up to my mistakes although I gotta admit, I have no idea how it happened since I don't use my phone to perform any functions like that.

But it's all good.....carry on.....

schimm

Here's what i've tried.....Nova: don't like the page 'stickiness.' Seems like flipping from screen to screen takes too much effort. Otherwise it's fast and has plenty of options. But the thing that you do on a pretty much routine basis ain't making me happy.

Apex: I don't see any speed differences compared to Nova. No page stickiness but it does have a deal breaker for me. I love the Falcon twitter widget. It will not update itself under Apex. I've tried different things but for some reason it's stubborn. I've had a similar problem with Apex and the Tweetcaster widget on my N7. Sometimes it works sometimes not. Well, in any case fix it please.

Holo: I heart Holo. It's fast...the fastest of all launchers. You simply need to bump up the speed in the options but I see nothing adverse to toggleing it to 90%. This launcher feels very much like Apex to me but just less of it. Fewer scroll animations for instance. But it updates Falcon, has no page stickiness.....winner!

I have not tried Go! Perhaps I should but I'm staying with the paid version of Holo for now since I see no reason to change.

damewolf13

I love Go launcher ex. It is probably my favorite of all launchers. Fast and extremely customizable, and like ScandaLeX, I need pretty themes!
The closest thing, and my next favorite is Apex.

__________________
Never Lookin' Back!

ScandaLeX

I miss Go for the themes/contacts/locker but a lot of the ones I've paid for don't even show up in my list.
The devs are saying it had to do with a change Google made so in order to get them to show up, I have to contact each dev and have them email me the unsigned apk's.
Each time I come across one I want I reinstall I take a pic of it in the play store showing "install" and send that pic to the dev so they'll see I've already paid for it.

drexappeal

That's a pain in the butt. And Go was such a battery hog, I don't think I'll ever go back.

ScandaLeX

I went back to GO to do the customizing I saw ColdFusTion do to his phone; but then I wrecked the look of it by moving too fast and deleted data instead of clearing defaults.

There are quite a few launchers that use Go themes and for that alone I want my themes back. I've been placing the unsigned apk's in my DB.
My current launcher (Nemus) has an extremely light footprint; only 3.64mb while GO weighs in near 8mb.

ren857

I'm glad you mentioned that google change causing you to have to get theme apks. Whatever change google made, it must be in jellybean only. I have to do the same thing for themes in TSF Shell. Sucks!

I think they can tell by your email address whether you paid for it or not - assuming that they kept your info when you bought the theme.

ScandaLeX

TSF Shell..... Is that the $16 launcher? I paid $15 for SPB Shell 3D and hardly used if. Well I had the Photon when I got it and it always crashed coming out of dock mode.

ren857

Yep. That's the one.

I bought SPB Shell too and I didn't hardly use it either. It was beautiful but little substance/customization.

Whiskeypawz

For anyone interested in Holo Launcher + it's on sale now for $1.99, regular price is $3.99.

ScandaLeX

Whenever I read a new post regarding a launcher it just makes me realize more and more how much money I've wasted on since I don't fully utilize them like many people do.

dbpaddler

For me, I use a 3rd party launcher for three reasons:
-scrollable widgets: awesome for agenda apps and probably any list oriented widget. More info at your fingertips.
-the sliding dock at the bottom. More apps at your fingertips without using the drawer.
-simple drag and drop folders the home screen.

I could throw in 1x1 widgets in the dock too, but that's not a big deal. For me it's purely organization and ease of use. Could give a rat's associated about glitz and bling. Actually, I still use the black wood wallpaper from the syndicate frozen room on epic because of the readability of text against it.

zc1

I didn't understand the attraction of Launchers and had no idea what I was missing until I finally gave in and tried out a few on my older Gingerbread and Ice Cream Sandwich-based phones.

The biggest reason for me to use a Launcher is homescreen gestures:

-1 Finger Swipe down = notifications
-1 Finger Swipe up = email
-2 Finger Swipe down = calendar
-2 Finger Swipe up = web browser
-Double-Tap = Google Now

The second biggest reason for me is faster page transitions when swiping between homescreens than what you get with TouchWiz.

The third biggest reason for me is being able to customize my icons by using icons from various themes. I'm not crazy about the stock TouchWiz icons for some things, so it's nice to download other icon sets and change my homescreen icons as I please.

I use Nova Launcher currently. I have Go installed but don't use it. It's only installed because I like some of the wallpapers that are available only if Go is installed. I have tried a lot of different Launchers (pretty much all of the ones listed in this thread). My favourites, by far, are Nova Launcher and Launcher 7 (Windows 7-styled launcher). That said, Nova Launcher, Apex Launcher and now ADW Launcher share most of the same features.

Last edited by zc1; December 27th, 2012 at 12:14 PM.

dbpaddler

Aren't notifications already one swipe down? And how do you do the latter two one handed? Having to go to two hands for basic UI would kill it for me.


Holo is pretty much toe to toe with Nova and Apex. Haven't touched ADW in ages because I didn't like how they did their dock. It seems that if one adds functionality, the others follow suit.

Last edited by dbpaddler; December 27th, 2012 at 12:44 PM.

MiXoLoGiSt

He means you can swipe down anywhere on your main screens to bring the notification bar down. You don't have to reach up to the status bar and pull it down.

dbpaddler

Ahh. Didn't know it was that much of a chore.

zc1

@dbpaddler: I'm sure your questions were rhetorical since you've obviously already used the same launchers, but I'll answer them, anyway, for people who might not have tried them.

The fact that two-finger gestures are a feature of the software suggests that people do actually use their devices with two hands. With the notification gesture enabled I don't have to swipe from the notification bar at the top of the screen. I can swipe anywhere at all, even with one hand, though I very rarely use the phone one-handed. You must have massive hands to be able to, single-handedly, hold the phone securely and still be able to reach and swipe down from the notification bar then interact with all parts of the screen afterwards. My hands aren't big enough. Even if they were, I'm much faster with two hands (even on the GSIII, which I can operate with one hand). Both my old Note 1 and new Note 2 are two-hand phones for me.

Additionally, using Nova doesn't mean you have to use gestures. If you can't stand the idea of using two hands to operate your device then you don't have to. You can do things the usual way if you like (eg. dock icons/folders), but you have the option of using gestures. With TouchWiz you don't have that option. That was the point.


I agree. They all have the same functionality, that's why I settled on Nova. For something different I like Launcher 7.

zc1

Your choice not to use it, of course. That's the whole point of a Launcher -- making things easier that were otherwise 'a chore.' You've decided to pick and choose which tasks are designated 'chores'

Last edited by zc1; December 27th, 2012 at 03:00 PM.