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Best launcher for Note 2....

I actually have a kickstand case and hold the phone with two fingers via the kickstand. It moves the edge of the phone to the base normal my fingers and gives a lot of dexterity to move the thumb just about anywhere.

I haven't given gestures a try but just might look into them. Some of the things you do via gestures, I have widgets on the home screen or icons in the dock. But they could still be of use.
 
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I don't use cases or screen protectors, but have been looking at the FlyGrip to allow me to use the phone one-handed and to act as a kickstand. I'm just not sure, yet, that I wouldn't be annoyed by the extra bit of bulk added to the phone.

Someone posted a good video of it recently:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlybsGML8yU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

(Apologies to the OP for derailing the thread away from Launchers for a bit...)
 
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I like the idea of the flygrip, but I think it looks like ass. I'd rather use a case with a kickstand and maintain the flat clean profile than stick something on the back of a case or battery cover. The one shame is the similar jointed kickstand case I have for the S3 has a nice lip down the sides to protect the screen. The same ones I've seen for the Note 2 are all flush. Dumbest thing I've seen in a case design for such a big phone. Don't understand why the minimalist cases are that minimalist to the point the only thing they really protect is the battery cover, and who cares about that? It's the easiest replaceable part of the phone.
 
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I like the idea of the flygrip, but I think it looks like ass. I'd rather use a case with a kickstand and maintain the flat clean profile than stick something on the back of a case or battery cover. The one shame is the similar jointed kickstand case I have for the S3 has a nice lip down the sides to protect the screen. The same ones I've seen for the Note 2 are all flush. Dumbest thing I've seen in a case design for such a big phone. Don't understand why the minimalist cases are that minimalist to the point the only thing they really protect is the battery cover, and who cares about that? It's the easiest replaceable part of the phone.

EXACTLY!!! I do use my kickstand for a grip, although its not the most comfortable solution. I would prefer some non-permanent slim grip; would come handy while using N2 in bed. I don't get fascination with flygrip either and other stick-on solutions. AND, I have been posting in this forum all the time complaining about all these tpu minimalistic cases with hardly any protection lip on the front. Argh!!! That is why I'm sticking to my current solution of $7 rugged hybrid hard case from ebay (built in kickstand, soft/hard plastic solution, and decent lip). http://androidforums.com/5333428-post190.html

OK, back to original topic :) I too use Nova Launcer exclusively. My main reason because I like to have Dock bar scrollable, and I can have a very fine grid setting for a better pracement of widgets on the screen (which can also overlap). As I posted in another thread: http://androidforums.com/5331107-post176.html - try to get this kind of an alignment somewhere else :)
 
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I dig the overlapping circles. I have my agenda taking up the entire length of my main home screen so that kinda kills the funky stuff. Might have to do pick the screen to the left to give something like that shot.

And I'm sticking to my TPU/Plastic cheapo case. Has textured sides for grip, fairly minimalist but with full coverage.

Overlapping circles is part of Rings clock/weather widget, but that other grey circle between battery and weather is CircleLauncher. I find it amazing how in addition to fine grid you can also resize the widget thus fine tune the placing between the grids. With Zooper widget - you can really go crazy due to insane level of customization. At this point, I'm happy I finally got my home screen together and liking it, 'cause I was going crazy tweaking it lol!!!

Oh, and speaking of Nova Launcher, I'm not able to get it down to 1 screen. I'm happy with 1-screen setting and scrollable dock, but not able to delete other 2 blank screens. Any idea?
 
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I've tried them all I think and I really like Go Launcher the best. I like the way you can long press on a home screen and a menu pops up that allows you to change wallpapers and themes, add widgets and apps. And you can add/change everything at once, without having to restart the whole process like other launchers.
 
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I have a question for the experts here: I'm currently using stock TW launcher on my GN2 but with like to change a few things about it, can HD widget or Zooper Widget Pro be download onto the stock launcher?

Absolutely, you should be able to use with stock launcher. In case of Zooper, why don't you d/l the free version first? Some of the widget layouts are beyond stock launcher grid resolution, so for that you will need Nova or Go Launcher, etc. But other widgets in that package will work as is.
 
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I'm using the free Zooper clock widget now. Pretty cool app. Launcher is Holo.

padamaqy.jpg
 
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For me, the best launcher for the Note 2 so far is my current combination of several. It's the first phone I've had that is powerful enough to do this without a drop in performance and still have all-day battery life.

The goal was to get rid of app icons and folders from my homescreens and leave the homescreens to act just as places to display information.

Lock Screen: WidgetLocker; swipe up = google now, left = camera, right = unlock; weather displayed via HD Widgets; email, messages, phone calls, agenda displayed via Executive assistant
Launchers: Nova Launcher + Wave Launcher + SwipePad
Special Settings: Hide notification bar, hide dock
Home Pages: 6
Home Page contents: Widgets only (clock & weather, agenda, reader/rss, evernote, tasks, family photos, etc; NO APPS)

I've only shown the lock screen and main home screen here, but there are no app icons or folders on any of the homescreens.

Access to apps is two-fold: Gestures, and Gesture-Based Launchers

A. Nova Launcher Gestures for the most frequently-used apps
-1 finger swipe down = notifications
-1 finger swipe up = AquaMail
-2 finger swipe down = Calendar
-2 finger swipe up = browser; stock browser has bezel gestures enabled (swipe in from edges to get page controls)
-double-tap = Google Now
-two finger ccw swipe = Android settings
-two finger clockwise swipe = Nova Launcher settings

B. Wave Launcher for all other apps
-accessible at all times, even when in another program
-set up to bring up the 'wave' of launchable apps when I swipe in from the lower right-hand corner of the screen. Includes individual apps as well as folders; long-press in that area brings up the app drawer.

C. SwipePad For Gesture-Based Speed-Dial
-accessible at all times, even when in another program or from the lock screen
-set up so that when I swipe in from the bottom-left corner of the screen I get a list of my favourite contacts (select a photo to speed-dial) as well as links to Google Talk, Facebook Messenger, Google+ Messenger, Phone and Contacts.

It's an interesting experiment. I'm still getting used to the setup. Much of it is the same as before (eg. gestures). Some, though, like accessing apps exclusively through Wave Launcher, is a big change. I enjoy no longer having the notification bar and the application dock dominating top and bottom of the screen, respectively.

Here are some photos of my setup.

Lock Screen (Slider Inactive then Activated)
Lock1_zps015829fe.jpg
Lock2_zps52bee384.jpg



Main Home Screen, Then With WaveLauncher Activated, Then Folders
Home1_zps191e6370.jpg
Home2_WL2_zps001ce71b.jpg
Home2_WL3_folders_zpse8d6940c.jpg



WaveLauncher Activated While an App is Running
Home2_WL4_zpsbc49a0f1.jpg


Speed Dial Screen
speed_dial_zps0dcf46fd.jpg



Notification Drop-Down Still Available if Needed
Notifications_zps92d2ef54.jpg
 
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Looks interesting. It's likely a beefed up version of Go Launcher (since it's from the same dev team) but with new elements similar to those seen in TSF Shell (eg multi-select/lasso function) and SPB Shell 3D (eg. homescreen browser/editor/carousel).

Those are the 2 I am trying to decide between. Next Launcher and TSF Shell.

Your setup is quite unique. It would definitely take me some time to get used to that.
 
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Those are the 2 I am trying to decide between. Next Launcher and TSF Shell.

Your setup is quite unique. It would definitely take me some time to get used to that.

I haven't tried Next Launcher, but saw this review on the Play Store:

great for effects. If you like to wow your friends this is the launcher. Bought mainly to support I love what you guys do its perfectly sleek and modern but functionally its "C" material. Many new options should be made available before go launcher is considered first gen.

TSF Shell is good as well, but not as full-featured as Nova and the like, either. Where it excels is organization, and I like that it has some gesture stuff (no surprise there). It is fun and has neat animations. From only seeing the video of Next Launcher and reading the reviews I suspect that TSF has more functionality for the time-being.

I can't recommend TSF Shell. If it wasn't as pricy as it is I would say it's definitely worth a shot, but given the price I hesitate. I used it for a bit, then went back to Nova Launcher, just because Nova Launcher's feature set was more useful to me.

Sorry, no answers for you. Launchers are so subjective.
 
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Launchers are indeed subjective. I don't use mine for functionality but for eye candy and I don't stay on the home screen long enough to care about customizing it to perfection.

I think I've installed every launcher out there (free/paid) moreso to support the developer. Currently using Nemus launcher which has turned out to be the most minimalist of all. Suits me just fine.
 
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So Nova has more features than TSF or Next Launcher but is not as flashy?
They have many features that overlap, like page transitions, folders, etc. Where they differ after that is TSF has a lot of 'fancy' features, mostly relating to organization of icons, whereas Nova focuses on 'utility' features that I use regularly. Nova is not flashy at all, aside from maybe some of the screen transitions that you can choose.

Check out some YouTube videos of TSF shell to help decide if it's something that you might like:

TSF Best Launcher
DroidLife TSF Shell Overview
 
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They have many features that overlap, like page transitions, folders, etc. Where they differ after that is TSF has a lot of 'fancy' features, mostly relating to organization of icons, whereas Nova focuses on 'utility' features that I use regularly. Nova is not flashy at all, aside from maybe some of the screen transitions that you can choose.

Check out some YouTube videos of TSF shell to help decide if it's something that you might like:

TSF Best Launcher
DroidLife TSF Shell Overview

I like TSF Shell just because it looks and operates different than the other launchers. It doesn't have as many option as the other launchers (with the exception of SPB), but it's a different way to operate your phone.
 
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I like TSF Shell just because it looks and operates different than the other launchers. It doesn't have as many option as the other launchers (with the exception of SPB), but it's a different way to operate your phone.

Agreed. It's definitely different and interesting. If it was $2 I would have no problem recommending it, but at $17, I can't recommend it to anyone unless I'm absolutely certain they won't miss the features that are present in less expensive launcher such as Nova but absent in TSF Shell. It's definitely fun to play around with, though. Same goes for SPB Shell 3D.
 
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Agreed. It's definitely different and interesting. If it was $2 I would have no problem recommending it, but at $17, I can't recommend it to anyone unless I'm absolutely certain they won't miss the features that are present in less expensive launcher such as Nova but absent in TSF Shell. It's definitely fun to play around with, though. Same goes for SPB Shell 3D.

This is true.
 
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