Thanks to its ability to run custom launchers at the drop of a hat, the Android experience is one of very few limits. If you don’t like the look or functionality of your stock Android ROM, you can completely alter the experience to suit your needs by means of a home screen alternative. If you’ve always had your eye on the unique software quirks of the Sony Xperia range, but haven’t been as taken by the devices themselves, you can now enjoy the Xperia launcher on your device running Ice Cream Sandwich or above, thanks to the stellar work of the folks over at XDA Developers.
The Xperia Launcher port has been released for those running Android 4.0.3 and up, and includes a variety of great features previously specific only to those using an Xperia. For the benefit of those who’ve never interacted with an Xperia device, we’ll run through some of those features right now.
First and foremost, you can set up to eleven different home screens, and if you wish to alter the desktop and app drawer grid size, you can do so with relative ease. The widgets included are also resizable, and the desktop and app drawer also boast infinite scrolling.
If you want to hide apps from the app drawer (for purpose of keeping things a little tidier, perhaps), you can do so, and if you are familiar enough with your icons that you no longer require labels, you can opt to show or hide them on your desktop, dock or app drawer should you so wish. Moreover, if you prefer an icon pack from another launcher, you can easily load them in the Xperia Launcher, too. It currently supports icon packs and themes from Launcher Pro, ADW Launcher and and GO Launcher, among a plethora of others.
You can easily switch haptic feedback on or off (which is particularly handy for typing), and you can easily back up / restore your launcher settings if you’re kind of individual that likes to chop or change frequently.
To install, all you need to do is grab the .APK from the original thread.
Make sure to check out our Android Apps gallery to explore more apps for your Android device.
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