ssLauncher – Fresh & Innovative twist on Home Screen Replacement Android Apps
by Paul Wilks
May 17, 2012 12:56 PM –
Install
ssLauncher is an original and innovative “magazine style” homescreen replacement app. Featuring a unique format, a wide variety of themes and plenty of intuitive features, the app is a refreshing alternative to the extremely familiar launchers we see elsewhere.
Price: Free, ~$3.15 for full version
Tested on: HTC One X
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Innovative look and feel!
- Incredibly smooth and responsive!
- Highly customisable!
Cons
- Big shift from the typical Gingerbread/Ice Cream Sandwich based launchers you probably use.
- Takes some getting used to.
Features:
ssLauncher is a refreshingly innovative and fun launcher for Android devices. I often find it tricky to review launchers because I don’t want to leave anything out- there are typically lots of features and only so much can be written. The same applies to ssLauncher, so I’m going to simply talk about the things that you, as the end-user, will notice first, and build from there. Needless to say however, the app takes some exploring to really get the most out of it- but it’s definitely worth the effort.
Firstly, you’ll notice that ssLauncher has an entirely different look and feel to perhaps any other launcher you’ve ever dabbled with. Bold fonts and unique homescreen design, incredibly slick transitions between screens and an entirely new way to organise your homescreen experience, epitomise the initial thoughts you might have. You start on your homescreen and sweep right, initial settings gives your favourite apps, all your applications on one scrollable page, contacts, browser bookmarks and finally the app credits. Transitions are incredibly smooth and it feels like a highly polished product. There’s no dock, no hidden app draw and widgets can be seemingly overlapped and placed however you wish. Immediately it just feels many miles away from the rigorously formatted 4×4 grids you will have been used to. I wholeheartedly endorse innovation and I love the brave attempts to mix things up with ssLauncher- it really is a completely unique experience. Whether it’s perhaps too big a leap from where we are now is perhaps down to users themselves.
Like many launchers, there are a variety of themes which can be downloaded from the Google Play Store and most look pretty cool. It would seem many third party devs have gotten involved and there is plenty of choice both free and paid for. ssLauncher is big on customisation and there are lots of things you can do to make your homescreen experience even more unique. A good example of this is when you add a shortcut to your homescreen. While you can just have it as the typical icon, you can also choose to have text or various tile shapes and sizes. It’s perhaps this level of choice and customisation that could make the launcher a favourite among Android modders who like to tweak and personalise their homescreen to a much higher degree.
ssLauncher is an app you really have to explore and play with. It provides various tools on a rich canvas that really lets you personalise your homescreen as you see fit. I think if you are really into customisation, this is a superb resource and worth getting stuck into. It might arguably be too big a leap into the unknown for more inexperienced users, although the default settings make it quite easy to play with initially. Very occasionally I found navigation to be a bit puzzling and it took a while to get used to using the launcher. I found it as big a move from ‘traditional’ launchers as I did with TSF Shell Pro yet perhaps far more customisable. Like some of the most popular alternative launchers out there, such as ADW Launcher EX and Launcher Pro, there is a free version of the app to play with first before you buy the fully-featured version.
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ssLauncher – Initial homescreen
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ssLauncher – Menu
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ssLauncher – Menu, More option
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ssLauncher – Applications page
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ssLauncher – Add shortcuts to homepage
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ssLauncher – Page management
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ssLauncher – Download themes from Google Play Store
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ssLauncher – Various themes
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ssLauncher – Transition effects
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ssLauncher – Alt theme, transition
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ssLauncher – Bookmarks page
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ssLauncher – Settings 1
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ssLauncher – Settings 2
Usefulness:
If you favour deep personalisation on your homescreen (the main interface in your Android experience) ssLauncher is an awesome app to explore and play with. It’s highly customisable and offers very many options, settings and tweaks.
Ease of Use:
I think it’s a big leap away from what we traditionally see with an Android launcher. Gone is the normal dock and app drawer, in comes overlapping widgets, rich textured themes and shortcut tiles. It’s a little tricky getting used to at first so not the easiest app to use, but I imagine many users will argue the practice is rewarding.
Frequently Used:
If it replaces your existing launcher, it will be the most used app on your device.
Interface:
The interface is new, refreshing and very different. It’s remarkably smooth and responsive. I did notice the occasional glitch where something seems to get ‘stuck’- screens sometimes freeze momentarily or you feel like you’ve lost your way a little, but this is infrequent.
Tags:
ADW Launcher EX,
Android App,
Android Apps,
AndroidTapp.com App Review,
Custom Android Home Screen,
Custom Home Screen,
Customisation,
Home Screen Replacement App,
Homescreen,
Launcher,
launcher pro,
sslauncher,
TSF Shell Pro
Categorised in: Personalization
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