Develop Bugs

Most Power Efficient Launcher on ICS

I have not been happy the battery life I've been getting on ICS roms for a long time now. So I decided to a test based on Badass Battery Monitor numbers.
I started with Nova Launcher. In badass monitor under apps usage mostly it was under the top 3 applications at end of each day, the other 2 mostly being phone and temple run(lol i'm an addict) sometimes even topping them also which came as a surprise to me. Its a real shame, as I really liked this launcher. Its very smooth and has feature of having folders under app drawer ( a feature i really miss on apex)
I tried go launcher also briefly since that's what I used in GB days and found that its power usage to be similar to nova. I only tested it for a day though.
Then I tried Apex Launcher, its the most power efficient. In badass battery monitor, it usually present in middle of the list below 5-6 spots. Although I must say, I have noticed home screen redraws on Apex quite often. I never seen them on nova or go launcher. I guess it can be fixed with v6 supercharger, but still I miss no folder under app drawers and fast transitions on nova. It would be great if its dev can implement it soon.
I would try out default Twiz launcher for next couple of days and see how it goes..although not a big TW fan myself..
BTW i'm on darkside evolution [v1] ROM (based on tmo stock) and have LDE radio (the one which came with last GB update). The latest UVLE1 i feel was causing a big battery drain for me.
It would be great if more people can share their findings to determine the best launcher wrt battery.

Mafioso said:
I have not been happy the battery life I've been getting on ICS roms for a long time now. So I decided to a test based on Badass Battery Monitor numbers.
I started with Nova Launcher. In badass monitor under apps usage mostly it was under the top 3 applications at end of each day, the other 2 mostly being phone and temple run(lol i'm an addict) sometimes even topping them also which came as a surprise to me. Its a real shame, as I really liked this launcher. Its very smooth and has feature of having folders under app drawer ( a feature i really miss on apex)
I tried go launcher also briefly since that's what I used in GB days and found that its power usage to be similar to nova. I only tested it for a day though.
Then I tried Apex Launcher, its the most power efficient. In badass battery monitor, it usually present in middle of the list below 5-6 spots. Although I must say, I have noticed home screen redraws on Apex quite often. I never seen them on nova or go launcher. I guess it can be fixed with v6 supercharger, but still I miss no folder under app drawers and fast transitions on nova. It would be great if its dev can implement it soon.
I would try out default Twiz launcher for next couple of days and see how it goes..although not a big TW fan myself..
BTW i'm on darkside evolution [v1] ROM (based on tmo stock) and have LDE radio (the one which came with last GB update). The latest UVLE1 i feel was causing a big battery drain for me.
It would be great if more people can share their findings to determine the best launcher wrt battery.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apex FTW

Apex is my choice right now, Go has never been a choice for me.... On non ICS roms I would run with LauncherPro, and with ICS based roms I would run Apex. Both have amazing battery life for their respective platforms

I dunno .. I'm quite fond of adw ex.. Nice folder windows, smooth, doesn't kill the battery..
Sent from my SGH-T989 using Tapatalk 2

I'm going to have to go with Nova launcher
I usually have on average 0.6% usage with badass battery monitor. Ive seen TW launcher use up tp 20% battery so i would go with Nova or Apex

Rocking Nova as well, Prime version. Very silky...reinstall after I flash Chimera tonight.
TerrorCandii Gaming uses ASUS/Samsung

^^ I don't disagree, nova is best of the lot with respect to features/smoothness, but it consumes too much power..
Even without looking at Badass battery numbers, with Apex Launcher battery do seem to drain less a lil less..

Man I'm trying to switch to Apex from Go but the lack of folders in the app drawer is a big deal breaker right now...
Apex - not as stable/redraws - low battery
Nova - bit smoother but drains a bit more...
what to do what to do...!

jasopan said:
Man I'm trying to switch to Apex from Go but the lack of folders in the app drawer is a big deal breaker right now...
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I totally agree with you. I tried Apex and loved it but found myself going back to go launcher due to the ability to create folders.
I like to keep my homescreen clear and have a lot of apps. Folders in the app drawer helps me keep everything organized.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA

MikeYuse0406 said:
I totally agree with you. I tried Apex and loved it but found myself going back to go launcher due to the ability to create folders.
I like to keep my homescreen clear and have a lot of apps. Folders in the app drawer helps me keep everything organized.
Sent from my SGH-T989 using XDA
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Click to collapse
Yup!
But I know Nova has folders in the Prime version and I wouldn't mind paying but the scrolling seems a bit fast and un-natural compared to Apex. I guess all we can do is wait. Or maybe but folders in the homescreen

Nova Prime
Nova Prime All The way . I have tried a few others but always Vome back to it . I was never a big Fan of GO!!
as for battery drain I never noticed a huge difference in What Launcher im running ...

[Q] Larger app dock?

Hey guys, is there an app I can download that will replace my current dock with a scrollable one (like the one in stock android roms)? I've tried Apex Launcher but I didn't like the fact that I have to re-create all m folders and also it wasn't running smoothly on my HOX (the carousel was lagging), so I'd rather download an app instead of a launcher. Thanks in advance!

I would have said apex launcher. I'm using it now and it is the most lag free launcher there is. One huge benefit using a launcher like this is that it restores your folders and set up nicely with titanium if you are constantly flagging ROMS.
Give it another go as they did have a recent update.
Otherwise try Nova or zeam launcher.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app

I am using GO Launcher EX with all the other apps that comes with it ( GO SMS,GO Keyboard,Go Contacts,GO Locker,etc) and i don't have any problem with it.Runs smoothly with all the effects and doesn't take up more than 60 MB or RAM.In my opinion it is the best launcher out there.Don't know why but i didn't feel that vibe with Apex if you know what i mean.

jeyml said:
I am using GO Launcher EX with all the other apps that comes with it ( GO SMS,GO Keyboard,Go Contacts,GO Locker,etc) and i don't have any problem with it.Runs smoothly with all the effects and doesn't take up more than 60 MB or RAM.In my opinion it is the best launcher out there.Don't know why but i didn't feel that vibe with Apex if you know what i mean.
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Click to collapse
Just tried GO Launcher EX, Zeam Launcher and Nova launcher.
Go Launcher EX:
Considering the fact that I just want a larger dock, GO Launcher EX isn't for me, it's too chaotic with all its features.
Zeam Launcher.
There's something to this launcher's scrolling that I don't like.
Noba Launcher:
I actually liked this one, I find it perfect! But there's one more thing. How energy efficient is it? I don't want it to waste more battery than Sense which already wastes too much battery! Are there any statistics about battery consumption?

Why don't you try UCCW(Ultimate Custom Clock Widget)?It's the best out there and there is a whole topic of clocks made here on XDA:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1912545
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1694879

jeyml said:
I am using GO Launcher EX with all the other apps that comes with it ( GO SMS,GO Keyboard,Go Contacts,GO Locker,etc) and i don't have any problem with it.Runs smoothly with all the effects and doesn't take up more than 60 MB or RAM.In my opinion it is the best launcher out there.Don't know why but i didn't feel that vibe with Apex if you know what i mean.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
jeyml said:
Why don't you try UCCW(Ultimate Custom Clock Widget)?It's the best out there and there is a whole topic of clocks made here on XDA:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1912545
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1694879
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do clock widgets have anything to do with what I'm asking?

Energokinetic said:
Are there any statistics about battery consumption?
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A different launcher shouldn't really have any more or less battery consumption. Anyway, afaik Nova is a bit lighter than Rosie in terms of RAM etc.

a704e said:
A different launcher shouldn't really have any more or less battery consumption. Anyway, afaik Nova is a bit lighter than Rosie in terms of RAM etc.
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Click to collapse
Thank you!

HOX launcher lag(not Sense)?

Hello, I was planning on changing the launcher on my HOX but all the launchers I've tried seem to be lagging when switching panels on the home screen(jittery animation when switching panels). The launchers I've tried were:
Nova Launcher
Apex Launcher
Go Launcher EX
Holo Launcher
Zeam Launcher
The only launcher that runs smoothly is the stock Sense one but I want a launcher with a scrollable dock! I've googled this and all the results were about lag on the Sense launcher, which I have no problems with. I doubt that my phone's hardware can't handle a launcher. Any ideas as to what causes this problem or a fix?

Energokinetic said:
Hello, I was planning on changing the launcher on my HOX but all the launchers I've tried seem to be lagging when switching panels on the home screen(jittery animation when switching panels). The launchers I've tried were:
Nova Launcher
Apex Launcher
Go Launcher EX
Holo Launcher
Zeam Launcher
The only launcher that runs smoothly is the stock Sense one but I want a launcher with a scrollable dock! I've googled this and all the results were about lag on the Sense launcher, which I have no problems with. I doubt that my phone's hardware can't handle a launcher. Any ideas as to what causes this problem or a fix?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The HOX has some incredible hardware. So its surely not the hardware.I myself used the pro version of apex launcher for some time and it works smooth. I think you have a lot of background apps running. Disable some background apps.. that will free some memory.

anks257 said:
The HOX has some incredible hardware. So its surely not the hardware.I myself used the pro version of apex launcher for some time and it works smooth. I think you have a lot of background apps running. Disable some background apps.. that will free some memory.
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How much RAM do I have to have free for it to run smoothly? I Currently have 300 megabyte free worth of ram and it's still lagging! The only running apps (according to the task manager) are:
Android core apps
Apex launcher
BetterBatteryStats
Battery Widget
Package Access Helper
FlexNet
SmartcardService.
Also, whenever I end the processes of some apps (like settings, dropbox, calendar and some others), they re-open themselves a few minutes later, what's up with that?
Update:
Oh, I doubt that it's memory related, the menu screen switching is super smooth, if it was RAM related it would be affected too

Anyone?

If menu screen is working smoothly then it's an app problem. Try reducing the number of widgets you have kept on each screen and see if that helps.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium

Funny thing is, there are no widgets on any of the panels, is there by any chance that I have a faulty hardware? (which still sounds kind of impossible since the Sense launcher runs smoothly)

Same here with my HOX+. Sense runs smooth, but there are too many limitations, so I run Apex.
I've only one widget on the screen. I think, it's a Apex problem.

Which launcher?

Just wondering what launchers people are using on their zenfones? Do you stick with zen, use google now, or one of the other launchers? I like Zen well enough, and it's nice to have double tap sleep functionality in any space across the home screen, but on the other hand Zen is kind of wasteful of space, which negates the effect of having a large screen.

I'm using Google Now Launcher and I use Gravity Screen to turn screen on and off. Works well and doesn't seem to drain battery badly.

Out of the box launcher in use here and it's the smoothest launcher I've ever used... and I've used quite a lot. This device is truly a pleasurable one to use.
Sent from ASUS ZenFone 2

The zen launcher is OK, but I keep going back to ADW.

NOVA Launcher
I use Nova Launcher. It's the best. It's pretty light as well.
the double tap to sleep and double tap to wake works well with this launcher as well.

Nova Launcher here too!

nova launcher

Hi , How you enable double tap functionality in Nova launcher?

harpreet.s said:
Hi , How you enable double tap functionality in Nova launcher?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use soft lock screen
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Free mobile app

Nova launcher prime here....

The Google Now launcher is pretty good, so is Nova launcher.

I am still a fan of the ZenUI launcher. Very smooth, lots of features.

Google now, double tap still works on the lock screen, haven't rooted it yet but got used to do the greenify+lock thing.
Edit: Just found by mistake that double tap to lock still works on the status bar, no matter what are you running in the foreground.

crack HTC Blinkfeed (sense launcher) working very well...

TSF Launcher 3D Shell works fine

Dodol Launcher or Smart Launcher 3
I used to always use SL and when I got this phone I started running SL3 on it. Works great if you like the way SL changes how your phone's basic functions work. I was looking for something a little more simple and since then, I installed Dodol Launcher. I run it with status bar and dock both hidden, and instead just use gestures to open app drawer, launcher menu and notifications. For me, it feels really nice running it like this.

Have been using the stock Zen launcher in the new single layer mode for a couple of days now. Really like it - simple, clean and very fluid, with an economy of swipes and taps needed to do stuff. It's like iOS (and therefore appeals to my ocd need for neatness and the symetry of a nice grid ) but is better because you still have all the Android/ASUS UI customisability if you want it.

I use action Launcher 3

+1 For Nova Launcher Prime, most tweakable, very light 25-35Mb RAM and very fast. :good:
I was using SlimLauncher (Lightest I have tested other than my poor man's MTK 5Mb Launcher LoL) from slimroms with another phone and for ~5Mb more RAM you get all these with Stock ROM since SlimLauncher does barely has any customization or a settings app. Never looked back again for over a year since using Nova.
Asus Launcher is not bad. It necessitate an option to reduce all these visual effects and decrease the heavy RAM usage versus Nova Launcher Prime.

dan8541 said:
I use action Launcher 3
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Click to collapse
Same here, I was using Nova Launcher but I like the simplicity of Action Launcher 3

Grid

Hi all I would like to increase my grid pattern to something like 6 by 6. Is there a way of.doing this as I want to use the stock launcher.

dieselhazza said:
Hi all I would like to increase my grid pattern to something like 6 by 6. Is there a way of.doing this as I want to use the stock launcher.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're rooted, you can try one of the versions of my modded pixel launcher here: https://forum.xda-developers.com/pixel-2-xl/themes/mod-pixel-2-xl-launcher-mods-8-1-0-dp1-t3701939
There are no six-by-six versions, but I do provide instructions on how to do that to yourself, if you wanted to. I would also be willing to make you one customized to your liking.
The only non-root option I'm a aware of is a launcher called Lawnchair, which is very much like the stock launcher, except it's got some options. I'm not sure if changing the grid size is one of them though, you'd have to research in the Lawnchair thread to find out. Lawnchair can be installed even if you have the original stock launcher installed.
Other than that, if you're not rooted, you would have to go the custom launcher route to adjust the grid.
Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using XDA Labs

Nova launcher also allows you to change the desktop grid :good:

Badger50 said:
Nova launcher also allows you to change the desktop grid :good:
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Click to collapse
Agreed. Why go through the trouble of a rooted method when Nova Launcher can do it and you can still have the stock launcher feel.

Thread cleaned, you can relax now :good:

Would Nova launcher cause battery drain compared to stock launcher. Would I end up using more juice running nova launcher

dieselhazza said:
Would Nova launcher cause battery drain compared to stock launcher. Would I end up using more juice running nova launcher
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Not that I've ever noticed. Been using Nova for 5 years now without issues :good:

dieselhazza said:
Would Nova launcher cause battery drain compared to stock launcher. Would I end up using more juice running nova launcher
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Seems to only uses battery when you're on the homescreen. This screenshot of from nearly 16 hours off the charger. I think that goes for any launcher. I would be really suspicious of a launcher if it drained while in the background.