New to the NOTE-Launchers

[BerryBlack96]

Hello everyone,

I just recently bought a note to hold me over untill the GS3 comes out. And I must say it is helping me cope with the wait. I love this device. I just installed go luancher last night and like the layout better than touchwiz. Looks much better in my opinion

My question. What launcher do you prefer and why? And if you already use go launcher what are some widgets and customizations you suggest. Feel free to post your screen shots

Edit: Also what are some ways to improve the batter life? I have installed Dr. Saver but use the web a lot and seem to always have this thing on the charger.

Any other must haves and suggestions for a noob would be appreciated also. Thanks!!

 

[epidenimus]

I got a chuckle out of your post, so I thought I would share why.

To answer your first question, I prefer Zeam Launcher and ADW. Lots of features, very clean, and great dev support. they're also pretty lightweight in terms of resources. Go Launcher is cool too, but it's almost too much and needs a lot of resources.

I think there are several battery life threads within every device section but the gist is as follows:

1. Tune the display down to a comfortable level, not full on, unless it is needed.
2. Turn off GPS, Bluetooth, Wifi, and 4G if you are not using them or no signal is available.
3. Use wifi instead of 3G/4G if available.
4. **Remove apps & widgets that take constant CPU cycles & network, such as facebook, weather, news, etc.
5. If rooted, consider using an aggressive governor to scale down CPU speed when not needed.
6. If rooted, adjust the phone settings to not search for home carrier when it is not available.

There is no end to battery tweaking apps, but the main battery killers are still display (the Note has a nice big hungry one) and the device trying to find signals/networks that are not available, then finally the 3rd party software.

 

[BerryBlack96]

I got a chuckle out of your post, so I thought I would share why.

To answer your first question, I prefer Zeam Launcher and ADW. Lots of features, very clean, and great dev support. they're also pretty lightweight in terms of resources. Go Launcher is cool too, but it's almost too much and needs a lot of resources.

I think there are several battery life threads within every device section but the gist is as follows:

1. Tune the display down to a comfortable level, not full on, unless it is needed.
2. Turn off GPS, Bluetooth, Wifi, and 4G if you are not using them or no signal is available.
3. Use wifi instead of 3G/4G if available.
4. **Remove apps & widgets that take constant CPU cycles & network, such as facebook, weather, news, etc.
5. If rooted, consider using an aggressive governor to scale down CPU speed when not needed.
6. If rooted, adjust the phone settings to not search for home carrier when it is not available.

There is no end to battery tweaking apps, but the main battery killers are still display (the Note has a nice big hungry one) and the device trying to find signals/networks that are not available, then finally the 3rd party software.

Ya I can see how that could get annoying as well. I have the brightness turned down. I just surf the web so much cuz of the this huge georgous display. I am also new to android so I appreciate you not being a jerk about it. I am coming from an iphone that had no trouble lasting the whole day. I have definitely been converted becasue of the note though!

 

[epidenimus]

I am coming from an iphone that had no trouble lasting the whole day. I have definitely been converted becasue of the note though!

Yeah, the battery life is something they really got right with iPhones. Lasting a whole day with most Androids is no problem if you turn off what you are not using. If you go further down the rabbit hole, custom ROMs can really improve your battery life, too.

BTW, welcome to Android and AC!

 

[BerryBlack96]

Yeah, the battery life is something they really got right with iPhones. Lasting a whole day with most Androids is no problem if you turn off what you are not using. If you go further down the rabbit hole, custom ROMs can really improve your battery life, too.

BTW, welcome to Android and AC!

Thank you for the responses and the warm welcome.

Rooting and ROMS is something I would like to get into but I am afraid of messing something up. I guess I have not done enough research on the subject. I would like to root it so that I can get rid of this bloatware and use the phone to its full potential.

Is the note on of the easier phones to root? I am afraid of bricking it :/

 

[willgfc]

i rooted my note easily enough, there are plenty of guides online if you're interested.
i have tried several custom roms on my old desire hd, but i've been reluctant to try anything but the official samsung roms on my note because i don't want to lose the full s-pen functionality.

one of the best custom roms is cyanogenmod, though there isn't yet a "stable" release for the note. i put stable in quotations because the so called development versions of these roms still tend to be pretty stable, they're just not the finished article so the devs will always warn against using them as a day to day rom.

back to your original question, until ics i used adwex almost exclusively, although golauncher is nice too.
i did find all custom launchers to be very laggy on the note though compared to the stock touchwiz launcher. since upgrading to ics though i've moved to nova launcher for the ability to add widgets from the app drawer which is a new feature of ics. also any launcher i've tried since upgrading has been way more snappy and responsive. really it's down to personal preference, different launchers have a different look and feel, just use the one you like the best.

 

[bobvanjr]

How do you switch between launchers? I have ADW EX but haven't used it yet. If I set it all up and want to switch back to the stock launchers where do I go in settings to do that?

Is there a way to disable the stock launcher so that it isn't using resources by running them both at the same time? Maybe that isn't how it works but it seems like it is.

Thanks!

 

[Noel66]

If you go into Settings - Applications - ADW EX Launcher,

In that window, you will find a "Clear Defaults" button, after you hit that, hit the home button and it will give you the option to choose between your installed launchers.

There are also apps in the market that do this for you.

 

[lordliu]

Give Apex Launcher a try if you're rooted and on ICS. This launcher only works with ICS.
There's a free version in the market too.
I bought the pro and it's great!
Pro version gives notifications on the icon (ie. # of new emails, sms)