Why Are Android Launchers Becoming Less Popular?

Android Launcher is the software shell that controls the appearance and feel of the app drawer and home screen of Android OS. Working on an Android-powered Smartphone without using a Launcher is close to impossible. Provided by the device manufacturer by default, Android Launchers come in a range.

One of the reasons for the extensive popularity of the Android operating system is the endless customization it offers to the user. Android Launchers form a part of such customizability. Moreover, it is possible to use third-party launchers for Android phones. This in fact is the primary factor that enables Android devices to be more customizable than any other mobile OS.

Despite all the customization possibilities and ease-of-use, Android Launchers are not so much popular as They Once Were

What are the Reasons for the Decreasing popularity of Android Launchers?

The popularity of third-party launchers appears to be declining among Android App Development Companies of late. The below-mentioned factors are the major reasons that cause this:

Third-party launchers are ridden with performance issues

If the third-party software has not been optimized properly, it will lead to performance issues when installed. Any additional software which has to run on the system will need operative memory in the RAM and also storage memory in the device’s internal memory.

Moreover, to run additional UI layer, processor cycles will be required that might result in loss of performance when needed, such as in gaming. While certain launchers might appears to be great, they may not have been created by skilled and experienced developers.

Most of the free third-party launchers have been written by independent developers and testing them on individual Android devices will not become ever possible.

These reasons leads us to issues such as memory loss, system lags, and battery drain in certain type of Android devices when third-party launchers are installed, especially when proper care is not taken to configure properly for the specific device.

These factors make people using budget phones to avoid installation of third-party launchers within their devices, as their phones have weaker processors and less memory. The problem of software bugs that causes performance issues is very much possible when launchers are used on even high-end devices.

Custom ROMs

Custom ROM in Android parlance is software firmware that an Android device often runs on. It is based on Android platform that is from Google. ROM in Android devices is a customization of Google’s default Android firmware.

Android being an open source, the firmware can be customized by people. It can be redistributed as custom ROM. It is possible to get custom ROMs created for the specific devices installed by making use of firmware flashing tools.

Custom ROMs are preferred over the third-party launchers because they offer greater level of customization which is not possible by Android Launchers.

It is possible to customize every single element in the Android system using custom ROM. This includes device performance along with unlimited customization. The rise in custom ROMs such as Lineage OS and others that have led to the decline in Android Launcher usage. Read More...