Smart Launcher 6 is my favorite Android launcher

We are probably very similar with regard to launchers. I have bounced between them for years, trying everyone, I am enthusiastic about updates and then be disappointed when they offered nothing new. I paid for professional launchers and tried to go with the stock launcher locked on a Google Pixel, but nothing really stuck, until Smart launcher 6.

My Redmagic 10 Pro is my current daily pilot. However, his stock launcher is the definition of “just enough to get out of it”. It works, but it’s bland. I did what every Android owner does and went to a wave of launchers. I did not expect much when I landed on Smart Launcher 6. I had jumped it in the past, but this time he clicked. Now it’s my essential launcher.

What is Smart Launcher 6?

The launcher is developed by a group called The smart launcher teambased in Italy. They have been there since 2014 and have managed to remain completely independent and not funded. The team consists of around 50 people working remotely around the world, according to their website.

They create several interesting applications in addition to Smart Launcher 6. There is Icon Pack Studio, where you can design your own icon packs. And one of my favorites is The Drums, a groove station application that only provides incredible background rhythms.

The first thing that stood out when I loaded the launcher was the application drawer. Smart Launcher 6 does not throw all your applications in a single end list (one of the curses of Android). Instead, he automatically organizes them in categories such as communication, web, games, productivity, etc. I can even create new categories if I want, but I am satisfied with the default configuration.

Then there is the intelligent search bar. The developers were inspired by iOS here, because I can slide down the center of the screen and it will surface a search bar with certain applications that it might like to use. Application suggestions were a bit chaotic at the start, but after a few days to know me, the launcher became very precise. The search bar allows me to search everything, from the web to my device files.

Smart Launcher also learns what I use and when. I always open pocket molds in the morning after my bike ride and the launcher suggests it now. No need to open anything. Press and go.

A characteristic that took me by surprise was the news feed on the left. It works a lot like the old Google Now tab. I am an annual pro subscriber and with that, I can add my own RSS feed to the tab, and now when I slide on the left, I receive a personalized flow without ads.

Then there are pop-up widgets. I’m going to be honest, I have never been tall on widgets (especially on Android). I have the impression that they look bad, clutter the home screen and have no consistency between them. But Smart Launcher 6 has an intelligent solution. I can assign a widget to an application icon, then double-run this application on my home screen to open the widget. It is clean and surprisingly useful. My calendar widget has entered my calendar icon, and I put the weather widget to the clock.

Smart Launcher 6 visual design options deserve a special mention. Smart Launcher had a frosted glass look before Apple begins to speak of “liquid glass”. It is subtle and modern. In addition, features such as adaptive icons, night backups and an intuitive personalization panel make this polished launcher.

Nothing is perfect, and Smart Launcher 6 is not without faults. To start, many of its best features are locked behind a pro subscription. Fortunately, an annual submarine was cheap for me, about $ 30. I am happy to pay for something I really use, and I like to support the teams creating excellent applications.

It works of course my Nova Redmagic tablet, but it doesn’t make me impress like that on my phone. It does the same way, but that doesn’t really benefit all these additional real estate. I think there is a missed opportunity here to be the company that really cares about Android tablets. This would indeed put them in a very small minority of launchers.

The other day, I realized that I have not been to have a new launcher for months. Smart Launcher 6 has stayed on my phone (and tablet) longer than any other launcher for years. This corresponds to the way I use my phone instead of forcing myself to change my way of interacting with Android. I do not spend time having time with icon packs or arrangements.

It’s fast and intelligent. This makes my daily routine more fluid. I no longer keep half a dozen launchers on my device as a backup “just in case”. Smart Launcher 6 obtains fundamental principles and excels in transforming my device into a real intelligent tool. That’s all I want from a launcher.