When you read Android what do you think? “Not an iPhone“? “Mmm, Ice Cream Sandwich“? “Good hardware“?

How about customization?

Android devices offer more then 100 times the customization of rival, Apple. With Android’s ever expanding market, customization has taken on a new dimension, allowing you to change almost everything about your device. If you are searching for “the next new thing” that will spice up your phone and make it yours, I’m here to tell you: search no more.

Did you know that you can change the layout of your home-screen, app drawer, and lock-screen all with one app?

Well, apps such as LauncherPro, ADW Launcher, Apex Launcher and GO Launcher can do all that, and more. Launchers allow you to customize almost anything on your device, including transition effects from one screen to another. From changing the grid size to the background color of your app drawer, launchers make your phone completely unique. Apex Launcher, for instance, can give you the look and feel of the brand new operating system, Android’s 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Experiment with these launchers and discover which one best defines you; it only takes a couple of seconds to set up!

Once you decide which launcher you want you can do even more. GO Launcher is well-known for the additional themes and widgets (calendar, email, text messaging) that are meant to work alongside their father launcher. In fact, the GO development team has an extra widget called GO sms that completely redefines the texting app, offering a fresh and up-to-date style that happens to be easy on the eyes. Through the market, you can explore all these different options then pick and choose which you think will make your phone really stand out.

If you want to give your phone a bright pink theme, a dark ominous theme, or even a Batman theme (ahem, @DonCrow) go right ahead and download one of these launchers. They’re all free.

Launcher apps are all about the freedom of choice and individuality. Hundreds of thousands of people are clamoring to get the latest iPhone, but do they have a phone that is all their own? We all want to leave our mark on the world and be valued for who we are. Customization is the ability to envision a new function – seeds of innovation.

Do you adjust your habits to fit technology or does your technology fit you?

Article by: Jonathan Deurlein, Imagineer Summer 2012 | jonathan.vpm@gmail.com