Emerald Launcher

Emerald is a simple home screen for Android phones. It aims good performance while providing basic customization support.

Downloads

F-Droid

Google Play

Features

• Icon pack support;
• App and web search;
• App categories;
• History of last launched apps;
• Resizeable layout.

To do

• Oreo+ shortcuts and package service;
• Some bug fixes and improvements.

How to use

• Swipe left or right to switch categories;
• Tap on category name to see the list of categories.

How to compile

There are multiple options:

• Gradle;
• In Termux:

Some packages should be installed

$ pkg install aapt apksigner dx

If your Android version is 7.0 or higher

$ pkg install ecj

Otherwise

$ pkg install ecj4.6

Then navigate to the emerald project folder and run the script (it is recommended to edit paths in it first)

$ chmod u+x termux-build.sh
$ ./termux-build.sh

Questions and answers

I've disabled the main bar and can't access settings now. How do I open them?

There are some methods to open settings without the main bar:

• Use Launcher Settings shortcut (pre-Oreo only).
• Press Recents/Menu button on the navigation bar(provided by system). Some devices may have different ways (For example, holding Back button on Galaxy phones).
• Use ActivityLauncher. Choose All activities > Emerald Launcher > .Options

Is it possible to use Emerald as an app drawer?

Yes.

Will Emerald Launcher support widgets?

The launcher is most likely not to introduce widgets in future updates.

Does it support physical keyboards?

Partially. It isn't possible to do some actions (e.g. launch apps from menu), though some are available with keyboard shortcuts:

• Alt + number to launch n-th app/shortcut from dock.
• Alt + Up to open the categories list.
• Alt + Left/Right to switch categories.