Something that annoys me immensely is how 99% of the launchers on f-droid are "type on the search bar to find the fucking app"
Personally, I use Fossify Launcher, which is "default android launcher, no bullshit"
this post was submitted on 21 Mar 2026
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that is what i am currently trying, seems to be working reasonably well and i swear it is faster than nova was.
there are some minor annoyances that are not really functional problem but will piss me off for some time (the icons of apps grouped into folder are far smaller than they could have been) and there is one big wtf moment, which is that screens do not wrap, so there is no left screen from the home one, resulting in number of screens being reachable of one slide cut to 50%, which is just... why?
I mean honestly that's one of the things I really like about these type of ecosystems is that I can just search for an app rather than scrolling through my hundred 150 whatever number of apps I have installed at this point.
that is why people have icons on the desktop. you do you, but i for one don't want to type the name of the app i am using on the daily basis instead of it being one click.
I personally hate icons on my desktop. Why close the app im using just to open another?
Why close the app im using just to open another?
because you can't use two of them at the same time? what does that have to do with method of launching that another app and comparing two clicks/gestures that can be done one handed, vs typing into some search box, which is a lot more complicated and longer operation?
Bro are you seriously telling me that you thought Nova was a privacy minded ecosystem?
i don't know about your bro. but i wasn't even remotely close to suggesting something like that.
I use lawnchair. From f-droid.
Fossify launcher is good and simple too. (Also on f-droid).
Lawnchair for me as well.
Back in the good old days Nova was actually one of the three apps I paid for. Can't say as I'm pleased about things with Nova going down the way they did, but I can't say as I'm too surprised, either. (The other two in case anyone cares are Torque and Alpine Quest.)
I guess I paid for nova too, a very long time ago (maybe when I was on android 4 or 5), I stopped using it because of some disturbing bugs. I didn't follow that much of its evolution after that. I kinda lost interest for custom launchers, as the ones from the phones I bought or the ROMS I installed were good enough for me.
I started looking for launchers again because I started using /e/os a few years ago, and I do not like their launcher at all.
Fyi, those consent banners are illegal in the EU.
You can file a complaint with a data protection authority: https://noyb.eu/en/your-right-lodge-complaint-article-77
do you have any experience, first or second hand, with whether filing such complaint is more than just waste of time?
Nova used to be great. Dropped them a couple years ago when they got bought by an ad company. Maybe it was longer ago. Now I have Lawnchair running on GrapheneOS and couldn't be happier until a more useable Linux phone OS comes about. I tried postmarket and it's cool as an alpha but it really wasn't daily usable.
Same. I miss Nova. No other launcher comes close.
Dropped this garbage a month ago and went over to lawnchair. This betrayal cuts me deep.
Those are rookie numbers
literally 984 😔
I downgraded my nova. I paid for premium and they still sneak in ads and background tracking bullshit.
I downgraded back to 7.0.58 recently, iirc the last version before they sold. Still looking for a comparable launcher that's not ad/privacy garbage.
Octopi became my Nova replacement.
Kvaesito
Niagara Launcher. I paid for pro. No regrets. Well, so far.
What I said about Nova pro a few years ago...
Exactly. I'll dump Niagara in a heartbeat if they start enshittifying.
Nova Launcher has been cooked for years, uninstall it if you care about your privacy. Maybe even install Graphene!
That reminds me, I really need to find an alternative to nova launcher, but for now grapheneos lets me deny network access to it completely, which helps a lot.
I'm a fan of Ion Launcher from Fdroid.
NeoLauncher feels quite like Nova for me.
that's what j switched to
Hyperion
My standard is "Fast Draw". F-Droid
The only limitation is you can only have one widget. So if your home screen is typically widget-heavy, this probably isn't for you.
It also only sorts apps alphabetically, but that's how I like it, so isn't an issue for me.
Olauncher anyone? I like clean list