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summary
- Lawnchair 14 Beta brings exciting changes including expanded QuickSwitch support and global search functionality for smooth navigation.
- Featuring Smartspacer integration, this update brings improved customization options for Android launcher icons, fonts, and more.
- The Lawnchair team plans to add features such as a responsive settings interface, updated icon packs, and more customization options in future releases.
Despite its troubled past, Lawnchair is one of our favorite Android launchers. After one of the launcher’s core developers left the team in his 2022 year, its development nearly stopped, and no major release has dropped since then. That’s all about to change now, with the Lawnchair 14 beta version packed with many changes and improvements available for download.
Do I still need a third-party launcher for Android?
Of course!Pick a theme, baby
Based on Android 14’s Launcher3, Lawnchair 14 beta extends QuickSwitch support from Android 10 to Android 14. This allows you to customize the recent apps screen and enjoy smooth navigation gestures, but this feature requires root access to work. The team says that some exclusive features in Android 14 related to QuickSwitch, such as the taskbar, will not be available on Android 12 and earlier devices.
For non-rooted devices, Lawnchair 14 supports Google’s GestureNavContract API. It’s not perfect, but it allows for smooth gestures when using navigation gestures. If the device manufacturer disables the API, smooth animations will not appear on your phone.
Inspired by many devices and third-party system launchers, Lawnchair 14 adds global search support. This will allow you to search for contacts, files, device settings, etc. from the launcher. The team plans to improve this feature by introducing a new API for adding custom search providers and improving the interface with a Pixel-like UI.
By default, global search uses Starpage, a private search engine that doesn’t collect user data. The team also has a revenue-sharing agreement with them, which should help fund the launcher’s development.
Lawnchair 14 Beta Adds Smartspace Integration
Another notable improvement in Lawnchair is its support for Smartspacer, which aims to extend the functionality of Google’s At a Glance widget. Thanks to the integration, you can use his Smartspacer on your lawn chair home screen with animations and horizontal scrolling and enjoy additional customization options.
Other theme-related changes in Lawnchair 14 beta, as the team noted in the announcement, include:
- Ability to hide the dock
- Custom icon shape picker
- Adjusted icon pack picker
- Further customization of padding, color and size
- Support for more fonts
The Lawnchair team promises to pack even more features in the next release, including a responsive settings interface, an updated icon pack, the ability to disable the app drawer, more custom color options, drawer tabs, and more. Masu.
If you want to try out the latest Lawnchair 14 beta release, grab the APK from the launcher’s GitHub page.
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