Tile Launcher Brings Windows 8 Experience to Android

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The Interface formerly known as Metro has made quite the splash since Windows Phone 7 was released a couple of years ago. However, the fact that it was Windows Phone that originally featured it has prevented many people from experiencing it. Android fans don’t want to spend money on a new phone just to try it, and desktop users who don’t like Windows don’t want to install Windows 8 to try it. Now, there is a new launcher that keeps the Android experience, while letting users try out the tile experience.

XDA Senior Member rob43 has released a new application called Tile Launcher. As with most Windows Phone-styled launchers, the idea is to try to emulate the Windows Phone experience on an Android device. Tile Launcher makes it possible to use tiles, but the experience remains mostly Android. Some of the features include:

– Based on stock Jellybean 4.2 Launcher

– Optimized scrolling. I know this gets thrown around a lot, but it should be very smooth on most devices.

– Completely customize any tile and defaults for new tiles

– Works with all Windows Phone and Windows 8 icons and tile backgrounds

– Shortcut/widget settings (title, text color, background color, images, transparency)

– Desktop settings, change rows/columns, gap size

– Wallpaper scrolling options

– Multiple screen (Work in progress – Long click drawer to toggle layouts at the moment)

As rob43 states, this is an alpha release. In other words, there are a few bugs to be ironed out and a few features to be fully implemented. That said, most users have reported a fairly good experience with Tiles Launcher. If you’d like to try it out, look no further than the original thread.