I was a Nova Launcher fan before I was an Android enthusiast, and the launcher has only gotten better over the years. Nova is a wonderful launcher for users at any level. Sure, I've spent my fair share of time on Action Launcher, Apex Launcher, and so many others trying to find what made my home screen the best it could be… and so far, the answer has been a resounding Nova. The benefits over other launchers can seem small, but in a launcher market that's as tight as this one, those small benefits can make a huge difference in the launcher that we've called one of the best things to happen to Android.

Robust Google Drive support

Whenever I change or reset phones, one of the first things I do on a phone after disabling Google Play Music and installing my apps is getting my home screen in order. On Nova Launcher, that process is ridiculously simple thank to Google Drive integration, and it makes pulling out a holiday theme year after year a breeze. Verizon is offering the Pixel 4a for just $10/mo on new Unlimited lines From the wallpaper picker to the Backup/Restore function, Nova Launcher can pull your launcher and theme elements straight out of the cloud. No downloading locally and saving to a particular folder, just tap Documents or Document Storage, swipe in from the left side of the screen, and tap Drive. Subgrid positioning

As a very particular themer, everything has its place on my home screen and I want it exactly in its place to avoid covering up the wallpaper or throwing off the balance of a home screen. Subgrid positioning in Nova Launcher gets you the consistency of a grid with just enough give to get your widgets and apps in just the right place. Subgrid positioning is like crack to a themer, and boy, am I hooked. Try lining up the Deadshot widget from our Suicide Squad theme on Google Now Launcher and then try it again on Nova. Arrange your home screen icons in a pyramid or honeycomb pattern in Nova Launcher. Subgrid positioning means that you can get everything exactly where you want it. Folder customization

Folders might seem ho-hum in Nova Launcher compared to Action Launcher's Covers, but I've got a secret for you: Nova Launcher can do Covers too, and do them better. Long-press a folder, Edit it, and tap Swipe to open folder to enable it. Want to have the tap open something other than the first app in the folder? Sure thing. You can set the tap action on your swipe folder to any app, shortcut, or activity Nova allows for its gestures, which is a lot. Another benefit to Nova's folders is in their visual customization. If you want to make a folder look like anything but a small grid or stack of icons in Action Launcher, you have to enable the folder's Cover, then change the icon of that first app in the folder. Nova doesn't care what's first in the folder, or whether you're using a swipe folder, you can set your folder's icon just like any app. As someone with folders occupying most of her dock, this is quite a valuable feature to me. More: Making the most of home screen folders Gesture selection and placement

Gestures are in a lot of launchers, but no one, not even Action Launcher, does them as well as Nova Launcher. Remember how you could assign any shortcut as a swipe gesture to a folder? You can do that with any app shortcut, too. This means that even without the App shortcuts in Android 7.1, you can add a shortcut to your Inbox icon that takes you straight to composing a new email. You can add a gesture to your dialer icon that direct dials your mom — in fact, you should go do that right now. Then we have one and two-finger gestures to use on any blank space on our home screen, like double-tap and two-finger swipes. My double-tap gesture is set to something new, and I'm already in love with it. My HTC 10, like many phones, has double-tap to wake, and double-tap to sleep on certain screens. Unfortunately, third-party launchers are not one of them. Well, Nova Launcher recently added a shiny new gesture option called Screen lock. While it can't instantly power off the screen, it turns the screen black for five seconds before using screen timeout to shut the screen off for real, and it works fabulously. App drawer organization