I turned my Android right into a Home windows Telephone, and I do not suppose I am going to return

I’ve examined a variety of smartphones through the years, together with fashions from Asus, Google, Samsung, and Apple. Nevertheless, one kind of cellphone I by no means had the chance to check, which I deeply remorse to today, is a Windows Phone.

The final Home windows Telephone to be launched earlier than Microsoft gave up on them was the Windows Lumia 650 in 2016, which was powered by Home windows 10 Cellular, an working system developed by Microsoft for its smartphones. One of many standout options of Microsoft’s cellular OS was its distinctive tile design for its residence display screen. Was it the fanciest design on the planet? No, however it was simplistic and attention-grabbing, and I discovered it significantly fascinating as somebody who has primarily used a Windows PC all their life.

With Microsoft ending support for Windows 10 quickly, it bought me immediately serious about the Home windows Telephone once more, and its distinctive sq. residence display screen. Then the thought occurred to me, there should be a third-party Android launcher accessible that resembles the Home windows Telephone in some capability, proper?

The reply is sure, and the one I have been having fun with utilizing essentially the most is named Square Home. Over the previous few days, I have been experimenting with it to rework my Galaxy S25+ right into a Home windows Telephone-like expertise. Whereas I really like the feel and appear of One UI 7, one thing is charming concerning the simplistic tile design that Sq. House affords, which is a pleasant throwback to the Home windows Telephone period. Here is the best way to arrange Sq. House in your Android system, and why you may not need to swap again to your default launcher after utilizing it.

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Sq. House offers you the Home windows Telephone expertise

You possibly can customise all of the tiles to your liking and add widgets

To get began with Sq. House, you may obtain it totally free from the Google Play Retailer. After putting in, you will see two apps: Sq. House and House choices. Once you faucet Sq. House, it instantly opens the launcher, permitting you to start out customizing your tiled residence display screen, much like a Home windows Telephone (as seen within the picture above).

So as to add totally different apps, faucet the plus button on the backside of the display screen. From there, you may add apps, shortcuts, launcher actions, dividers, tile teams and extra. To rearrange or resize the app tiles already on your house display screen, merely faucet and maintain them, similar to you’ll on the default Android residence app.

I selected to maintain my calendar and the time on the prime of the display screen, and I positioned the apps I exploit most frequently all through the day — equivalent to Gmail, Google Messages, Spotify, and Chrome — close to the highest as nicely. What I like about Sq. House is that you may customise the colour of the tiles to match your model and make every app tile stand out. Widgets are additionally supported, so you may add an indicator on your battery, a photograph collage, or another Android widget if you want. Sq. House additionally incorporates a distinctive app drawer, positioned below Functions, which organizes all apps into tiles. A search bar is included for simply discovering any app in your system.

Sq. House additionally affords one other distinctive function, much like what the Home windows Telephone had, referred to as Reside Tiles. These are a kind of tile that robotically shows notifications from its corresponding app. As an illustration, I’ve X (previously Twitter) on mine, and with Reside Tiles enabled, it robotically shows notifications from the app, equivalent to direct messages I’ve acquired. It additionally works for a lot of different apps, just like the Telephone app, the place you may view any missed calls by the Reside Tile.

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Tips on how to set Sq. House as your default House app

It is an ad-free expertise, however you should buy premium options

Once you obtain Sq. House, you additionally get one other app referred to as House Choices in your system. Opening this reveals extra customization choices for Sq. House, together with adjusting tile sizes and types, organising gestures, deciding on your wallpaper, and extra. On the prime of the House Choices display screen, you will see an possibility referred to as Set default residence, which robotically directs you to the Settings menu in your system to set Sq. House as your default House app. Alternatively, you may change your default launcher at any time in your Android system by going to Settings > Apps > Select default apps > House app.

Though Sq. House is not a 1:1 remake of the Home windows Telephone, it’s a trustworthy adaptation, and its tile design genuinely evokes its nostalgia. Not like another third-party Android launchers, Sq. House is totally ad-free, so you will not be seeing intrusive advertisements on a regular basis should you set it as your default launcher.

That stated, it affords an choice to pay yearly for $2 or a one-time lifetime price of $6 to unlock extra premium options (marked with inexperienced icons within the settings). These embrace the flexibility to arrange extra gestures, totally different tile animations, change the font, and far more. Once you first arrange Sq. House, you do get a 14-day free trial to check out the premium options, so you may at the very least attempt them and see should you like them or not with out having to pay.

Though I’ve by no means personally used a Home windows Telephone, Sq. House permits me to expertise what it may need been like to make use of one. Its tiled design gives a refreshing various to the standard residence screens on Android and iOS. After utilizing it for the previous few days, I plan to maintain it as my default launcher for the foreseeable future. Should you’re a Home windows Telephone fan, you would possibly really feel the identical after testing it out. It is simple, and I’ve had no bother accessing all my apps and going about my each day routines with Sq. House. It will be nice to see Microsoft launch an official Home windows Android launcher sometime, however that is in all probability an extended shot.

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