The Good:
- Large icons and text
- Simple, bright, easy to see interface
- Great for elderly or visually impaired people
The Bad:
- Could do with it’s own apps to go with the launcher (Gallery etc.)
- Icons on homescreen should be customisable and changeable.
Market Stuff:
Rating: 4.3 Stars
Updated: October 14th, 2011
Current version: 1.3.3
Requires Android: 2.1 and up
Category: Personalisation
Installs: 500 - 1000
Size: 397k
Price: UK£0.99
Content Rating: Low Maturity
The Review:
When it comes to launchers on Android, there is a massive array of choices: the stock Android experience, ADW.Launcher, LauncherPro and Go Launcher to name but a few. These are all very well, but with their small text and icons what if you are visually impaired?
In comes BIG Launcher to save the day. As the name suggests, this particular launcher has big icons and text. To start, the Launcher has two themes (above): A light theme and a dark theme. The dark theme is suitable for Retinitis pigmentosa, which is a group of eye conditons that lead to incurable blindness.
The homescreen consists of a clock with date and time and six icons. These six icons have different uses: The phone icon displays a list of My Contacts, Dial Number, Add Contact, Starred and a list of recently called people. Pressing any of these brings up their respective app.
Pressing the clock launches the Alarm clock app. The Mail icon brings up a list of recent messages and the option to write a new one. The camera icon brings up the camera application, and the photo frame icon brings up the gallery app. The SOS icon allows you to send an emergency text or make an emergency call (more on that later). Lastly, the final icon brings up a list of applications on the device.
BIG Launcher also allows the device to be tilted in to landscape mode, so it is useful when docked, or when being held horizontally, as seen above.
BIG Launcher features a massive amount of settings, for various functions. It can be set up so a SMS with a certain message can be sent to a specific person when the SOS button is pressed. Even the GPS location of that device can be added to the message. Another option is an SOS call to a person who has been entered in to the settings. These functions are great for people who could be under risk day to day due to their job, or just when passing through a dodgy neighbourhood.
The Launcher has a an extremely large amount of languages, which includes: english, bahasa melayu, česky, dansk, deutsch, ελληνικά, español, français, 한국어, हिन्दी, italiano, magyar, nederlands, 日本語, norsk, português, polski, русский, suomi, svenska, tiếng việt, türkçe and 中文（繁體).
You can’t fault this Launcher; it is a great Launcher for people with eyesight problems or people who find other Launchers too complex. And, at only £0.99 (about $1.5) it is great.
Click this link to buy the Launcher: Android Market: Big Launcher
