Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. Guides

Don’t have a Pixel or Nexus? How to get the Oreo Launcher on any Android device

David Cogen
Nicole Edsall
By and
Recently, Google announced the latest version of Android called Oreo and promised to push it out to Pixel and Nexus devices. Unfortunately, for owners of other Android devices there is no telling
Recommended Videos
when Oreo will be available on any other phones.
Related

There is no need to fear, though. Some developers have figured out how to get the Android Oreo Launcher to devices it normally wouldn’t be available on. They ported the new Pixel 2.0 or Oreo Launcher to an APK file that can be installed on any Android phone. In case you are worrying, a Root is not required.

Reddit user Amir Z and another Android developer called DeleteScape were able to get this package to work on a number of Android phones that can’t normally get the update from the Play Store. Thankfully, this is not too hard to do on your own. To install the Oreo Launcher on your Android device takes a couple of easy steps, as you will see in this video.

Installation

First, you want to allow the installation of apps from unknown sources on your phone. To do this, go to Settings and tap Security. Once there, find Unknown Sources and slide the bar to the right to turn it on.

Next, go to the GitHub page at this link. Once there tap the Rootless Pixel Launcher 2.1 update and select the Launcher3-aosp-debug.apk download link. After the link downloads, tap it and then tap install.

Once the launcher is installed, tap the home button and select Always, so that Launcher3 will run every time you hit the home button. This basically sets Launcher3 as your default launcher. Then turn on notifications for Launcher3 when you are prompted.

Undo installation

Go to Settings, then open Apps. Once there find the Launcher3 app and select it. Tap Open by default and tap the Clear defaults button. When you hit the back button you will be allowed to uninstall Launcher3.

The Oreo Launcher is not that much different from the Nougat Launcher. There are small, subtle changes that make the new Oreo Launcher slightly better. Since the self-install is so easy to do, and undo, you might as well give it a try.

David Cogen, a regular contributor here at Digital Trends, runs TheUnlockr.com, a popular tech blog that focuses on tech news, tips and tricks, and the latest tech. You can also find him over at Twitter discussing the latest tech trends.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
David Cogen
David Cogen
Former Digital Trends Contributor
After always being the person my friends and family came to for help with their tech (see: resident nerd) and realizing how…
How to get emojis on your Android phone
Every emoji tells a story. Here's how to get the latest on your Android phone
emoji-feature-image

Emojis -- those tiny drawings depicting a full range of human emotion, natural habitat, and everyday life -- now function as a sort of pictographic Esperanto. Whereas in the past, emojis were just a fun way to add a smiley face to a casual text or email, they are now used as a bridge between different languages and cultures. While various forms of nonverbal expression can differ across the planet, a smile or a wink -- not to mention a cat with heart eyes -- is truly universal.

While iPhones were quick on the uptake, with Apple making beautifully designed emojis accessible for people in the West (following Japan, which has had the emoji goods in the mobile phone sector since the 1990s), some Android variations arrived a little late to the party. They're mostly caught up now, so here's the lowdown on how to get emojis on your Android phone.
Does your device read emoji?
Emoji is a system font, and must be supported in order for you to type and view characters. Some older Android devices do not see or read emojis, so first make sure that your device supports emojis by doing a Google search for the term Emoji on your phone. If everything comes up smiley faces, then your device is emoji enabled. If all you see are generic squares, then your phone cannot display emojis.

Read more
The Pixel 4’s coolest new feature means you don’t have to touch it
5 features i want to see in the google pixel 4

When Apple introduced Face ID on the iPhone X in 2017, many other companies were quick to launch their own version of the facial-recognition technology. Now, however, it looks like Google will include not only facial recognition on the Pixel 4, but will take it a step further by including gesture-based controls, essentially meaning that you can use the phone without even touching it.

Google showed off the tech in a new video posted to Twitter, and in a blog post in which a user can be seen unlocking the phone, then waving her hand to skip through songs on a playlist. This kind of tech could come in handy when your hands are dirty and you don't want to touch your phone.

Read more
People are buying 5G phones when they don’t even have 5G
qualcomm snapdragon 5g devices mwc 2019 phones moto z3

Mobile carriers have touted 5G as the next giant leap in wireless communication and technology, with expectations to impact health care, transportation, and robotics to name a few. Despite the buzz and pending implications, 5G is only available in select cities, and typically in even more select areas of those cities. That hasn’t thwarted people from buying 5G phones, though.

A new report from global research firm, Counterpoint Technology Market Research, states that the majority of 5G smartphone sales in the month of May came from areas that currently don’t have 5G service.

Read more