Sony has been working on a Theme Creator for quite some time. When word of it first came about I was pretty excited. Unfortunately the ability to build those Xperia themes was limited to specific theme partners. It wasn’t all bad, there we a number of first run themes that were pretty cool. However, none of them really fit my personal desires. That is changing as of today though as Sony has announced, and released, the Sony Theme Creator Beta app for all aspiring theme designers or those looking for a specific look for your device but can’t find it.

While the Theme Creator is geared towards designers and such, the average person with some moderate computer skills can feasibly hop in the creator and pump out something pretty great. To get started you will want to head over to Sony’s Theme Creator page and download installer.

Source: Sony Theme Creator Via Android Police

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Last week it was leaked that Samsung could be looking at a way to theme its normally stoic TouchWiz UI. While the leak in question was questionable at best, it was still an interesting idea to consider what such TouchWiz themes would entail. As it turns out, that leak might have been right as a separate leak today has shown more evidence of TouchWiz themes existing. The above image shows the homescreen launcher menu which shows the very normal options of wallpapers, widgets and home screen settings, but also includes the elusive “Themes” option. And to make the case even stronger, the above image was accompanied by the following image:

As you can see, there are five theme options to choose from, each giving the TouchWiz UI some graphical differences. Seeing as these themes appear to change the icons in the dock, we can only assume that this theming extends to all of Samsung’s native OEM apps, though it may be a bit much to ask for the theme to also apply to downloaded apps. Still, it’s interesting to see what could come to pass in the Samsung ecosystem as some would say that it is well overdue for some overhauling.

What do you think about these TouchWiz themes? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Source: Instagram via SamMobile

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It’s probably a fair statement to say that Samsung‘s TouchWiz UI polarizes the Android community. Some love it, some don’t, but one thing is for sure: it doesn’t look like Samsung is getting rid of it any time soon. A rumour from HDBlog.it, however, suggests that while TouchWiz isn’t going anywhere, the Korean manufacturer could be warming to the idea of allowing TouchWiz themes, much like those offered by Sony with the Xperia Themes. This is what is allegedly shown in the image above, though it’s hard not to take this news with a grain of salt as the authenticity of the image cannot be confirmed.

The rumour goes on to say that these TouchWiz themes could be made available to devices very soon, possibly allowing for customization of things generally done with custom launchers like icons, menus, etc. For many, this could be the breakthrough they’ve been hoping for seeing how rigid Samsung has been with its user experience, but we’ll have to see if this rumour holds any water before we get too excited.

What do you think about the possible introduction of TouchWiz themes on Samsung devices? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Source: HDBlog.it via Phone Arena

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Android L is all the rage. We all want the Material Design look and feel today, not this fall. For many, this fall doesn’t mean a thing since we know carriers and OEM’s tend to be much further behind than Google. That doesn’t mean you can’t have bits and pieces of the what Android L looks like, minus the fancy little animations of course. If you happen to own an Xperia device then you are in luck. Candl Design recently released a theme specifically for us to use with the Xperia theme engine on our devices.

– Navigation bar icons
– Launcher and Lockscreen Wallpaper
– System colors
– Xperia™ Home components (require full version to get full experience)
– Platform Components: button, checkbox, dropdown list,… (require full version)
– Up to 270 graphical assets

The basic theme is free and gives you a few changes like the softkey changes at the bottom. The images above are from the basic free version of the theme. Where as the image below are of the paid version ($0.99). You can quickly see a number of changes like how the folders look, the radio button colors/looks and the slide out in the app drawer.

Xperia theme: L FREE

Xperia theme: L $0.99

The post Get a little Android L look and feel on your Xperia device with the L Theme from Candl Design appeared first on AndroidSPIN.

A few days ago, we heard about a certain rumoured ‘Project Moonshine’ that is apparently currently in development and will result in a Google core apps icon makeover. The icons partly appear to be more in line with the web versions of their icons, however are sufficiently different to be identified as the mobile versions. While there has been no solid evidence to suggest when (or if) these new icons will come into force, Brian Roberts’ new theme, the Project Hera Launcher Theme, will give you a taste of what Project Moonshine might look on your device now.

The Project Hera Launcher Theme is launching with a mere 60 icons, though these are mostly the core Google apps, as well as custom designed wallpapers and widgets. This is probably your best bet at seeing what the Moonshine icons will look like on your device, so if you’re interested, the theme is having an introductory sale for $1 only (Play Store links are below).

What do you think about the look of Project Moonshine? Are you going to pick up the Project Hera Launcher Theme and give it a try? Let us know how you find it in the comments.

Source: Google+

Theme: Project Hera Launcher Theme

Play Store Link

Price: $1.00

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Themer by MyColorScreen is a particular favourite among customization enthusiasts ever since its debut; Android has always been lauded for its customization capabilities, but the Themer app takes those capabilities and gives them steroids. And despite still only being in beta, the app has already been downloaded over 1 million times. Today, there is a Themer app update rolling out that’s going to make a lot of people happy since it is introducing dynamic icon scaling.

Changing your launcher grid-size in Themer has always been a double-edged sword; while you do increase your workspace, this often affects the scaling of your icons, sometimes ruining them altogether. The update to Themer is going to eliminate this inconvenience by adding some magic that will allow your icons to be resized correctly when you move them to your homescreen.

The full changelog for the new update:

1.44 (4/14/2014)

-Icons will now auto-resize to regular size for most themes when dragged from the app drawer to the homescreen. No more tiny icons.

-Improvements to pinch and two finger swipe gestures.

-Media Utilities updates ported to Themer Music widgets

-Other minor bug fixes.

A pretty nice update if you’re a heavy Themer user. If you do get the update, let us know how you find the new resizing. If you haven’t already got the Themer Beta, you can download it at the Play Store links below.

Application: Themer Beta

Play Store Link

Price: Free

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I haven’t been in the icon game for a long time, but when something catches my eye, I like to check it out. That’s exactly what happened when I first saw the Cryten Icon Pack by Viktor Vucinic. Also going by the tag Vertumus, Vucinic’s icon pack goes with a faded, almost Instagram filter-like appearance, which I think works really well with the included wallpapers, and creates a really nice, soft look to your icons which is a stark contrast to the more standard colour saturated icons. Let’s check out what they look like in person:

• 1280+ HD icons for your phone (144×144)
• Icon masking will theme all your unthemed icons
• Launchers support: Apex, Nova, Holo, Adw, Action, Cancel, Smart and many more
• Works with every launcher using unicon
• Many alternative icons to chose
• 33 HD Wallpapers
• Ability to change your app theme (Holo and Holo.Light)
• Languages: DE, ES, FR, IT, RU, PT, BR and SR
• Updates 1-2 per week
• Simple and minimalistic app interface in Holo style

You can pick up the Cryten icon pack on the Google Play Store now for $1.49 USD; Play Store links will be below. Also follow Viktor ‘Vertumus’ Vucinic on Google+ for sneak peeks of what he has coming next.

Icons: Cryten Icon Pack

Play Store Link

Price: $1.49

The post Cryten Icon Pack by Viktor Vucinic: Vertumus goes faded in this great icon Pack appeared first on AndroidSPIN.

I’m normally not much of an icon‘s man; in fact up until recently, I had still been using stock TouchWiz. But when I saw the Flatastico Icon Pack featured on someone’s homescreen screenshot, I had to have a look. The icon pack is created by Samer Zayer, creator of quite a few themes and other customization paraphenalia; check out Samer’s collection on the Play Store here. His Flatastico icons seem to take a much more pastel colour approach to icons which gives it an almost iOS-vibe. Obviously, that’s where the similarities end. Samer has customized pretty well anything that matters, with new additions incoming regularly. Check out the video I took earlier today to give you a bit more of an idea of what you’re getting in the icon pack:

The Flatastico Icon Pack is actually on sale at the moment for $0.99, so if you want to jump on this great deal, hit the Play Store page; links are below.

Icons: Flatastico Icon Pack

Play Store Link

Price: $0.99

The post Flatastico Icon Pack: We take a look at Samer Zayer’s work appeared first on AndroidSPIN.

JellyBean to the Extreme BigDX Style

I’ve been out of the scene for a little while, stopped in to see what was going on, and I was offered the chance to do a write up on a new icon set, when I heard it was by BigDX I had to jump at the chance.  After downloading and installing I’m in Icon Heaven.  I always love to do icon reviews because it’s great to have the opportunity to see how each developer interprets the design of the icons and how their personal touches give the icon sets a personality all their own.

This icon set is huge, at my best guess, I’d put it close to or exceeding 800 icons, that’s just incredible.  What else is incredible is the time and detail that each of the 800+ icons received.  I find myself just browsing through the app pages to see what icons are in the set, and while I haven’t made it all the way through, it’s still fun to look.  Ok, down to business.

BigDX has put out this icon pack app but it pairs up well with his JB Extreme Theme app perfectly.  So, (hint hint) pick that one up too.

The icon pack, as I said, is very well endowed.  As I’ve moved through the app and saw everything I could find, I took pics along the way so I would be able to find my way out again, without getting lost anyway.  This is what I found:

Multi Launcher support, ADW/EX, Apex, Nova, Action Launcher, Next, Atom, Go Launcher EX, Smart Launcher, Solo Launcher, and TSF Shell.  Each launcher has similar application attributes, Apply app icons and dock elements, but others have the ability to install app drawer elements, folder widgets, contact widgets, and launcher images to name a few.  The theme installs with a simple click and apply method, my 4 year old can do it, which makes installing these easy for anyone and I do mean everyone.

Show BigDX some love, his work is long standing in the Android Community and it’s developers like him that help make out Android Landscape that much better.  I have several of his themes and love them all, they get better with each release and even when I think that’s the top of the pyramid in quality, look, and feel…I am mistaken and the bar raises yet again with the next release.  What is on the horizon for the next BigDX release?  I am  not sure, but I am looking forward to it.

BigDX Contact Info:

Big DX G+ Page, BigDX Twitter Page, BigDX Blog, BigDX Play Store Page

Application: Jelly Bean Extreme Launcher Theme
Developer: BigDX
Cost: $1.99



Application: Jelly Bean Extreme CM11/AOKP Theme
Developer: BigDX
Cost: $1.99

The post [Review] Jelly Bean Extreme Icon Theme by BigDX appeared first on AndroidSPIN.

Tinkering, theming and changing our devices home screen have only become easier over the years. Custom home replacements, icon developers, creative apps like UCCW and Zooper all offer up some pretty amazing ways to make the look and feel of our devices unique. It is because of these apps and the creative genius of an ever growing community, that nearly every aspect of our devices can be toggled without hackery. While a lot of things are handed out on a silver platter to users, there are still a few things that require a decent amount of searching to find.

Over the weekend I started to play about with my set up, just a little. I figured it would be about time to make my screens look just a little different. I use Nova Launcher Prime, like many of you out there do. I installed some new icon packs, a couple new widgets to toy with and decided it was about time to change the folder icon that is on the screen. While Nova has a few basic folder background icons built in, I wanted something a bit more interesting.  Not being very image creative myself, I went out looking for Nova folder backgrounds. It was a little harder than I thought it would be to find some. That doesn’t mean I came up empty handed though.

I came across a post on RootzWiki from nearly a two years ago that had exactly what I was looking for. RW member jaydotelloh created 18 various folder background images for easy download and use. There are a number of colored rings to choose from. As an added kick there are is also Batman, Superman, Green Lantern and Captain America images as well. Here, take a look;

In case you have no idea how to change the folder background it is pretty simple. Follow these steps –

• Go to Nova Settings
• Tap “Folders“
• Tap “Folder Background“
• Tap “Custom“
• Select where the folder image is, Album is usually the easiest.
• Select the image you want and you are done.

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