There are an incredible number of launcher apps out there to spruce up the home screen of your Android device. Many have certain special features, while some aim to be the best all-around launcher, or to be the most customizable. While Nova Launcher and Google Now Launcher currently rule the roost, there is certainly room for innovation and competition in the space, especially if that competition is fairly unique. Evie is aimed at taking the universal search feature from a novelty to a need by bringing it to a whole new level.
This deliciously different launcher does sport a traditional app drawer of sorts, but it’s squirreled away on the left side of the screen, accessible via a swipe in from the left edge. There, you’ll also find your widgets, which can be dragged and dropped onto your homescreens, and your settings, host to the normal crop of launcher settings like changing your wallpaper and icon set, as well as integration with Google Now and the option to ditch Evie for another launcher if needed. Instead of a drawer or swiping from screen to screen, the headlining feature of the app is a universal search bar up at the top that is truly universal, functioning much like the search bar on Windows 10.
The search bar is able to search the apps on your phone, as well as the contents of some apps. For example, searching “Janne da Arc” could lead you to a web search for the band, your Google Play Music collection of their songs or videos of them on YouTube. Likewise, searching for a contact will allow you to get in touch with that person, and searching for something local like “gas station” will show you the nearest one based on your location, much like doing so in Google Now. The app is fairly new, so integration isn’t the tightest it could be quite yet, leading to a bum search or a missing result here or there. A tap of the bar or quick swipe down will open up the universal search, while, if enabled, a swipe up will take you to Google Now. A swipe to the right brings you to the next home screen over, if you’ve set one up, and a swipe to the left from the main home screen will open up your app drawer, widgets and settings. The app is currently live in the Play Store, so if you’re a bit bored with your current launcher or want to try out the universal search function, head through the source link and give it a whirl.
