Action Launcher 3 has been renamed and it has added new features and fixes as part of a big update that started hitting devices recently. This includes actual new features and a list of improvements, as well as some bug fixes that all work together to make this a fairly large update to the application. While certainly not the most key change, Action Launcher 3 is now just called Action Launcher and to go along with the new name the app has been given a new icon design as well.
Beyond renaming the app and giving it a new icon design, users will notice that the Google Clock icon in Action Launcher mimics the same animated visual that it does on the stock Pixel Launcher with the most recent developer preview of Android O. If you look at the icon you should see a moving second hand that travels around the clock. The animation is also present for both the app icon that you’ll see on the home screen as well as a standalone clock widget, and it works as long as the device has at least Android Lollipop installed.
Another new visual changes is the use of the design for App Shortcuts on the Pixel Launcher, which will now be replacing the previous visual style of the shortcuts that were known as QuickCuts. In addition, App Shortcuts are having their uses expanded as you can actually take an App Shortcut and place it on the home screen as a regular shortcut, and you can use App Shortcuts with the Shutters and Covers features. Alongside all of these new features there are a number of features which were only available to Plus users of Action Launcher prior to this update which have now been made accessible to free users as well, which should give more users an incentive to give this third-party home launcher a try to see how it compares to what they may currently be using. As for bug fixes, open folders weren’t displaying shadows for some users like they should have been but this has now been corrected, and the update also includes the general stability fixes that come along with almost every update for every app which means the launcher should just run more smoothly following the update installation. If you haven’t given Action Launcher a try yet, you can grab it from the button below.