Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

Nokia’s innovative Android launcher gets a huge update and opens up to new users

Published Jul 30th, 2014 9:20AM EDT
Nokia Z Launcher

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

We called Nokia’s first Android app “wonderfully simple and shockingly innovative” when we gave the world its first look at the sleek Z Launcher app back in June, but the app was only available as a limited pre-beta at the time and Nokia quickly filled all available slots. Well, we have good news and bad news. The good news is that the Z Launcher app just received a major update and opened up to a new wave of pre-beta users at the same time. The bad news, however, is that you can only get in if you had previously signed up for access to the app.

Z Launcher is Nokia’s first big post-smartphone project. Developed by a team within the Nokia Technologies group, the app is an intelligent Android launcher that puts the apps and contacts you access most frequently front and center on your screen.

Following BGR’s coverage of Z Launcher, Nokia was flooded with requests from eager Android users who wanted to try it out. The company opened its pre-beta up to far more people than it had initially wanted to, but the requests kept coming in.

If you were among the unlucky people who didn’t get into the pre-beta back in June, however, Nokia confirmed in a blog post that you can now sign up for access to Z Launcher.

Also of note, Nokia said in a separate blog post that Z Launcher has just received a big update that adds a good amount of new functionality including the ability to drag and drop favorites, the ability to remove or uninstall items with a long press, and better support on a couple of popular phone models.

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 15 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.