Anurag is an experienced journalist and author who’s been covering tech for the past 5 years, with a focus on Windows, Android, and Apple. He’s written for sites like Android Police, Neowin, Dexerto, and MakeTechEasier. Anurag’s always pumped about tech and loves getting his hands on the latest gadgets. When he's not procrastinating, you’ll probably find him catching the newest movies in theaters or scrolling through Twitter from his bed.
I use an aging Samsung smartphone that’s almost four years old now. I bought it in 2022, and it's slowed down over time. Samsung’s Galaxy interface isn’t helping much either. I want to optimize the phone so it handles my regular daily functions easily, including finding the right app, switching between apps, and keeping them organized. Although I can add a bunch of apps to the home screen, too many make it hard to find anything. So I have to be selective, keeping four or five apps on the home screen and depending on Galaxy’s app drawer to find the rest.
I recently replaced the app drawer with a custom launcher, and before I get into the details, let me admit how thrilling it is to write about custom launchers in 2026. I’m using Niagara Launcher. If you’ve ever considered tweaking your phone’s interface, you’ve probably heard the name, and Niagara has made my Samsung Galaxy easier to use.
Samsung’s drawer still requires you to browse a grid of apps
I don't want to search for my apps
Samsung lets me sort apps alphabetically, group them into folders, or arrange them manually. I generally prefer alphabetical sorting because I don’t want to organize every app I install. That keeps the order predictable, though finding an app further down the drawer still means scrolling through rows of icons. You can use search, of course, but I don’t particularly want to bring up the keyboard every time I need an app that isn’t on my home screen.
Niagara gives my phone an alphabet along the edge of the screen. If I want to open Spotify, I can tap S and jump straight to that group. I can also slide my finger along the alphabet to move through the list. This has been really useful for apps I don’t open frequently enough to keep on the home screen. I only need to know the name, not which page or folder I put it in. For example, I don’t use Uber often enough to keep it on the home screen, but I still need it regularly. The same goes for my bank’s app and apps like Shazam or LinkedIn.
There’s also a small detail about Niagara’s sorting that I find very useful. It groups apps by their first letter, then puts frequently used apps higher within each group by default. You can disable this if you prefer strict alphabetical ordering.
Samsung already supports vertical scrolling in its drawer from One UI 7 onward, so you don’t need to switch launchers just to get that. The alphabet is the more useful addition for me because it gives me a direct way to reach a particular part of my app list.
Niagara gives my apps a simpler home
It's a lot easier to use
Niagara’s home screen gives your favorites the most attention. They appear in a vertical list, with their names beside their icons, so you don’t have to spread shortcuts across several pages to keep them accessible. The rest of your apps remain available through the alphabet. This is similar to how you can keep certain apps on the home screen in Samsung's default launcher, but I find Niagara's approach more convenient.
Niagara can also suggest frequently launched apps below your favorites. Its algorithm usually keeps the combined number of favorites and suggestions around eight, although it can show more when it identifies another frequently used app. You can dismiss individual suggestions or disable them altogether if you prefer choosing everything yourself.
Samsung also lets you build a sparse home screen. You can remove shortcuts, put apps into folders, and leave most of the screen empty. What I prefer about Niagara is that the launcher is already organized around a small selection of apps and direct access to the full list. I don’t have to decide how many pages to maintain or which folder should hold an app that doesn’t fit anywhere obvious.
I also love that Niagara Launcher lets me admire my wallpapers. I like to use a photo of my pets, my partner, or a picture I’ve taken as my phone’s wallpaper. Samsung’s launcher, apps, folders, and widgets cover a lot of it, and removing them means sacrificing functionality for aesthetics. Niagara lets me strike a perfect balance.
Its one-handed navigation is a meaningful difference
You can control everything with one hand
One reason I stick with this phone is that it’s small. It’s a Samsung Galaxy S21 FE, and they don’t make phones like this anymore, especially in the Android world and in this price range. I do use other Android phones occasionally, but I primarily stick to this one because I can comfortably reach every part of the screen with one hand. That’s a key deciding factor for me. Niagara makes one-handed navigation even easier by letting you use the alphabet from either screen edge. The alphabet is visible on the right, but you can also scroll along the left edge to access your apps.
Niagara lets you navigate by letter without opening the search field and typing. Whether you find it more comfortable depends on how you hold your phone, but I prefer having app navigation along the edge rather than reaching across several columns of icons.
Niagara also puts notification text beside the app that receives it. You can read a preview from the home screen, swipe right on the app to access its notifications and shortcuts, and reply through supported notifications.
The swipe-out pop-ups add another useful layer. They can contain shortcuts, related apps, and widgets, so you can keep extra functions close to an app without leaving everything permanently visible. For example, a calendar widget can sit inside a pop-up instead of occupying a large portion of the home screen.
You don’t get everything for free
While Niagara has some interesting features, not all of them are available for free. You get basic folders and app shortcut pop-ups at no cost, but if you want to add widgets to pop-ups, customize an app’s pop-up to hold other apps, or display full notifications inside pop-ups, you’ll need to pay for Niagara Pro. Niagara also lets you keep a calendar available on demand without it permanently sitting above your favorites. That’s one feature I don’t mind paying for in Niagara Pro.