One of the biggest reasons why we tend to love Android is its open source nature which allows us to customize our phones as and how we want them to look, feel and behave. So, from being able to use custom launchers to changing the font of our phones, from playing around with a variety of widgets to numerous icon sets, we can safely say that every aspect of our Android experience is customizable.
While we can configure and customize each and every element of our phones individually, most of us also tend to like having a unified design for our device which brings me to the topic of themes. A well designed theme can not only add beauty and class to your phone but also make the whole experience of using it more consistent. Today we present some of the best themes going around which will enhance how your phone looks, giving it a beautiful makeover.
Where Do Themes Work?Before we begin, it needs to be pointed out that these themes can only work on custom ROMs which contain the “Theme Chooser” feature. However, most of the popular AOSP ROMS available — like CM10/10.1, AOKP, ParanoidAndroid, BAMF Pardadigm, Eclipse, XenonHD, VanirAOSP, LiquidSmooth, Baked Blackbean, SlimBean, Snapblack, JBSourcery, AffinitySeries, PAC-Man, Xylon, Rootbox, CarbonRom, CodeName Android, and many more — have the theme chooser built-in. And if you are unsure on how to find and select a new ROM, my colleague Joe already wrote a wonderful article detailing out the exact process you need to go through.
Where to Find Themes?Like most apps that we install, the one stop shop for all themes is the Play Store. While you can find hundreds of different themes by searching and looking around there, it is a tedious and time consuming approach. Making this affair much easier and efficient is Theme Chooser Themes by JRummy Apps Inc. which lists out all the available themes in a nice, detailed layout complete with screenshots and other information. You can filter and sort the themes based on their price, rating, download count, compatible ROMs, and so on, thereby making the process of choosing a theme less of a trial-and-error approach.
How to Install Themes?Installing these themes on your device is an easy and simple process. You will need to:
Download and install the theme to your device as you would any other app.
Apply the system theme first.
Select and apply the downloaded theme from the Theme Chooser app — even if it says it’s not compatible with your device.
Often you may encounter an “Improperly Compiled” error on applying a theme, just reboot your phone and your selected theme should be easy to apply and working.
Top Android Themes in 2013
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