Home
Nexus

Make Lollipop's Overview Screen a Lot More Colorful by Tinting App Headers

Mar 6, 2015 04:51 PM
635610064480747541.jpg

The Overview screen (aka Recent Apps) on Android got a huge upgrade when 5.0 Lollipop was released. Chrome tabs now hold separate entries in this multitasking list, which also got a nice new Material Design theme. One of the biggest changes, though, was a new API that allows apps to color the header on their entries in this list.

Unfortunately, not all developers are quick to adopt new features like this one. Many apps still have the default grey header, and look rather drab next to their colorful counterparts here.

So developer MohammadAG decided he'd take matters into his own hands. With his latest Xposed module installed, all apps on your system will have colored Overview headers—whether they've been updated to utilize the new API or not.

Requirements

Step 1: Install Tinted Recent Panels

To begin, head to the Download section of your Xposed Installer app and search Tinted Recent Panels, then tap the top result.

635610280285744170.jpg
635610280363869275.jpg
635610280285744170.jpg
635610280363869275.jpg

From here, swipe over to the Versions tab, then hit the "Download" button next to the most recent entry.

635610280661212907.jpg
635610280724181734.jpg
635610280661212907.jpg
635610280724181734.jpg

Within a few seconds, Android's installer interface should come right up, so tap "Install" on this screen.

635610281010121056.jpg
635610281065431362.jpg
635610281010121056.jpg
635610281065431362.jpg

Step 2: Activate the Module & Reboot

When installation has finished, you'll get a notification from Xposed telling you that the module hasn't been activated yet and that a reboot is needed. Tap this notification, then on the following menu, tick the box next to the newly-installed module.

635610281682308585.jpg
635610281741995090.jpg
635610281682308585.jpg
635610281741995090.jpg

From here, use the drop-down menu at the top of the screen to head to the Framework section. Next, tap the "Soft Reboot" button, then press "OK" on the popup.

635610282130901096.jpg
635610282202152448.jpg
635610282130901096.jpg
635610282202152448.jpg

Step 3: Additional Configuration

When you get back up, almost all of the apps in your Overview menu will have colored headers. The module should analyze your installed apps to see if they have implemented the new API, and if they haven't, it should match their headers to the predominant color used in the app.

If you encounter any apps that the module didn't automatically color, take a quick trip to your app drawer and launch Tinted Recent Panels.

635610283976056693.jpg
635610284436058645.jpg
635610283976056693.jpg
635610284436058645.jpg

Any apps with a checkmark beside their names in this list are already using the new API, and apps with a color superimposed over their entry were fixed by the module.

If you find an app that the module didn't fix automatically, simply tap its corresponding entry in this list. Or, if there's an app that the module fixed, but you'd like to remove the coloring, long-press the entry to do just that.

635610285608869014.jpg
635610285686525965.jpg
635610285814025440.jpg
635610285608869014.jpg
635610285686525965.jpg
635610285814025440.jpg

At this point, your Overview menu should be nice and colorful.

635610286704962783.jpg

Before

635610286776681714.jpg

After

635610286704962783.jpg

Before

635610286776681714.jpg

After

In the future, the developer plans to add an interface that will allow you to select custom colors for each of your apps, so keep an eye out for that update. In the meantime, which apps did this module fix for you? Let us know in the comment section below, or drop us a line on Facebook, Google+, or Twitter.

Comments

No Comments Exist

Be the first, drop a comment!