How to turn your Android mobile into Windows XP with a launcher, theme and wallpaper

The fever for mobile personalization has returned this 2020 in a way thanks to iOS 14. On Android it is possible completely change the system forever (we talked to you about a Windows XP launcher in 2012), although what is carried today are more the simple launchers similar to Google.

A curious way to personalize a mobile is to copy the appearance of another system, such as Windows XP. Disguise your Windows XP Android mobile It is very easy and only requires you to use a few applications for it: we will see how it is done.

First, the launcher

If you want Android to behave similarly to Windows XP, the easiest thing is to install a specialized launcher. You can find several on Google Play, such as Computer Launcher 2, free although with ads.

By default, Computer Launcher has a theme more similar to Windows 10 than Windows XP, although we will change it in the second step. What you can change is to disable interface elements that do not make sense if you are imitating Windows XP, such as Cortana’s presence or the Contacts section on the taskbar.

You can change this setting in the launcher settings, accessed by a long tap on the home screen, under Settings. Inside, in the section Advance Features, you may remove Cortana from the taskbar (disabling Enable Cortana) and remove the Contacts button (disabling * Show Contacts *), which will help clear the taskbar a bit.

Then the topic

Computer Launcher 2 leaves the mobile looking very similar to Windows, as it includes the taskbar, the Start menu and the Desktop, but there is something missing: Windows XP style. It is not pre-installed, although from the launcher itself you can access to install it from Google Play.

To do so, tap on Theme on the desktop to go directly to the launcher’s theme settings. In the list you will find the Windows XP topic, at the bottom. Tapping on it will open Google Play for you to download.

If you already have it installed, when you touch it you can apply it by pressing Apply. The change is immediate and you can see how the taskbar, the start button and the icons that are displayed on the desktop now have the style of Windows XP.

Finally, the wallpaper

The Windows XP theme for Computer Launcher 2 includes a kind of minimalist copy of the classic Windows XP wallpaper, but if you want the original Windows XP background, you will find it basically anywhere collection of wallpapers.

First, you must download the background to your mobile and then set it as your wallpaper. In Computer Launcher, the process is the same as in other launchers: a long tap to open the menu and then Wallpapers. In the menu that opens, tap Gallery to choose the Windows background you downloaded.

At this point, your mobile should look very similar to Windows XP or, at least, to an alternative version of Windows XP adapted to mobile. The launcher has its own start menu that acts as an application drawer, support for widgets and even a File Browser styled after its Windows namesake.

This will undoubtedly give your mobile a unique touch, although remember that it is a launcher, so the rest of the applications will be shown the same as always. Computer Launcher 2 is a free application though contains ads. To remove them you must make a single payment of 1.39 euros.

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How to turn your Android mobile into Windows XP with a launcher, theme and wallpaper

was originally published in

Xataka Android

by
Ivan Ramirez

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