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Widgets have been a staple of the Android operating system ever since they were introduced in version 1.5 of Google's platform. They are a great way for Android to show off its customization flexibility, allowing a home screen to be made as functional as possible and tailored to the user's needs.
But with so many widgets out there, finding the really good ones can be tough. That's why we've done the hard work for you. Here's our selection of 15 Android widgets that you should try – from weather and clock widgets to toggle switches and news readers. And yes, all of them are free, so there's nothing stopping you from giving them a try.
As always, the comments section below is open, so feel free to let us know which are your favorite Android widgets, or if you know of a great Android widget that we should have included on the list.
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1Weather
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If you're more into clock-weather combos and minimalist clocks, here's the free edition of Beautiful Widgets. It contains tons of customizable widgets across multiple sizes, from small and compact to large, fit for the screen of a tablet.
Download
Download
Beautiful Widgets Free
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With the Contacts+ widget, you have quick access to your favorite contacts – you may initiate a call, send a text, or simply access their information. The widget can be resized to fit your home screen, and the list of people is scrollable, so you can fit as many people in there as you wish.
Download
Download
Contacts+ Widget
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With Zooper Widget you can make your own, personal widget displaying the current time and weather conditions. System info, such as uptime, next alarm, SD card space, Wi-Fi network name, cell operator, signal strength, and connection type can be included as well.
Download
Download
Zooper Widget
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As the name implies, this widget lets you control the sound volume levels on your phone – the ones for your ringtones, alarms, media, and notifications. The screen brightness can be fine-tuned as well.
Download
Download
Slider Widget – Volumes
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A flashlight widget is one of those tools that every smartphone should have installed. Just tap on it and it turns your camera's LED light on, providing bright light when it is needed.
Download
Download
Pure Flashlight
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Power Toggles is a highly customizable widget with toggle buttons for many of your phone's functions. You can control over 40 settings, including Wi-Fi, mobile data, Bluetooth, and GPS. You may also add custom application and system shortcuts. Designs include a classic strip of buttons and a 1x1 folder-like widget which expands when tapped.
Download
Download
Power Toggles
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The Days Left widget is for counting down the days until important events - birthdays, vacations, you name it.
Download
Download
Days Left Widget
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Here's a widget that helps you keep track of your data usage. It counts how much data your phone has consumed over Wi-Fi or 3G/4G.
Download
Download
Data counter widget
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To stay in the know, you need an RSS app like Feedly, and Feedly comes with a very handy widget for your homescreen. It displays your feed's latest news and lets you flick through recent items with a tap.
Download
Download
Feedly
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Are you a Twitter person? Perhaps you should give Plume a try, if you haven't done so already. The widgets it comes with lets you keep track of your feed, mentions, and messages.
Download
Download
Plume for Twitter
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Keep is one of the best apps for taking notes, and the widget that it comes with makes it easy to write down stuff when you have to. Images and sounds can be attached to your notes as well. The widget's list of notes is scrollable so you can easily go through all your saved notes.
Download
Download
Google Keep
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The next time you come across a word you're not familiar with, just use the Dictionary.com widget to look it up. As a bonus, the widget displays a "word of the day" with its definition.
Download
Download
Dictionary.com
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To stay on top of the hottest stuff on the internet, you need Reddit, and Reddit Now is a great Reddit client for Android devices. The large widget for your homescreen delivers the top news straight at your fingertips.
Download
Download
Reddit Now
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And last but not least, here's a handy calendar widget for keeping track of your agenda. It displays a list of upcoming calendar events so that you can easily have a glimpse at your upcoming appointments. Tapping on an entry takes you right into your calendar.
Download
Download
Calendar Widget
Must-have Android widgets
Any phone's home screen needs a quality weather widget - a widget like the ones bundled with 1Weather. They are compact, yet elegant and loaded with useful weather data, such as the current temperature, the expected daily highs and lows, and probability of precipitation.
Download
Download
Must-have Android widgets
1. 1Weather
Any phone's home screen needs a quality weather widget - a widget like the ones bundled with 1Weather. They are compact, yet elegant and loaded with useful weather data, such as the current temperature, the expected daily highs and lows, and probability of precipitation.
Download
Download
2. Beautiful Widgets Free
If you're more into clock-weather combos and minimalist clocks, here's the free edition of Beautiful Widgets. It contains tons of customizable widgets across multiple sizes, from small and compact to large, fit for the screen of a tablet.
Download
Download
3. Contacts+ Widget
With the Contacts+ widget, you have quick access to your favorite contacts – you may initiate a call, send a text, or simply access their information. The widget can be resized to fit your home screen, and the list of people is scrollable, so you can fit as many people in there as you wish.
Download
Download
4. Zooper Widget
With Zooper Widget you can make your own, personal widget displaying the current time and weather conditions. System info, such as uptime, next alarm, SD card space, Wi-Fi network name, cell operator, signal strength, and connection type can be included as well.
Download
Download
5. Slider Widget – Volumes
As the name implies, this widget lets you control the sound volume levels on your phone – the ones for your ringtones, alarms, media, and notifications. The screen brightness can be fine-tuned as well.
Download
Download
6. Pure Flashlight
A flashlight widget is one of those tools that every smartphone should have installed. Just tap on it and it turns your camera's LED light on, providing bright light when it is needed.
Download
Download
7. Power Toggles
Power Toggles is a highly customizable widget with toggle buttons for many of your phone's functions. You can control over 40 settings, including Wi-Fi, mobile data, Bluetooth, and GPS. You may also add custom application and system shortcuts. Designs include a classic strip of buttons and a 1x1 folder-like widget which expands when tapped.
Download
Download
8. Days Left Widget
The Days Left widget is for counting down the days until important events - birthdays, vacations, you name it.
Download
Download
9. Data counter widget
Here's a widget that helps you keep track of your data usage. It counts how much data your phone has consumed over Wi-Fi or 3G/4G.
Download
Download
10. Feedly
To stay in the know, you need an RSS app like Feedly, and Feedly comes with a very handy widget for your homescreen. It displays your feed's latest news and lets you flick through recent items with a tap.
Download
Download
11. Plume for Twitter
Are you a Twitter person? Perhaps you should give Plume a try, if you haven't done so already. The widgets it comes with lets you keep track of your feed, mentions, and messages.
Download
Download
12. Google Keep
Keep is one of the best apps for taking notes, and the widget that it comes with makes it easy to write down stuff when you have to. Images and sounds can be attached to your notes as well. The widget's list of notes is scrollable so you can easily go through all your saved notes.
Download
Download
13. Dictionary.com
The next time you come across a word you're not familiar with, just use the Dictionary.com widget to look it up. As a bonus, the widget displays a "word of the day" with its definition.
Download
Download
14. Reddit Now
To stay on top of the hottest stuff on the internet, you need Reddit, and Reddit Now is a great Reddit client for Android devices. The large widget for your homescreen delivers the top news straight at your fingertips.
Download
Download
15. Calendar Widget
And last but not least, here's a handy calendar widget for keeping track of your agenda. It displays a list of upcoming calendar events so that you can easily have a glimpse at your upcoming appointments. Tapping on an entry takes you right into your calendar.
Download
Download
Download