Of course, not all widgets are made equal. The manufacturer clock and weather one is ever-present, but our poll showed that our audience uses a variety of widgets. More than half of you – 65 % to be exact, stated that you use multiple widgets. Unsurprisingly, weather ones were also quite popular with 16 % of the vote.
However, it seems that the days of a screen dedicated to email are over – none of our readers use email widgets of any kind. A small percentage also expressed their general dislike, saying that they don’t find widgets useful (9%) or that they just aren’t as good as they used to be (4%).
This sentiment was more heavily reflected in the comments, where our admin Mark, for example said: “I do not use them anymore and have not even thought about them in years.” Another reader, Dean L. shared that “the speed at which phones function at has made it unnecessary to use a widget for faster access to app features.” Others like Lary R., said that they still use widgets, but that developers just don’t support or release as many anymore.
Of course, there were polar opposite opinions, like that of Derek Faircloth who thinks that Beautiful Widgets Pro is a must. Regular Storm also shared that the Google Calender Widget is a ‘very important part’ of his life. Others also said music widgets, conversion rate widgets and others are essential for their Android smartphones.
As you can see, despite Slices set to replace them at some point in the future, widgets are still an important part of the Android experience for many users. What do you think? Do you agree with the poll results? If you feel like you have something to add to the discussion, feel free to do so in the comments below!
I use an app called KWGT to create my own custom widgets on my Android smartphone. The app has a sharp learning curve but it works well. I find widgets very useful and strongly believe they are a highlighting and very powerful feature of Android.
Suzana Maam what app(s) do you use to listen to music on your smartphone? Do you prefer subscription based / ads supported streaming services like Spotify or offline music file library and if it’s the latter what music player do you use?
I wish there was a poll enquiring readers about their music habits. Many users simply prefer to use YouTube for listening to music on the go.
Hey Ayushman. I prefer an offline music library. I use the Shuttle Music Player because it’s very similar to the HTC Music app I was used to. I listen to music on YouTube too though. Also thank you for the poll idea, it seems quite interesting. We might do a music-focused poll soon.
A strong result showing that the vast majority of people still use widgets. Yet the first quote in this article was to backup the author’s point that he didn’t use widgets. Which, of course, reinforces the idea that Andoird Pit’s writers don’t know what the heck is going on in the mainstream. Not surprising as most tech writers live or work in the Bay Area where any resemblance of mainstream left decades ago.
In the last 7 years I’ve always had three homescreens and more than 7 widgets: Calendar,Google keep, Music player, Weather, Mail, Facebook+ two or three more. I cannot imagine my device without widgets, they offer a quick glance, without the need to open an app.
The sad true is that most people don’t even know their existence. In my office there are 9 people, all of them on Android handsets, none of them using anything more than the stock appearance of the manufacturer. Most of the rest of the people I know do not bother to customize their phone either, they just buy it and use it as they are told to. And if you go to a "show us your home screen" thread in xda, you will also see how few people use widgets, and xda members are supposed to be "more power users" than the rest of the people.
Mr Mainstream, real pros most probably use stuff we’ve never heard of. Still, this poll was meant to check on the mainstream tendencies. Why moaning and complaining?
You’re assigning significance to the quote order where there is none. Most of the quotes included don’t support my claim and neither does the headline, but you conveniently ignored that. I also love the thinly-veiled insults and assumptions you make about me. I don’t live in the Bay Area and never have btw. Regarding the poll, since Google doesn’t release official stats on widget usage, it was based on personal observations – the fact that none of my friends or acquittances (yes, including some people in the editorial office) use more than 1-2 widgets anymore, when many among them did in the past. Of course, so-called ‘power users’ which are more likely to visit and comment on websites like AndroidPIT in the first place might have a different opinion/experience. That was the point of the poll. Even then, the poll results are not applicable to all Android users, just the readers of this website. You will find very mixed opinions on widgets on Android forums and subreddits, which also motivated writing the initial article. Finally, you are also assuming I have very strong feelings on the topic and I really don’t. If I did, I would just write an opinion piece called "Widgets are dead" and be done with it, instead of writing a poll article.
I am a little surprised by the results. I did not think the widgets were very popular any more. I think the main reason I do not use them is I like a clean home screen. I rather open what ever app I need than have a widget on the home screen.
Same here, surprised by the results. I to have been keeping my screens kinda clean and organized. But the results are making me think hmmm, maybe I should take another look at widgets when I have some free time.