There are several custom launchers for your Amazon device to improve user experience and navigate easily through different apps and functions. The Wolf Launcher is one of the best custom launchers for Amazon devices compared to the default launcher. It has a simple, clean, and organized look.
With the Wolf Launcher, you won’t suffer from Amazon sponsored ads. The launcher has a nice status bar and even allows you to customize the background to your liking without using file names.
In this detailed Wolf Launcher walkthrough, I’ll show you how to install the custom launcher and address some of the common problems other people have faced using the launcher.
How to Install the Wolf Launcher
One of the best things about the Wolf Launcher is that you can easily install and customize it on your Amazon device without any form of manual typing.
You only need to tweak a few things to enhance its performance and customize it to your liking. You can even install the launcher on older versions of the Firestick. So where do you get the custom launcher?
Before you download the Wolf Launcher, go to the Settings section of your device and enable apps from unknown sources. Then go to the WST Filelinked store. You’ll need to have the Filelinked app already installed on your device.
After you have installed Filelinked, launch it and then simply enter the following WST code: 11111111 or basically type 1 eight times.
Install the Tivo Wolf Launcher app.
Open the launcher right away.
Here is the default Wolf Launcher interface with all the apps you have already installed in your device.
Launching the Wolf Launcher on Startup
To launch the Wolf Launcher every time you start your Firestick, you’ll need another app called the Launch on Boot app. As its name suggests, the app allows you to choose any app that you want to launch every time you wake up your device.
It can easily be downloaded from the Filelinked store, using the same code as when installed the Wolf Launcher (11111111). Take a look and search for Launch on Boot file.
Hit Install.
Go to Open.
To confirm everything is working fine, press TEST, and Wolf Launcher will instantly launch.
You can go ahead to restart your device to make sure that Launch on Boot is working as expected.
When Wolf Launcher opens in its default form, it won’t have a custom background and will show large icons. It looks too plain and somewhat boring and will, therefore, require some tweaking to change a few things and customize the launcher to your liking. These are some of the common issues that most people have reported about the launcher.
Let’s now look at a few things that you can do to customize your Wolf Launcher to your preferred style and look.
Changing the Wolf Launcher Background
As previously mentioned, when you install and launch the Wolf Launcher for the first time it will have a boring look with large icons and no custom background. It will also lack that extra space normally found at the top of your screen that allows you to fully appreciate your new background.
There are several things that you can do to customize your background. The easiest way of doing it by first opening up the downloader and type into the search box: 1080p wallpaper.
Click on GO and the Downloader app will do a Google search for your query and provide you with several pages where you can download your preferred wallpaper in 1080p resolution. One good example is Unsplash. Go ahead and open up Unsplash and choose a nice theme for your wallpaper.
Once you find a good wallpaper, click on Download. You’ll get a confirmation telling you the folder the wallpaper has been downloaded to. Click DONE then navigate back to your custom launcher.
If you want to use the wallpaper, simply press the context key on your remote. Scroll down to Launcher Settings.
Go to Wallpaper.
Enable the Application Wallpaper option (it will show a green dot when enabled).
Then click on Select Wallpaper, click on allow to give permissions.
Navigate to the Internal Storage option.
Search for the Downloader folder.
Open the folder and select the wallpaper you had downloaded and saved inside the folder. When you click on the file, your new wallpaper will instantly be loaded on your device.
One thing you’ll notice after launching your new wallpaper is that the wallpaper will be behind the large icons and therefore not clearly visible.
So, how do you fix this problem? To get the extra space at the top so that you can actually appreciate your new wallpaper, press the context key, navigate to Launcher Settings.
Go to Sections.
Click on Manage Sections to create a new section.
Go to Add Section.
Give this section name and hit Apply.
Move the new section on top.
Press OK to apply this section on top.
The reason for creating a blank section at the top is to ensure that you have that extra space you need at the top of your screen. Close Manage Sections, press the back button and go back to the home screen. You’ll notice that you now have the extra-large space at the top of your screen which allows you to appreciate your beautiful background.
If you had named the blank section with a name such as ABC, you’ll see it at the top left corner.
But, you can always turn it off by pressing the context key, go to Launcher Settings again, Sections, click the ABC section.
Search for the Show Title option.
Turn off the Show Title option.
Enjoy the new launcher with the new wallpaper now!
For more information or guides related to the Wolf Launcher app, here is a detailed article you must check.
Resizing the Apps Titles or Icons
The next thing you’ll want to do to make things look cleaner and more organized on your home screen is to resize the titles because they look too big and overshadowing your beautiful background image.
To do that start by pressing the context key, go to Launcher Settings, then to Sections.
Click on Applications.
When you get to applications, you’ll see the option to Show Title. Turn Show Title off to get rid of the “Applications” title if you don’t want to see it.
There’s also the option to change the title if you want to. You also have the sorting option which is great because it allows you to arrange the icons alphabetically from A to Z or better still sort them out by most frequently used.
If you click on Most Used the titles will rearrange themselves and bring the applications you most frequently use to the top of the list.
You can also customize the Wolf Launcher further by either increasing or decreasing the number of title columns shown on your home screen. To do this press the context key, go to Launcher Settings, then to Sections, and then Applications (as you did previously when changed the wallpaper).
You will see here the actual Rows and Height, which are set by default. If you want to increase or reduce the number of columns on your screen just use the slider to choose your preferred number of rows and height than press the back button twice.
If you select more rows, for example 3, and height to 0, your screen will nicer and more organized with the background image clearly visible especially if you have a larger TV or monitor. You will also be able to see more applications displayed on your home screen.
The best thing is that you will no longer be shown the usual Amazon sponsored content or adverts that many people consider as unnecessary clutter on their home screens. Things are quite simple when you know how to install and use Wolf Launcher on Firestick.
Hide Application That You Don’t Use
The Wolf Launcher also allows you to hide apps that you don’t use to just keep everything well organized on the home screen. To hide selected apps that you hardly use, just go to Settings, Launcher Settings, and click on Hidden Apps.
From here you can choose which apps you don’t want to see or use. You will be presented with a list of all the active apps on your Firestick with the option to hide each app simply by clicking on it. When you click on an app that you want to hide, it will immediately disappear from the home screen.
If you want to see the hidden apps again, just press the context key, go to Launcher Settings, then to Hidden Apps, and enable any app that you had previously hidden. You also have the option to hide the Status Bar if you access Status Bar on Settings.
You can even turn the clock on or off and there’s also the option to show or hide the date, Bluetooth icon, and USB icon.
Create Folders in Wolf Launcher
Another useful thing that you can do inside Wolf Launcher is to create folders to help you organize your applications. Folders are quite useful when you want to keep related apps together for easy access. For example, if you want to put music apps in one folder, just select a music app. Click on the context key and you will get the option to Create Folder.
When you click on Create Folder option, you get the option to type a name for the folder. It would be ‘My favorites’ in our case.
So, go ahead and type in the name. Click on Apply, and you will be given another option to password protect the folder if you so wish.
If you have certain applications that you would like to restrict access to or you may not want other people in your home to see, such as games and other applications, you can put the apps in a folder and password protect the folder.
Once you create a password for the folder just click on apply and the new folder will appear on the home screen. It will be password protected and only accessible to people who have the right password.
You can then go ahead and start moving other apps to the newly created folder as you wish. To add apps to the folder just select the app, click on context key. Scroll to folder and select Move to Folder.
Add the application to the selected folder (My favorite). It’s as easy as that.
The password protection provides an easy and effective way to secure your important applications in your Firestick. Only those who have the password can access apps and content inside your password-protected folders.
How to Go Back to the Stock Launcher Temporarily
You may need to go back to your stock launcher for any reason. To do this just press the context key and choose the option Android Settings. This will take you back to the Stock settings.
You can then press the back button on your remote. Go back to the stock launcher temporarily if you want to check or see something.
That is actually the fastest way of going back to your stock launcher whenever you want to. To go back to your custom Wolf Launcher just press the home key. You’ll go back to your custom launcher.
How to Get the Long Press Home Key
So how do you get the long press home key? The long press home key is quite useful for fast navigation.
You normally press for a few seconds to get the quick settings you want to go to. This is without navigating through several steps. To get the long press home key on Wolf Launcher, just press and hold the context key. Then press the home key for a second and you’ll be taken directly to the home settings.
It’s a fairly easy process that you get used to after a few attempts. Just press the context key and keeping that pressed, press the home key for a second.
How to Go Back to the Stock Launcher Permanently
Finally, how do you go back to the stock launcher permanently?
If for any reason you want to revert back to the Firestick’s stock launcher permanently, the easiest way to do it is by uninstalling the Wolf Launcher application. This can be done on Android Settings.
Navigate to the Applications.
Go to Manage Installed Applications.
Find the Wolf Launcher application listed.
Click on Uninstall, and after a second click on Uninstall again to confirm it.
When uninstall is complete, press the home key. You’ll be taken back to the default launcher of your Fire TV or Firestick.
Conclusion
The Wolf launcher gives your device a clean well-organized look without the usual clutter of Amazon ads found in the default launcher.
You can easily install and customize it with your preferred wallpaper following the steps outlined above. If you have any questions about the process, feel free to post them in the comments section below.
