Android App Tip: Visual Task Switcher

The following Android app was brought to my attention by Rachid, who maintains the blog DroidDen. Visual Task Switcher is a great app that gives you the ability to switch between running apps by pressing the Home key. Long-pressing an app will (force) stop the application.

Make sure you visit DroidDen for more Android tips and stories.

Amplify’d from droid-den.com

Visual task switcher is an app that mimics the action of long pressing on the home button. Long pressing the home button normally shows the last used apps, by way of presenting their app icon and name. VTS is slightly different however:

  • shows running apps instead of the most recently used apps,
  • shows more apps (9 on each page, 27 overall, drag left or right to see the remainder)
  • allows you to kill apps by long pressing on them
  • shows thumbnails of the app rather than simply its icon

It really is an innovative way of allowing you to switch between tasks, not to mention it looks very cool. However, there are some limitations in my view:

  • limited customisation, currently you cannot make it open by double tapping home key
  • the add supported version seems to lose a screen when the ad appears.

Having said that, the app is quite new and you can expect more customisation to come in future versions. You may try the free add supported version, or pay $1.99 for the ad-free version.

Read more at droid-den.com