I really enjoy using widgets on my iPhone. For instance, I have a fitness app widget on my home screen that lets me track my daily progress at a glance. It shows the calories I’ve burned during workouts, my activity streaks, and even gives little motivational nudges to keep me going. I love how easy it is to check everything important without opening the full app. Widgets like these make tracking progress enjoyable.
On the other hand, my experience with widgets on the Google Pixel 10 Pro feels quite different. Android offers some useful widgets that can be convenient in certain cases. But with the Pixel, I don’t get the same seamless, engaging experience. The widgets feel less polished, less interactive, and somehow fail to capture the same sense of instant satisfaction that I get on my iPhone. Over time, it just makes me appreciate the iPhone’s approach even more.
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Why I Prefer to Stick to My Default Android Launcher
If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.
What’s the issue with it?
A permanent spot with temporary value
Credit: Shimul Sood / MakeUseOf
I don’t like widgets taking up space on my Pixel’s home screen. For instance, I never really liked At a Glance widget on my Pixel. For something that takes up permanent space on my home screen, it feels surprisingly limited. Instead of being interactive or at least informative, it offers very little value in day-to-day use. When I add a widget, I expect the most important details of an app to surface at a glance. Well, widgets simply don’t do that. So that’s the reason why I disabled them immediately.
That said, I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with how these widgets look, too. Credit where it’s due, Google made it visually distinct and recognizable. But uniqueness alone doesn’t justify its presence. A widget should earn its place through usefulness, not just the design.
In reality, it feels absolutely cumbersome and stagnant. There’s barely any interaction, no real sense of dynamism, and it often looks out of place among other widgets. Worse, accidental taps sometimes take me places I didn’t intend to go, which only adds to the frustration. This still isn’t a deal breaker for me when it comes to using a Pixel phone, but it does affect how I set up my home screen.
Widgets that pull their weight
Credit: Shimul Sood / MakeUseOf
What I really want from widgets is fairly simple. They should load quickly, be responsive to touch, and offer at least one meaningful piece of information I can glance at every day. A widget earns its place on my home screen only if it saves me time by letting me avoid opening the app altogether. For instance, if I add a Calendar widget to my home screen, I expect it to surface my most important upcoming event right at the top. Seeing it front and center keeps it fresh in my mind and keeps me away from opening the app repeatedly. I mean, it doesn’t solve the problem that it’s actually intended to solve.
The same applies to productivity widgets. If I place one on my home screen, I want it to do more than just sit there. It should probably nudge me toward my goal, maybe show real-time progress, or remind me how close I am to completing a task, all while staying clean, concise, and well-designed. When done right, a good widget feels helpful rather than distracting or taking up space.
But when a widget fails to deliver on these basics, it quickly loses its purpose. And more often than not, that’s when it gets removed from my home screen altogether.
Beauty, even on Android, lies in the eye of the beholder
What works for you is what matters
Credit: Shimul Sood / MakeUseOf
A friend of mine, who uses a Pixel, has filled his home screen with widgets. It’s a very extravagant setup, and it’s not something I would choose for myself. But that’s the thing about home screens. We’re all different. He didn’t care much about my setup either, and I completely get that. Beauty really does lie in the eye of the beholder. I’m not here to tell you how to arrange your home screen or suggest that you copy mine.
What I do wish, though, is that widgets should do more than they currently do. Lately, I’ve been experimenting with a foldable launcher on my Pixel 10 Pro, and the difference was significantly noticeable. The widgets felt more interactive, more purposeful, and actually helpful. For instance, my Basecamp widget displayed my schedule for the day on the home screen, making planning feel so much better. And that’s exactly what I’m talking about.
Beyond that, being able to take small actions directly from widgets, things that would normally require opening an app, ended up making a bigger difference than I expected. Those little conveniences add up. So if you’re someone like me who doesn’t fully enjoy the default widget experience, trying a foldable launcher might be worth it. It won’t change how Android looks for everyone, but it might end up making your daily routine so much better.
Sometimes, removing it is the upgrade you need
This is exactly why I have stopped using widgets on my Google Pixel 10 Pro altogether, and honestly, I don’t miss them. The home screen feels much cleaner now, good-looking, and better suited to how I actually use my phone. That said, I am not completely shutting the door on widgets. If Google rethinks the experience and makes it more interactive, informative, and genuinely useful in everyday use, I’d be more than happy to give them another shot.
Well, I’m always willing to give the benefit of the doubt. But until widgets start adding real value instead of just occupying space, I don’t see myself bringing them back to my Pixel’s home screen anytime soon.
