When it comes to theming your device, look no further than CyanogenMod’s latest theme engine to do everything you want to and more. CyanogenMod was the pioneer in Android theming, teaming up with T-Mobile back in the day to develop a full theme engine for Android-powered phones, today’s CyanogenMod theme engine is better than ever. This summer the team at Cyanogen, Inc. released a brand new rewritten version of its popular theme engine that’s not only more powerful and robust than ever before, but it has spawned more beautiful versions of themes than we’ve ever seen. This goes beyond simply changing the colors of the notification bar or the icons on your phone, it’s about completely transforming your device into something that looks, feels and sounds different than the one you originally purchased. Developers can change everything from the style of the UI, theme specific apps and even modify the way animations work when transitioning between apps, clicking buttons, etc. It’s an amazing experience and we’d like to highlight some of our favorite themes that have been kept updated regularly.
Fi
Fi prides itself in being the first color changing CM11 theme on the market, and for the first 3 months the developer released a new color on the 11th day of every month. Right now we’re sitting at three different color choices to choose from: blue, green and red. Using the most elementary of digital colors, Fi creates an absolutely gorgeous flat UI with lots of built-in wallpapers, icons, sounds and plenty of themed apps. Everything in the system is themed from the keyboard to the status bar, toast notifications and boot animations. This is the complete package and it’s only $2.99, which is a sweet deal for what’s essentially three different themes.
Gem
Gem is a flat blue theme that focuses on white, dark grey and sky blue accents to give you a uniform look throughout the system. Packed with the latest Roboto font from Android L, as well as over 200 icons made specifically for the pack, Gem transforms the look of your phone into something distinctly unique with a flair of Android L thrown in for good mix. Gem is $1.89 and also comes in a second green variety for $1.89 as well.
Android L
Any time a new version of practically any OS out there comes out there’s been a way to theme your device to look as close to that as possible. Android L is no exception, and while there are dozens of different Android L themes on the Play Store, not many are as comprehensive as this one. Coming in both light and dark flavors, $2.60 will net you one of the two themes that include everything from themed apps to icons, ringtones, alarms, wallpaper, etc, all designed to make you feel like you’re running Android L right now. Animations of check boxes and other little UI elements are the cherry on top of an already amazing looking theme, and add to the authenticity of it all.
Pury Family
Those looking for a simple one-color option for their themes will feel right at home with the Pury Family theme. Featuring five different colors to choose, each color themes your device with a simple flat design that’s carried over to plenty of system apps like the dialer, messaging, calculator, etc. Animated checkboxes and other UI elements give this one a unique feel from other themes, and there are over 22 apps themes in total from Pury. $2.13 will net you this fantastic theme and all that comes with it too.
Barcelona
Bold, striking details are the highlight of the Barcelona theme, which is a new version of a theme that was popular in the old CM theme engine. Barcelona completely transforms the look of your device into something wholly different, featuring dark grey backgrounds and burnt orange highlights. As with many themes flat is the name of the game here, and those who are looking for a dark theme don’t need to look much further, as plenty of system apps and others are included in the theme, giving your phone a distinctly dark feel. Developer johuas_79 has plenty of other themes too that are named after cities, so check those out of you like Barcelona. Barcelona costs $2.33.
Objects #Material
Objects #Material brings dark material design to your phone with style. Coming in a number of colors across the official Material Design color spectrum, Objects uses one color at a time to bring new life to your phone. Being an all-encompassing theme Objects themes everything on your system, even down to PIE controls on Paranoid Android and other ROMs. Those looking for strictly Material Design color spectrum themes need to look no further, for this covers all of them at $1.75 for each color.
Liv
Liv is a little different from many of the other themes featured here, and that’s mainly because it isn’t afraid to use gradients. Liv also uses lots of circular elements in the UI, including theming the quick toggles to be vibrant and obvious. To me this one looks like how Microsoft used to theme the Zune and other products at that time, but it feels more modern than that too. Many system elements are themed, and the theme itself comes in both light and dark colors for $1.66 each.
MI6
Taking a cue from Xiaomi’s ever famous MIUI ROM, Mi6 uses very similar visual cues to the Chinese manufacturer’s style while still retaining some of its own unique traits and some Android L styling. Many things have been completely transformed like the clock app, and there are tons of other popular Google apps themes in this package too. $1.50 gets you access to something that feels like a very different device on the market while still keeping the overall user interface navigation that you know and love.
Shift UI
Sometimes one color just isn’t enough, and I’m not talking about just selecting different colors to theme your overall UI, rather an entire suite of colors. Shift UI brings that concept to theming and provides 5 color theme suites to make your device generally more interesting than some other themes do. While $2.90 seems a bit steep when compared to some of the other themes you could get for a little over one dollar, Shift UI literally has 5 nearly completely different themes packed in, not just slight variations on the same theme. There’s a boatload of themed apps included, and just about every UI element you can think of as well. Easily among the best of the best, Shift UI just offers more than your usual theme could.
Veu
Encompasing literally every single element of the UI, the same developer behind Fi has returned with essentially Fi on crack, with 8 themes included in this one as Persian Red, Azure Radiance, Slate Spruce, Torch Pink, Mars Orange, Nova Yellow, Atlantis Green & Electric Violet. If that’s not enough to wet your whistle the theme covers literally every element within the UI, from the boot animation to the glow dots and separators, this theme is going to transform your phone into something new and beautiful, and you could use it practically every month and not have the same color. $3.24 is a little heftier than most theme packs but given the content the value here is through the roof!
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