Niagara Launcher may not be as popular as Nova, but it still ranks highly in our list of the best Android launchers of 2022. Its minimalist approach and quality ergonomics make it our go-to launcher for tall or folding phones. Even better, the team behind the app keeps updating it regularly with new features and enhancements. With its latest release, Niagara's Pro version is decoupling from the Google Play Store and going global, allowing Huawei devices and Android phones that ship without Google Play Services to purchase the app. The move will also benefit millions of Android users in China.

To achieve this, the team has come up with Niagara ID that will act as a link to your Niagara Pro purchase. Additionally, the Weather Widget in the launcher is now tied to your ID instead of Google Play licensing. Down the line, Niagara will use the password-less account to store encrypted cloud backups and provide other features.

If you have already brought the launcher's paid version through the Play Store, you don't need to do anything to link your purchase to the account. You will be automatically logged into your Niagara account after your purchase is identified. The Niagara team says the entire purchasing process will just work on devices without Google Play Services.

Besides this significant licensing change, Niagara launcher's latest release packs several quality-of-life enhancements, including a search gesture bugfix, automated troubleshooting, better position for popups on large screen devices, and support for Android 13's per-app language. Using the /web-search secret command, you can beta test web search suggestions from Google or DuckDuckGo from the app search.

Lastly, Niagara's team is raising the price of the launcher's Pro version starting December 1, 2022, with new customers having to pay $10/€10 every year. The pricing is based on your region, so if you live in India, you only pay Rs. 120 every year. Existing customers can continue to enjoy their Pro subscription at existing prices.

The latest Niagara Launcher release is available as a beta release, and you can download it from here. It will make its way to the Play Store in about two weeks.