SPB Shell 3D review

Home screen replacement applications are hardly a new innovation, with Launcher Pro and ADW.Launcher already providing Android users with great-looking and highly customisable alternatives to their default home screen arrangement.

However, as phones become ever more powerful, developers are starting to fathom new ways of making app launchers more visually arresting, as well as adding in other elements that aid productivity.

SPB Shell 3D is one such app, and has been in development for quite some time. Like other launchers, it replaces your standard home screen software, offering enhanced shortcuts, a different app drawer layout and other features. The big selling point here is given away by the name - SPB Shell 3D makes extensive use of your phone's 3D power to add that little dash of flair to proceedings.

The most obvious use of this power is seen when you switch between your home screens. A smooth 3D transition is shown, and it's even possible to view all of your screens at once, laid out in a cylindrical 3D menu.

Screens are designated different titles depending on what widgets and shortcuts are placed on them. By default, SPB Shell 3D grants you categories such as Communication (text messages, contacts, dailer, etc), Travel (world time widget, Google Maps, etc) and Home (a selection of your most used shortcuts, and a calender widget).

You can tinker with the placement of widgets as well as swapping out and customising the selection of home screens. If you feel that the default eight screens is overkill, you can cut some out to streamline your experience.

More 3D effects can be found as you scroll between screens. For example, a 3D clock leaps out of the display when you're viewing the 'Time' category in the home screen selection menu. Similarly, text messages are rendered in 3D and photos magically spring to life. It's all very impressive, although aside from impressing your iPhone-owning mates, it's of little practical use.

SPB Shell 3D naturally makes extensive use of your handset's 3D graphics chip, and the developer even goes as far as to state that owners of older generation phones need not apply.

Despite the huge demands being placed on the Android hardware, SPB Shell 3D runs at a silky-smooth 60 frames a second, ensuring smooth navigation and seamless animations. There are moments where the app locks up under pressure, but these are mercifully rare.

A trade-off for this visual finery is the removal of Live Wallpaper support - static backgrounds are all you have to choose from, although the dynamic nature of SPB Shell 3D more than makes up for this shortcoming.

With its improved visuals, wide selection of custom widgets and astonishingly smooth performance, SPB Shell 3D makes your handset feel like a brand new phone. It goes way beyond what other home screen replacements have done in the past, but there's a sizeable caveat; the price.

It costs just under £10, which is an eye-wateringly high price point by Android Market standards. It's even harder to swallow when you consider that rival 3D app launchers - such as the newly-released Regina 3D - offer similar visual opulence for free.

However, there's no denying that SPB Shell 3D is a cut above its competitors, and the fact the developer is charging such a lofty price hints that future updates should be considerable.

If you're sick to death of your phone's default home screen layout and want a complete facelift, then SPB Shell 3D is one of the best options available. We'll leave it up to you to decide if the high cost of such brilliance is justifiable.