When comparing Mi Launcher (MIUI) vs LAUNCHER 8 PRO, the Slant community recommends LAUNCHER 8 PRO for most people. In the question“What are the best launchers for Android?” LAUNCHER 8 PRO is ranked 12th while Mi Launcher (MIUI) is ranked 40th. The most important reason people chose LAUNCHER 8 PRO is:
Like Windows Phone 8, the design of Launcher 8 consists of brightly colored tiles on either a black or white background. The result is a simple and appealing design. Although simply changing the tile color is not as personal as wallpaper in conventional launchers. Fortunately though any color is possible on Launcher 8 not just the preselected colors on Windows Phone 8.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Independent of Google services
Almost all Google services are removed from this Android-based UI in favor of creating a competing ecosystem of apps, games, themes and services.
China government prohibit the Google services
Pro Combines best of iOS and Android launchers
MIUI has visual similarities to iOS and TouchWiz and combines functionality from both iOS and Android OS and its variants. For example, MIUI has no apps drawer and instead puts all app on homescreen pages the same way iOS does.
Pro Runs faster than stock Android
MIUI includes performance tweaks that give it a edge in speed compared to stock Android.
Pro Detailed installation instructions for supported devices
Step by step instructions (with screenshots) for flashing MIUI ROM can be found for each of the supported devices on the companies website. For example, here is the flashing guide for Nexus 5.
Pro Fast development cycle
New features and updates are released regularly.
Pro Windows Live Tile-like vibrant interface
Like Windows Phone 8, the design of Launcher 8 consists of brightly colored tiles on either a black or white background. The result is a simple and appealing design. Although simply changing the tile color is not as personal as wallpaper in conventional launchers. Fortunately though any color is possible on Launcher 8 not just the preselected colors on Windows Phone 8.
Pro Separate widget pages
Windows Phone 8 was never designed to work with Android widgets but that doesn't mean you can't use them with Launcher 8. The developers of Launcher 8 have finally found the right solution to using widgets on the tile interface with new separate pages. In the previous version of the launcher, Launcher 7, the widgets would be squeezed into tiles and the result was rarely good. The new separate widget pages accessible with a swipe to the right are a big improvement.
Pro Transition effects
Launcher 8 uses the same transition effects when opening apps and returning to the home screen as the Windows Phone 8. Not only is this appealing but apps seem to load quicker. The transition to open an app takes a few hundred milliseconds which gives apps extra time to load. The result is an interface that seems quicker than it actually is.
Pro Notification bar can be hidden
This feature may seem counterproductive at first but it provides a minimalistic appearance that stays true to the original Windows Phone 8. The notification bar will still appear everywhere else on your Android but Launcher 8 will be just tiles.
Pro Unread counts
Launcher 8 supports basic unread counts like phone calls and text messages in the free version.
Cons
Con Some bundled services are available only in Chinese
Xiaomi, the developers of MIUI are Chinese and their primary maket is China. As such primary language for most apps and services is Chinese and not all of them have yet been translated to English or any other language.
Con A Mi account is required for using bundled services
Various services and apps require a Mi account. For example, buying new themes requires spending Mi currency that can only be obtained if a Mi account is available.
Con Difficult to set up
As expected this launcher is much harder to set up than the real Windows Phone 8 launcher. Apps must be assigned to their their corresponding tiles, live tiles are difficult to set up, and setting tiles up to display contextual information is difficult. Fortunately though the developer has been consistently improving these issues.