Many users who own an Android phone seem to ask where is the favorites tray on an android device? This post was created just for those users, and we will also provide more info on the favorites tray
The android operating system is known for its customizability. It is packed with a lot of features. Among them, one is the ‘Favorites Tray’ on android. Many new Android users don’t know about this feature even though they are taking advantage of it all the time.
As a result, we have jotted this post down with all the information regarding the ‘Favorites Tray’ on android smartphones. In this article, we will be answering all of your questions about the ‘Favorites Tray’ on android.
So, without wasting more time, let’s jump right in…
Where Is The Favorites Tray On An Android Device?
FAQ about the Favorites Tray on Android Device
In this section, we will be answering a few questions about the ‘Favorites Tray’ on android. We will try to keep the answers short and to-the-point yet accurate. So, let’s begin…
What is the Favorites Tray on Android?
Simply put, you will find a line of few icons at the bottom of the screen of your android phone. And, that part of the screen is called the ‘Favorites Tray’. Why? Because this line of app icons will always be here.
Yes, even if you swipe on the main home screen above, the home screen will change but those icons will always be there. So, you will be able to access those icons whenever you want or whichever home screen you are on.
Most of the time, the ‘Favorite Tray’ will be on the bottom of the screen of android devices by default. And, in many cases, the most common icons you will find there will be Phone/Call/Dialer, Browser, Camera, Contacts, Message, etc. On top of that, you can customize the ‘Favorites Tray’ in many ways. We will talk all about this next.
Where Is The Favorites Tray On An Android Device?
As we have just told you, the ‘Favorites Tray’ will be on the bottom of the home screen of your android phone’s screen. It is the area of the screen where the most frequently used app icons are found by default. It is there so that you can access those apps right from the home screen wherever you want to.
How to Remove App Icons from the Favorites Tray on Android?
You know that your phone manufacturer will set the home screen of your android phone to their liking. So, you will be able to use the phone just by turning it on after buying it.
In that case, they will also organize the ‘Favorites Tray’ by default. But you might not like it that way. So you are going to change it. And, in the process, you can remove any app icon from there. Here’s how to do it…
Steps to Follow
- We assume that you are going to remove the Call/Dialer app icon from the ‘Favorites Tray’
- So tap and hold on to that icon from the ‘Favorites Tray’. In doing so, you will see a few overlay options will appear on the screen. That means now you will be able to drag the icon now
- Thus, drag the icon from its place to the home screen and let go of the screen to place the icon on the home screen
- Now, the place where that icon was will be empty and you can remove the icon from your home screen as well if you want to
- Using this method, you can remove all of the app icons from the ‘Favorites Tray’. But the ‘App Drawer’ icon cannot be removed. We will talk about this later
How to Put an Android App Icon in the Favorites Tray?
Yes, like many things on Android, you can also customize the ‘Favorites Tray’ area on your phone. By default, there will be 4 to 5 app icons on there. But you can add new icons by replacing the old ones easily.
We have already shown how to remove an app icon from the ‘Favorites Tray’. So, we will assume that you have already removed an app icon from the ‘Favorites Tray’ and the place is empty. Next, you have to follow the steps below.
Steps to Follow
- Let just say that you will add one icon namely the ‘Calendar’ app icon
- So, go to the ‘App Drawer’ or home screen wherever the ‘Calendar’ app icon is
- Now, tap and hold the icon until the overlay menu appears on the screen. This will indicate that you can drag the icon now
- So, drag the icon from its place to the empty place on the ‘Favorites Tray’ and let go of it
- That is it. Now the ‘Calendar’ app icon will be on the ‘Favorites Tray’
- By repeating the same steps, you can add more icons to the ‘Favorites Tray’ without any issue
Can I Get Rid of the Favorites Tray on Android?
Ok, many android users have been asking that whether it is possible to get rid of the ‘Favorites Tray’ altogether. Interestingly, the answer to this question is both – Yes and No. Let me explain! First of all, it depends on the launcher you are using. Typically, there are two types of launchers such as the stock launcher and any 3rd party launchers.
Now, depending on the brand and Android version of your phone, the stock launcher will vary. So, if you are using a Samsung Android phone, the stock launcher of this phone will be different from other phone brands like Honor, or Oppo.
For example, Samsung usually uses the ‘One UI’, whereas the Honor uses the ‘EMUI’ user interface. Likewise, most of the different brands use their own custom UI for their android phones.
Typically, your home screen has an ‘App Drawer’ icon or ‘Apps Button’, then you can’t remove the ‘App Drawer’ icon completely by simply dragging and dropping it.
Yes, other than that, you can remove all of the other app icons on the ‘Favorites Tray’. However, if your ‘Favorites Tray’ doesn’t have an ‘App Drawer’ icon, then simply removing all the other app icons on the ‘Favorites Tray’ will remove the ‘Favorites Tray’ completely.
For your information, the ‘App Drawer’ icon is the icon you tap to access all of the apps on your android phone. There are many launchers that don’t have the ‘App Drawer’ icon. In that case, you will have to swipe up on the home screen to bring out the list of all the apps on your phone.
Once again, there are many launchers (stock/3rd party) where you can choose to keep the ‘App Drawer’ icon on the ‘Favorites Tray’.
In that case, if you want to remove the ‘Favorites Tray’ you will have to remove the ‘App Drawer’ icon first. Then you will be able to remove the ‘Favorites Tray’. We will elaborate on this topic in the next section.
How to Remove Favorites Tray on Android Completely?
So, we have just told you that it is possible to get rid of the ‘Favorites Tray’ on android. But it is not possible in many android devices depending on their model and the UI or the launcher they are using. But the steps of removing the ‘Favorites Tray’ is pretty straightforward.
Let’s say, there is no ‘App Drawer’ icon or ‘Apps Button’ on the ‘Favorites Tray’, then you can remove all of the app icons from the ‘Favorites Tray’. Simply, removing all of the app coins from ‘Favorites Tray’ will also remove the ‘Favorites Tray’.
But let’s say, your phone has the ‘App Drawer’ icon, then what should you do? There are 2 solutions to this. First, most launchers have the option to remove or hide the ‘App Drawer’ icon. So, if it is the case for you, first you will have to hide the ‘App Drawer’ icon.
The process of hiding the Apps button is different for every brand. However, we will share a generic method that should be a bit common for all the different android phone brands. Here’s how to hide the ‘App Drawer’ icon from the ‘Favorites Tray’.
Steps to Follow
- Simply tap and hold on to any empty space of the home screen on your phone. Now you will see a few options have appeared on the bottom of the screen
- Among them, one will be ‘Home screen settings’, so tap on it
- In doing so, you will be taken to the home screen settings page. Now, you will have to find an option named ‘Apps Button’ or ‘App Drawer Icon’. It will vary depending on the launcher or phone you are using
- Once you have found that option, tap on it
- Next, you have to select the ‘Hide Apps Button’ or ‘Hide App Drawer’ option
That is it. From now on, the ‘Apps button’ will be hidden and will not appear on the ‘Favorites Tray’. So, you can just remove all the other app icons from the ‘Favorites Tray’ to get rid of the ‘Favorites Tray’ itself.
Now, the 2nd solution to this issue of not being able to remove the ‘App Drawer’ icon is to use a 3rd party launcher. There are a lot of 3rd party launchers available in the Play Store. You can try any one of those. In most of these 3rd party launchers, the ‘App Drawer’ icon is not available by default.
And in case if it is available, you can also hide it in the launcher settings. So, after hiding it, you will be able to get rid of the ‘Favorites Tray’ by removing all the other app icons on the ‘Favorites Tray’.
How to Restore Favorites Tray on Android?
Let’s say, you have gotten rid of the ‘Favorites Tray’. But now you want to bring it back. So, it is possible to restore the ‘Favorites Tray’ on android? The answer is – Yes. You can easily bring back the ‘Favorites Tray’ once you have removed it. How?
Simply, start to add app icons to the area where the ‘Favorites Tray’ was. So, drag and drop the app icons you want to have on the ‘Favorites Tray’ one by one and you will see the ‘Favorites Tray’ has appeared again. Simple, isn’t it?
How to Create and Add Folders to ‘Favorites Tray’ on Android?
Typically, you will see that there are 4 to 5 app icons on the ‘Favorites Tray’. But what if you wanted to access more apps from the ‘Favorites Tray’? Fortunately, there is a very straightforward method of doing it. And that is by adding ‘Folders’ to the ‘Favorites Tray’. There are 2 ways to do this.
First, you can create folders of app icons and shortcuts first. And then add them to ‘Favorites Tray’. Or you can directly create the folders on the ‘Favorites Tray’. Here’s how to do it…
Steps to Follow
- Let’s say you are going to add a new folder to the ‘Favorites Tray’ with all the entertainment-related apps such as YouTube, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube Music, etc.
- So first, tap and hold on an icon and drag it to the home screen. Next, drag and move another icon to the home screen but you have to put the icon over the previous icon you have brought to the home screen. That way a new folder will be created
- Now, you can bring all of the other related apps or apps you want to add to this folder one by one and let go of the icons once your finger is over the folder
- Next, you have to long-press the folder and drag it to the ‘Favorites Tray’. That is how you add a folder to the ‘Favorites Tray’
- If you want you can change the name of the folder as well. Simply, tap on the folder and it will open with all the app icons. Now on the top or bottom of the app icons, you will see the name of the folder. By default, the name could be ‘Folder 1’ or ‘New Folder’, etc.
- So tap on the default name of the folder and you will see that the virtual keyboard on your screen will appear. Simply, type on the new name of the folder as you like
- Another way is to create the folder directly on the ‘Favorites Tray’
- In that case, you will have to drag and drop the app icons you want to add to the folder directly over the icon or folder you have on the ‘Favorites Tray’. The folder will be automatically created
- Then you can add new app icons and rename the folder to your liking
- You can also add new app icons to a folder by opening the folder and tapping on the ‘Add’ button inside the folder
- Then you a list of all the apps that will appear on the screen. You can select multiple app icons at the same time in this way. This is a very fast way to add new app icons or shortcuts to a new folder
Sum Up
If you are a new android user, you might not be aware of the Favorites Tray on android. However, in most cases, you are already using it as it comes by default on every android phone.
It is one of the most prevalent features of android devices. Here, we have tried to share detailed information about this feature. We hope this post will remove all the confusion of yours about the ‘Favorites Tray’ on your android phone.
Still, if you have further questions about it, you can leave your comments down below! We would like to answer all of these questions. As usual, don’t forget to share this post with other android users.
