This week’s Theme Review feature contains three rather randomly chosen themes. Sometimes I go for a theme to the theme review, but this time around I thought I’d just find whatever loose links I had hanging around. It also helped that Hedone posted a theme right before I started to wrap this up. I actually plan to keep one of these as my theme for a little bit. Can you guess which?
Imperia
Posted just in time for this week’s feature, Imperia is the latest from Hedone Design. They went on a little rant in the theme description about function always trumping design, but design adding value to the theme. Or something like that. I generally agree. I always look for function over form, but that doesn’t mean form is absent from my consideration. Imperia features a bright, sunny background behind a nice, simple icon layout. The meters and indicators sit atop the screen, while the profiles, manage connections, and clock icons sit in a nicely stylized nav bar. The function behind this theme is an 18-icon dual homescreen. It really makes it more like an elaborate applications menu, but it’s a bit neater than that. There is no Today preview, which is a bit disheartening, but this theme makes up for it. I like the blue scroll market — it looks good against the orange background. If only all the icons could be blue, too… If you’re running OS 4.6 or above, you can get the Imperia theme for $6.99.
Black and White OS 6
For the most part we stay positive about themes we review here. After all, there are hundreds, even thousands of premium themes from which we can choose. Why go with something negative when there’s so much positive out there? Every once in a while, though, we run into a theme that rubs us the wrong way. That has happened much less frequently recently, but it still happens from time to time. It’s not that I don’t like the Black and White OS 6 theme. I actually do quite like the sleek design. It features OS 6 icons, which has been a popular trend among OS 5 themes. The home screen features the BlackBerry seven-dot logo, and the metallic look suits it well. The font, while unconventional, also fits the theme well. Again, everything seems to be in order here. So what’s my beef? The theme is so simple that it seems like it should fall under the free category. I’m all for developers making money for their efforts, but with a growing selection of free themes, why charge for something this simple. Of course, maybe you really like the look of this theme. I’m not going to try to turn you away. I’m sure the developer, Raypho, put plenty of effort into the design. I just think a number of free themes can achieve the same effect. If you’re interested, you can get the Black and White OS 6 theme for $2.50 until June 30.
DroidSlide
One trend that will never go away: creating BlackBerry themes that mimic other devices. There’s nothing wrong with it, of course. I once pondered the preponderance of BlackBerry iPhone themes, but that was more because I was a neophyte. In any case, when I saw the DroidSlide theme at our store I thought it would resemble the Motorola Droid. I was wrong. The DroidSlide theme is actually quite cool. It features a 16-icon bottom bar that slides to reveal them all. And they bounce, too — even neater because it doesn’t cause lag. Make sure to lineup your options, clock, manage connections, and calendar icons back on your list, because they’re all taken care of with static hotspots on the home screen. There’s a weather spot, too, that you can hide and reveal with just two keystrokes. And, as you can see in the screenshot, it does contain a hidden Today. The wallpaper is also generic enough that you can change it to just about anything. This theme works with OS 4.6 and above, but only on non-touch models. You can get the DroidSlide theme for $2.50.
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