KitKat dialer for any smartphone

Many of you not enjoying the fruits (chocolates?) of Android 4.4 KitKat yet have probably heard and read, and maybe even seen, plenty about the new KitKat dialer. It’s a pretty cool new addition to your smartphone, because not only does it look better and auto-complete numbers for you, you can also use it, Google Now-like, to search for locations and phone numbers, right from within the dialer. What’s even cooler is that now you can install it on any smartphone.

Be aware though that ”any” phone means a phone running KitKat. But it doesn’t have to be official KitKat, so it’s not restricted to Nexus devices and Google Play editions. Any KitKat-based ROM will do, but you’ll also need root access on your phone in order to make the necessary connection gel. There’s every chance that Google will release the dialer officially in the Play Store at some point, but for now the only way is through a little hard yakka.

AndroidPIT KitKat Dialer1 — © AndroidPIT

Assuming you have a KitKat ROM, official or custom, on your phone and you are rooted, you can install the APK or download the flashable zip and be done. As long as you have root, you will be able to make calls as well as internet searches from the dialer. Without root you won’t be able to make calls, which kind of defeats the purpose of a dialer in the first place.

AndroidPIT KitKat Dialer2 — © AndroidPIT

If you install the APK, you need to move it to /system/priv-app and then set the permissions on the APK to 644 after you’ve moved it. You can do this via a shell or file manager app. If you opt for the zip, just flash it through a custom recovery. Once you’ve got the dialer installed you may need to use a launcher to assign an icon to the app. Android Police suggested using Nova, long-pressing the home screen, selecting Shortcuts > Activities > Google Dialer, tapping it and selecting the first Phone in the list to create a shortcut on the home screen. You’ll still need your current dialer enabled so you can receive calls.

AndroidPIT KitKat Dialer3