Essentials Good – Google doesn’t offer a Good Lock equivalent for Pixels, so an open-source app called Essentials has stepped in. It bundles Pixel-focused tools—like per-app Night Light controls, notification lighting, Quick Settings tiles, and automation recipes—into one insta
Switching from a Samsung phone to a Pixel always hits the same nerve for me: the absence of Good Lock. On Samsung. Good Lock isn’t just an app—it’s the control room for customizing swipe behavior. recents. themes. and visuals. On Pixel. there’s no official equivalent. and that gap feels glaring the moment you start trying to “make it yours” the same way.
That’s why I ended up installing Essentials. an open-source app that’s positioned as a collection of “tools. mods. and workarounds for Pixels and other Androids.” It doesn’t match Good Lock’s sheer breadth of modules. but for Pixel users who want more than stock settings. it lands as the closest thing available right now.
Essentials takes a different approach than Samsung’s modular setup. Instead of presenting a menu of separate installable components. it packs its features into one app. with each tool organized by category or function. That makes it easier to navigate when you just want to start tweaking instead of hunting for the right module.
The features are the real draw. One example is Dynamic Night Light. Google’s built-in Night Light is essentially a simple on/off switch. but Essentials lets you set Night Light conditions per app. In practice. that means you can stop your phone from shifting toward an amber screen when you open apps you need to see clearly—like Camera. Gallery. VLC. and streaming apps—while still keeping Night Light enabled for everything else. It’s a small change, but it’s the kind that improves daily usability without demanding attention.
Then there’s Notification Lighting, which brings a version of Samsung’s Edge Lighting concept to Pixel. Essentials can display visual alerts when notifications come through. with options ranging from a glow effect to a Google-style loading animation in the status bar. You also get fine-tuning controls, including the number of pulses and the color mode itself.
Essentials also digs into display behavior and system-level tuning. It includes options for display frame rates with per-app limits. display scaling. and animation features that are often tucked away in developer settings. There’s also an attempt to bring the Pixel 10’s Maps power-saving mode to other Android devices—but the developer confirms some users. like the writer of this piece. may not be able to get that particular setting to work on their device.
Quick Settings tiles are another area where Essentials feels immediately practical. It offers tiles such as a direct Developer Options tile. a UI Blur toggle. and a Private DNS tile—one the writer says they can’t live without now. Other tiles are included as well, letting you enable or disable features offered by Essentials without digging through menus.
For people who like automation, Essentials borrows a similar spirit to Samsung’s Modes and Routines app. It includes an Automations section where you can quickly create “recipes” for Pixel’s Modes. It’s not positioned as a sweeping upgrade on the kind of routines and add-ons Samsung has—Essentials doesn’t offer Routines+—but it still makes the feature easier to access and use.
Battery and background control show up too. The Freeze Apps section gives more control over which apps can launch in the background. aiming to claw back battery life and reduce performance overhead. The idea is familiar—other third-party tools can freeze apps—but Essentials bundles it into its broader toolkit.
The pitch is clear: Essentials has become one of the first open-source Android apps that some Pixel owners install immediately, and it’s close enough to scratch the Good Lock itch. But it comes with caveats, and they matter.
Essentials isn’t just toggles—it reaches into system behavior. Various features require permissions, including write access and accessibility access. Some tools. such as Maps’ power-saving mode and several Quick Settings tiles. rely on Shizuku to tap into Android’s hidden capabilities. The developer also warns that Essentials can modify system settings, and that risk shouldn’t be ignored. The writer contrasts that with Good Lock. arguing that because it’s an official product. its potential risks are easier to reverse.
In the end, Essentials doesn’t replace the feeling of having a full, official Good Lock ecosystem on Pixels. What it does prove is how hungry power users are for that kind of control. For now. the open-source app is doing the job—sometimes in ways that make the Pixel feel more personal. and other times with just enough setup friction and permissions to remind you it’s not official. not bulletproof. and not for everyone.
Essentials Good Lock alternative Pixel customization Android open source Dynamic Night Light Notification Lighting Quick Settings tiles Private DNS Shizuku Android permissions