Even when I'm sent a review unit to keep for just a few weeks, whether it be a laptop, tablet, or smartphone, one of the first things I do is customize the device by switching in a desktop wallpaper of my own choice. Something about changing the image out and personalizing the screen switches the dial in my head over from "theirs" to "mine" (it's sort of like peeling off the branding/advertising stickers off a Blu-ray player or cutting the tags off new clothing).
So don't settle for the limited selection of stock graphics that ship with your new (or old) device! Changing out the wallpaper is easy, free, and can help set yourself apart from everyone else with the very same model. Here are five sites I frequent for customization and wallpaper inspiration and sourcing. As you can see, whether it be an iPad, an Android device, or my Windows Phone, they've got you covered!
My Color Screen is an awesome resource for not only desktop wallpaper sourcing, but an inspiring online destination for customization ideas for your Android device. It's here where I saw many examples where stock Android interfaces were modified to the elegant minimalism I was used to, coming from a Windows Phone.
CUBEN Space Series was designed with the latest Retina display iPad in mind, the CUBEN wallpaper series are sized at
2048px x 2048px @ 264dpi. But that doesn't mean you can't resize it for nearly any device, including your computer screen.
UltraWalls welcomes iPhone, iPad and Android users alike, with a small but growing collection of wallpapers to customize your mobile device.
The Desktop Wallpaper Project has been a personal longtime favorite of mine. Curated by Bobby Solomon of The Fox Is Black, each desktop was specifically created for the series by a who's who of notable artists, illustrators and designers. And the newest designs offered come in iPad Retina-display compatible resolution.
Last, but not least, we recently did all the browsing and weeding through the thousands of images available over at Deviant Art and shared
20 of the most relaxing desktop wallpapers, almost all which can be used from desktop and laptops, over to your tablet, down to your mobile device. I keep almost all of these to cycle through depending upon my mood (and even according to the weather).
