I'm working on an Android app that should be compatible with most recent devices, Nexus and Samsung for example.
I would like to have a background image for the first activity, but I don't know what is the resolution for this image, as in Nexus there is a software navigation bar, but in Samsung mobiles there is a hardware navigation bar that is not taken into consideration.
What are the resolutions of the image that I should ask to the graphic designer if I want to put the image as an activity background ?
If you want your app to be compatible on most of all devices, you will need to have different resolutions. For a background image, the dimensions can vary for devices, that is why Android Studio has the capability to have mdpi, hdpi, xhdpi, and xxhdpi. Each of these fit different devices to support all devices.
Here is a breakdown of what each of these dpi ratings are:
ldpi (low) ~120dpi
mdpi (medium) ~160dpi
hdpi (high) ~240dpi
xhdpi (extra-high) ~320dpi
xxhdpi (extra-extra-high) ~480dpi
xxxhdpi (extra-extra-extra-high) ~640dpi | Launcher icon only!
And, here is a breakdown of the resolutions for the dpi's:
320dp: Normal phone screen: 240x320 ldpi, 320x480 mdpi, 480x800 hdpi, etc.
480dp: Tweener tablet like the Streak: 480x800 mdpi
600dp: a 7" tablet: 600x1024 mdpi
720dp: a 10" tablet: 720x1280 mdpi, 800x1280 mdpi, etc.
My suggestion would be to make the best quality image, then use the tool below:
For the binaries for the tool, click here.
For the download, click here. (Download in .jar format)
For more information, click here. If this post has helped, please mark it as correct for future readers.
Related
The set of six generalized densities:
ldpi (low) ~120dpi
mdpi (medium) ~160dpi
hdpi (high) ~240dpi
xhdpi (extra-high) ~320dpi
xxhdpi (extra-extra-high) ~480dpi
xxxhdpi (extra-extra-extra-high) ~640dp
From my understanding:
ldpi = Android watch wearable size devices?
mdpi = small/medium sized Android Phones
hdpi= Larger Android phones and small Android tablets
xhdpi = Medium sized and Large Android Tablets
xxhdpi = what for?
xxxhdpi = what for?
I want to create my app to work on Android phones and tablets only. So should I just create images in mdpi, hdpi, and xhdpi only and ignore the rest?
dpi has nothing to do about the physical screen size but it is all about the screen density.
DPI means for DOT PER INCH which mean that how many pixels there is in an inch.
Right now there is no device with ldpi and mdpi out there in the market anymore. My suggestion is to prepare all the images in xhdpi (x2) and if any specific image appears to not clear enough in high density phone, for example, Samsung Galaxy S8, xxhdpi one may be needed for that image as well.
my project currently just has one dimens file.. I know all my dimens look good on a nexus 5 which i believe has a dpi of 445 and a dpx of 3. My question is does that make it mdpi, hdpi, xhdpi? I am asking as i want to use this as the standard when i go ahead and make my other dimens files.
according to this graph: http://i.stack.imgur.com/1NXYH.png
that would make it xxhdpi which seems wrong to me, especially since our dimens seem really small on a tab 4 which has a much bigger screen than the nexus 5.
A set of six generalized densities:
ldpi (low) ~120dpi
mdpi (medium) ~160dpi
hdpi (high) ~240dpi
xhdpi (extra-high) ~320dpi
xxhdpi (extra-extra-high) ~480dpi
xxxhdpi (extra-extra-extra-high) ~640dpi
Since Nexus 5 has pixel density of 445 therefore it is xxhdpi
Read this android developer link
Also have a look at this question
The Google Nexus 10 comes out shortly, and is the first device to use xxhdpi resources. It sports a display density of about 300 DPI (according to the Nexus 10 website and this calculator).
However, when I go to the Android documentation, it states:
ldpi : ~120dpi
mdpi : ~160dpi
hdpi : ~240dpi
xhdpi : ~320dpi
xxhdpi is not specified.
How come the Nexus 10's 300 DPI screen is xxhdpi instead of xhdpi, and what should be the approximate DPI of xxhdpi? Should we even worry about having new resources (aside from icons) for xxhdpi at this point, or should we just let the OS scale up xhdpi resources?
According to the post linked in the G+ resource:
The gorgeous screen on the Nexus 10 falls into the XHDPI density
bucket. On tablets, Launcher uses icons from one density bucket up
[0] to render them slightly larger. To ensure that your launcher icon
(arguably your apps most important asset) is crisp you need to add a
144*144px icon in the drawable-xxhdpi or drawable-480dpi folder.
So it looks like the xxhdpi is set for 480dpi. According to that, tablets use the assets from one dpi bucket higher than the one they're in for the launcher. The Nexus 10 being in bucket xhdpi will pull the launcher icon from the xxhdpi.
Source
Also, was not aware that tablets take resources from the asset bucket above their level. Noted.
xxhdpi was not specified before but now new devices S4, HTC one are surely comes inside xxhdpi .These device dpi are around 440. I do not know exact limit for xxhdpi See how to develop android application for xxhdpi device Samsung S4
I know this is late answer but as thing had change since the question asked
Note Google Nexus 10 need to add a 144*144px icon in the drawable-xxhdpi or drawable-480dpi folder.
The DPI of the screen of the Nexus 10 is ±300, which is in the unofficial xhdpi range of 280‑400.
Usually, devices use resources designed for their density. But there are exceptions, and exceptions might be added in the future.
The Nexus 10 uses xxhdpi resources when it comes to launcher icons.
The standard quantised DPI for xxhdpi is 480 (which means screens with a DPI somewhere in the range of 400‑560 are probably xxhdpi).
480 dpi is the standard QUANTIZED resolution for xxhdpi, it can vary something less (i.e.: 440 dpi) or more (i.e.: 520 dpi). Scale factor: 3x (3 * mdpi).
Now there's a higher resolution, xxxhdpi (640 dpi). Scale factor 4x (4 * mdpi).
Here's the source reference.
The resolution is 480 dpi, the launcher icon is 144*144px all is scaled 3x respect to mdpi (so called "base", "baseline" or "normal") sizes.
The newer android phones in the market like HTC one, Xperia Z etc have resolutions in the >480dpi range, putting them in the new xxhdpi class as well. The new assets might be useful for them too.
A set of four generalized sizes: small, normal, large, and xlarge
Note: Beginning with Android 3.2 (API level 13), these size groups are deprecated in favor of a new technique for managing screen sizes based on the available screen width. If you're developing for Android 3.2 and greater, see Declaring Tablet Layouts for Android 3.2 for more information.
A set of six generalized densities:
ldpi (low) ~120dpi
mdpi (medium) ~160dpi
hdpi (high) ~240dpi
xhdpi (extra-high) ~320dpi
xxhdpi (extra-extra-high) ~480dpi
xxxhdpi (extra-extra-extra-high) ~640dpi
From developer.android.com : http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens_support.html
As per this PPI calculation tool, Google Nexus 10 has a display density of about 300 DPI...
However, Android documentation states that:
ldpi : ~120dpi
mdpi : ~160dpi
hdpi : ~240dpi
xhdpi : ~320dpi
xxhdpi is not specified.
I think we just let Android OS scale up xhdpi resources...
The Google Nexus 10 comes out shortly, and is the first device to use xxhdpi resources. It sports a display density of about 300 DPI (according to the Nexus 10 website and this calculator).
However, when I go to the Android documentation, it states:
ldpi : ~120dpi
mdpi : ~160dpi
hdpi : ~240dpi
xhdpi : ~320dpi
xxhdpi is not specified.
How come the Nexus 10's 300 DPI screen is xxhdpi instead of xhdpi, and what should be the approximate DPI of xxhdpi? Should we even worry about having new resources (aside from icons) for xxhdpi at this point, or should we just let the OS scale up xhdpi resources?
According to the post linked in the G+ resource:
The gorgeous screen on the Nexus 10 falls into the XHDPI density
bucket. On tablets, Launcher uses icons from one density bucket up
[0] to render them slightly larger. To ensure that your launcher icon
(arguably your apps most important asset) is crisp you need to add a
144*144px icon in the drawable-xxhdpi or drawable-480dpi folder.
So it looks like the xxhdpi is set for 480dpi. According to that, tablets use the assets from one dpi bucket higher than the one they're in for the launcher. The Nexus 10 being in bucket xhdpi will pull the launcher icon from the xxhdpi.
Source
Also, was not aware that tablets take resources from the asset bucket above their level. Noted.
xxhdpi was not specified before but now new devices S4, HTC one are surely comes inside xxhdpi .These device dpi are around 440. I do not know exact limit for xxhdpi See how to develop android application for xxhdpi device Samsung S4
I know this is late answer but as thing had change since the question asked
Note Google Nexus 10 need to add a 144*144px icon in the drawable-xxhdpi or drawable-480dpi folder.
The DPI of the screen of the Nexus 10 is ±300, which is in the unofficial xhdpi range of 280‑400.
Usually, devices use resources designed for their density. But there are exceptions, and exceptions might be added in the future.
The Nexus 10 uses xxhdpi resources when it comes to launcher icons.
The standard quantised DPI for xxhdpi is 480 (which means screens with a DPI somewhere in the range of 400‑560 are probably xxhdpi).
480 dpi is the standard QUANTIZED resolution for xxhdpi, it can vary something less (i.e.: 440 dpi) or more (i.e.: 520 dpi). Scale factor: 3x (3 * mdpi).
Now there's a higher resolution, xxxhdpi (640 dpi). Scale factor 4x (4 * mdpi).
Here's the source reference.
The resolution is 480 dpi, the launcher icon is 144*144px all is scaled 3x respect to mdpi (so called "base", "baseline" or "normal") sizes.
The newer android phones in the market like HTC one, Xperia Z etc have resolutions in the >480dpi range, putting them in the new xxhdpi class as well. The new assets might be useful for them too.
A set of four generalized sizes: small, normal, large, and xlarge
Note: Beginning with Android 3.2 (API level 13), these size groups are deprecated in favor of a new technique for managing screen sizes based on the available screen width. If you're developing for Android 3.2 and greater, see Declaring Tablet Layouts for Android 3.2 for more information.
A set of six generalized densities:
ldpi (low) ~120dpi
mdpi (medium) ~160dpi
hdpi (high) ~240dpi
xhdpi (extra-high) ~320dpi
xxhdpi (extra-extra-high) ~480dpi
xxxhdpi (extra-extra-extra-high) ~640dpi
From developer.android.com : http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens_support.html
As per this PPI calculation tool, Google Nexus 10 has a display density of about 300 DPI...
However, Android documentation states that:
ldpi : ~120dpi
mdpi : ~160dpi
hdpi : ~240dpi
xhdpi : ~320dpi
xxhdpi is not specified.
I think we just let Android OS scale up xhdpi resources...
From what I found, Samsung galaxy s2 has 480x800 resolution and s3 has 1280x720 resolution. So I believe I should ask my graphics designer to provide me hdpi graphics that contain 480x800 background images and to implement same background image in galaxy s3 mobile. Can I use image of size 1280x720 and put it in xhdpi folder so that it can work on s3.
The background image is something which covers whole available area for mobile app. so am I right in this approach ??
Why don't design in both resolutions?
See http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens_support.html for more detailed.
You should read Supporting multiple screens. You must define dpi on your emulator. 240 is hdpi, 160 is mdpi and below that are usually ldpi.
Extract from Android Developer Guide link above:
320dp: a typical phone screen (240x320 ldpi, 320x480 mdpi, 480x800 hdpi, etc).
480dp: a tweener tablet like the Streak (480x800 mdpi).
600dp: a 7” tablet (600x1024 mdpi).
720dp: a 10” tablet (720x1280 mdpi, 800x1280 mdpi, etc).