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[Q] Change Screen DPI/Resolution/Density

I am looking for a way to change the screen dpi (also called density or resolution) from and have it stick during a reboot. The current 240dpi is just too big and 190 looks just right to me.
I have tried a couple apps from the market (LCD DENSITY and LCD DENSITY CHANGER) and both work, but do not stick after a reboot. When I had the HTC HD2 I know you could edit the build.prop or something similar and get it to stick, but don't know if this can be done on the Nexus or not.
Does anyone have any ideas? I've used search and surprisingly found very little pertaining to changing the density on the Nexus.
Thanks for your help!

method2madness said:
I am looking for a way to change the screen dpi (also called density or resolution) from and have it stick during a reboot. The current 240dpi is just too big and 190 looks just right to me.
I have tried a couple apps from the market (LCD DENSITY and LCD DENSITY CHANGER) and both work, but do not stick after a reboot. When I had the HTC HD2 I know you could edit the build.prop or something similar and get it to stick, but don't know if this can be done on the Nexus or not.
Does anyone have any ideas? I've used search and surprisingly found very little pertaining to changing the density on the Nexus.
Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you can just edit your build.prop file. its in /system/build.prop/. i use root explorer. after changing it and saving it, all you do is reboot for it to take affect.
heres a screenshot of my build.prop file, the line you want to edit has the curser behind it. and a screenshot of my homescreen and icons with the number set to 230 instead of 240..
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

method2madness said:
I am looking for a way to change the screen dpi (also called density or resolution) from and have it stick during a reboot. The current 240dpi is just too big and 190 looks just right to me.
I have tried a couple apps from the market (LCD DENSITY and LCD DENSITY CHANGER) and both work, but do not stick after a reboot. When I had the HTC HD2 I know you could edit the build.prop or something similar and get it to stick, but don't know if this can be done on the Nexus or not.
Does anyone have any ideas? I've used search and surprisingly found very little pertaining to changing the density on the Nexus.
Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also use the build.prop method, but I use 165
Sent from my Nexus S 4G

That did it! You're the man. Thanks a bunch!
bwcorvus said:
I also use the build.prop method, but I use 165
Sent from my Nexus S 4G
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow. And I thought 190 was small! You must have awesome eyes.

Use exactly 200. Its equals out a little over qhd resolutions. 960x560 or something. Someone else filled me in on his to do the math and I went from there. Trust me 200 is what you want. Anything smaller and text starts to become grainy. I worked out the math a few months ago in my epic.
sent from my Touchwiz'd Nexus S 4g

RushAOZ said:
Use exactly 200. Its equals out a little over qhd resolutions. 960x560 or something. Someone else filled me in on his to do the math and I went from there. Trust me 200 is what you want. Anything smaller and text starts to become grainy. I worked out the math a few months ago in my epic.
sent from my Touchwiz'd Nexus S 4g
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm. I'm using 190 as I type this and have no complaints whatsoever. Text is very crisp and the size is perfect. I changed the columns in Launcher Pro Plus to 6 and am loving life.
Oh yea. One thing. The market homescreen is a little messed up, but nothing to get in a tizzy over. I never stay on that screen very long anyway.

I tried dpi 200 and I liked it, but unfortunately lot of apps which I have installed is now not compatible
Is there anyway to fix it? Because I like 200 dpi and want to keep it, 240 is just too much for me.

Revin said:
I tried dpi 200 and I liked it, but unfortunately lot of apps which I have installed is now not compatible
Is there anyway to fix it? Because I like 200 dpi and want to keep it, 240 is just too much for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Download a program from the market called "LCD Density". It allows you to make a temporary dpi change that resets back to normal after a hard reboot. Just temporarily set your DPI to 240 with LCD Density (it will do a soft reboot to apply the setting), download and install what you want from the market, then just do a hard reboot and Viola.

First Nexus, Build.prop DPI?

Is it possible to modify the DPI of the system via build prop on the Nexus 5 like I have done in the past with my Samsung phones? Stock icons are always much to large for me and stock apps font to large.

HughesNet said:
Is it possible to modify the DPI of the system via build prop on the Nexus 5 like I have done in the past with my Samsung phones? Stock icons are always much to large for me and stock apps font to large.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Never mind. It would appear the answer is yes. Nice. 340dpi is looking nice.

dpi change
HughesNet said:
Never mind. It would appear the answer is yes. Nice. 340dpi is looking nice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you just root stock 4.4? Or did you flash one of the built ones? And have you seen any bugs anywhere?
Thanks

Showme1 said:
Did you just root stock 4.4? Or did you flash one of the built ones? And have you seen any bugs anywhere?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've modified my buildprop too, with rooted stock rom. I just used RomToolbox Lite to modify my buildprop, but there are many other ways to do that. Haven't noticed any bugs.

Megiddo2000 said:
I've modified my buildprop too, with rooted stock rom. I just used RomToolbox Lite to modify my buildprop, but there are many other ways to do that. Haven't noticed any bugs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you show screenshot?:laugh:

tuncan said:
Can you show screenshot?:laugh:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would, but I'm too lazy to screenshot, connect to comp, and upload it. Sorry :silly:
If your device is rooted, it's a really simple procedure to test out your own dpi values. It's really just opening a buildprop editor, and popping in some new numbers.
If you're device isn't rooted, and you're on the fence about rooting, and dpi is influencing that, just root it. You won't regret it.

I've changed mine to 320 in the build.prop and it looks nice. A lot better than stock. The only bug I have noticed is when I am in an app and press the home button, it returns to the home screen and the keyboard pops up. Just to trouble shoot I returned to the stock DPI and it didn't do it anymore. But its a minor annoyance.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

Tried 380
Jacob030 said:
I've changed mine to 320 in the build.prop and it looks nice. A lot better than stock. The only bug I have noticed is when I am in an app and press the home button, it returns to the home screen and the keyboard pops up. Just to trouble shoot I returned to the stock DPI and it didn't do it anymore. But its a minor annoyance.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So I set it to 380 and I thought things were too small. Also my App list button was off center and couldn't be moved. What DPI settings would scale well with 480 ?
Thanks!
EDIT- I think 420 works great. It reduces the Icon sizes by just the right amount, but yields no extra screen space.

Interesting. At 320 you are essentially telling your phone that it's a 7" tablet.
If it was just fonts and not icons, there are system font settings you can turn down as well under Display or Accessibility. For icons, would otherwise need a custom launcher.

Jacob030 said:
I've changed mine to 320 in the build.prop and it looks nice. A lot better than stock. The only bug I have noticed is when I am in an app and press the home button, it returns to the home screen and the keyboard pops up. Just to trouble shoot I returned to the stock DPI and it didn't do it anymore. But its a minor annoyance.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same problem here
Sent from my Nexus 5 using xda app-developers app

You can just tap home again and the keyboard goes down or the minimize button. And if you use a different launcher of course it is a non issue. I may go slightly larger then 340. It is perfect for in my hands but a little hard to read text while in my car dock

[TUT] How to change screen DPI *Root* [KK][CM][AOSP]

Hi all
Heres something I always do to my roms to get more screen real estate, I havent really seen it mentioned on xperia forums so i thought i would show people how to do it.
Requirements
Root Access
Root Explorer or similar program which can edit build.prop
4.4+ rom (should also work on older roms, try it and see)
Procedure
find build.prop in root>system
then find the line that says lcd_density= 480
change it to 320 (others users have said 360 wroks well, try both and see what you like)
save and reboot
now your screen should look like:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
*updated title
*Disclaimer: I have done this on all my xperia devices without any issue and found it to be a safe tweak to try, but as always if you do this, you do so at your own risk.

cool tutorial, although you could change the title to 'how to change screen DPI density' because no screen resolution is changed here( still 1080x1920)

screen resolution change
If anyone knows how to change the screen resolution and keep the touchscreen buttons lined up properly including the notification bar,
Would be really handy,
All the apps I tried on the playstore screw up the onscreen buttons alignment...

tomascus said:
cool tutorial, although you could change the title to 'how to change screen DPI density' because no screen resolution is changed here( still 1080x1920)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thats true
but i thought its changing resolution because you can fit more stuff on the same screen size
but anyway i can stand the normal 480, 320 all the way

adamsmth663 said:
thats true
but i thought its changing resolution because you can fit more stuff on the same screen size
but anyway i can stand the normal 480, 320 all the way
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The resolution; number of pixels displayed will always remain the same as that is part of the display hardware. The Z1's resolution will always be 1080 x 1920 pixels.
You're changing the value that apps use to decide which resources to use. By lowering the density you're making apps such as the system UI think that it should use xhdpi resources instead of xxhdpi resources.
The xhdpi resources are all smaller in size... e.g an xxhdpi (1080p) icon is 144 x 144 pixels in size, whereas an xhdpi (720p) is 96 x 96 pixels in size. Therefore the xhdpi icon takes up less space on on the display and you can fit "more" icons within a 1080 x 1920 canvas.
Summary:
Resolution: Physical number of pixels that a display can produce. This never changes.
PPI: Pixels Per Inch. Again, this is a physical property of the display worked out using the following formula: PPI = No. of pixels in a horizontal or vertical line/the length of that line (inches). This is just maths and the value never changes.
DPI: Dots Per Inch. In this scenario, this is a virtual value that can be adjusted by the user to change the way that apps are displayed. By default it will loosely be in the same region as the PPI of a screen. Eg:
The 5 inch Xperia Z1 1080p screen has a PPI of 443. It's DPI by default is 480.
The 4.3 Xperia S 720p screen has a PPI of 342. It's DPI by default is 320.

Does lowering the dpi improve graphics performance?
Also the resolution can be lowered, apps such as nomone resolution changer...

raziel123 said:
Does lowering the dpi improve graphics performance?
Also the resolution can be lowered, apps such as nomone resolution changer...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i dont know but i like the 320 dpi setting, i jsut posted the tutorial for people to try it and see how they like it.

raziel123 said:
Does lowering the dpi improve graphics performance?
Also the resolution can be lowered, apps such as nomone resolution changer...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
on some apps yes it does lowering G P i change before i had some lag

7sen said:
on some apps yes it does lowering G P i change before i had some lag
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i tried some apps but it screws up the touch screen button locations and notification bar, so I reverted back to stock res and dpi.
regards

It seems to have a negative impact on other things... making stuff a bit too small... and if i increase it to say 400 DPI then stuff is totaly messed up :/
I wonder is there is a way to do that trough xposed Appsettings by not affecting anything else but the main DPI...

babyboy3265 said:
It seems to have a negative impact on other things... making stuff a bit too small... and if i increase it to say 400 DPI then stuff is totaly messed up :/
I wonder is there is a way to do that trough xposed Appsettings by not affecting anything else but the main DPI...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
go to display options and change text size.
320 with large text seems to suit me best

I decided to try 360, 380, 400 and 420. The 360 was perfect but the others were not good.

C.Eduardo said:
I decided to try 360, 380, 400 and 420. The 360 was perfect but the others were not good.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just make backup, there was many bootloop or random restarting back in the Xperia S days.
DP changing could be cool but could cause problems and apps to FC, so... be careful...
Sent from my C6903 using Tapatalk

Change DPI?

What is the best and easiest way to change the DPI on the One? I assume root is required as well?

Yes you need root, simplest way is texdroider_dpi free on store...
Sent from Uranus via OnePlus

Thanks!
Sent from my One using XDA Free mobile app

FYI I use 380dpi seems perfect for opo..
Sent from Uranus via OnePlus

Wombat said:
FYI I use 380dpi seems perfect for opo..
Sent from Uranus via OnePlus
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Awesome. Thanks for this info! Will this change DPI throughout the ROM?
I'm using a 380 DPI ROM on my G2 and I love it. I thought they had to change the DPI for specific apps though...

It just changes the build.prop entry, if anything else needs to be done you'll have to use xposed framework and the DPI setter tool in there...
Sent from Uranus via OnePlus

I use 420 dpi also agreed with Wombat, texdroid dpi works well.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.texdroider.texdroider_dpi

zephiK said:
I use 420 dpi also agreed with Wombat, texdroid dpi works well.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.texdroider.texdroider_dpi
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks for the info and the link. You were Right. 420 dpi looks great!

tried 380 setting today and I love it not going to change, this is just perfect for OPO
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
now I have the whole Apex settings on one page, just an example

edit build.prop ??
To change the dpi can I just root and then edit the build.prop file? This is what I did on my S4 and it worked fine.
Cheers

ti325 said:
To change the dpi can I just root and then edit the build.prop file? This is what I did on my S4 and it worked fine.
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you can... either that or use texdroid. Up to you.

Will this affect functionality of the Google play store and app updates?
Thanks

captiv123 said:
Will this affect functionality of the Google play store and app updates?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no issues on my part at all. I am on 440 and I still get updates when they are there. If you are worried use slim gapps/play store since there rom comes with a different dpi

I use xposed with Module app settings, it extrem smart .
I hope hybrid engine will come to PA 4.5

I have a question.
texdroider shows that my current dpi is 480, what is the advantage to reduce it to 420 or even to 380????
Can't get where is the catch?

RalphLauren said:
I have a question.
texdroider shows that my current dpi is 480, what is the advantage to reduce it to 420 or even to 380????
Can't get where is the catch?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Advantage is that your phone screen is more zoomed out so things won't appear as big. Most noticeable in settings. Google search on what dpi is. Just change the dpi. Give it a try, don't like it? Revert back to 480. It's free anyways.
Sent from my One using Tapatalk

captiv123 said:
Will this affect functionality of the Google play store and app updates?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im on 380 and having no issues what so ever

I changed my DPI to 420 and immediately noticed the small hexagon on the notification pull-down goes off-center. Normal?

Salty Wagyu said:
I changed my DPI to 420 and immediately noticed the small hexagon on the notification pull-down goes off-center. Normal?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like a theme problem.

Salty Wagyu said:
I changed my DPI to 420 and immediately noticed the small hexagon on the notification pull-down goes off-center. Normal?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have mine set to 380 and have no such problem.
Transmitted via Bacon

Navigation bar disappearing in landscape when running 280 DPI.

About a week or so ago, everything was running fine with my LCD density set to 280 DPI. However, while tinkering with some of the settings, I changed my navigation bar to put the back button to the right of the home button, since I was coming from a Samsung tablet that had the back button to the right by default. Immediately after that, when I put my phone in landscape mode, I could no longer see the navigation buttons at the bottom of the screen. I tried changing back to the stock button config (back button to the left), but it doesn't make a difference. My current workaround is to run at 320 DPI, which puts the nav buttons to the right side of the screen instead of the bottom. I also run the "Application display effect" in reducing mode, so that helps a little, but this still uses a large font in Chrome, for example. My preference would be to just run at 280 DPI to get the nav bar back to the bottom.
Info:
-It's a GEM-703L model.
-I'm using Nova Launcher on the phone.
-I'm rooted, but not using TWRP (another thread for another time)
-I'm running B106 SP1.
Here's what I've done so far:
-Wiped the phone and install B106 from the Huawei recovery. Once I restored all my settings, the same issue came up. I didn't check to see if I used Nova Launcher without applying my settings if everything was fine, as I was in a hurry to get the phone up and running again.
-Tried Apex and stock launchers, same issue.
-Tried various other DPI, but I can only go down to 320. Anything lower and the nav bar disappears in landscape mode.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I assume you are seeing the navigation bar but without buttons in landscape mode.
This used to be a problem in EMUI3.0 for lower dpis. Since EMUI 3.1 came, i see navbar buttons in landscape in all dpis i try as low as 120(just experimented). I am settled at 170(set font=huge).
I can see you mentioned you are on B106sp01. What changes have you made in build.prop or /data/cust/* or local.prop ?
---------- Post added at 07:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:17 PM ----------
btw try this if you have not done so already.
- Set application display effect to standard mode.
- in build.prop add 1 more line 'qemu.sf.lcd_density=xxx' and set ro.sf.lcd_density and hw.lcd_density to xxx.

Thanks for the help. I had the qemu.sf.lcd_density=280 line in my build.prop file, along with the ro.sf.lcd_density set to 280. I had hw.lcd.density still set to 320, so I changed that to 280, but the buttons still didn't appear. You were correct that the navigation bar appears to be there, but there aren't any buttons. Unfortunately, I've still not posted enough to post pics.

Figured out that I could create an album here in xda, so here are the pics.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}

hi - did you ever find a solution? i'm running into the same issue

Leave the first two at 480 and set the qemu.sf.lcd_density=280 then reboot. Let me know if that fixes it.

I'll give it a shot and report back. Thanks for the reply

wpennhokie said:
Figured out that I could create an album here in xda, so here are the pics.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry - off topic: 9 Dock icons? I have "Nova Launcher" only up to 7 icons. How do? Thanks.

I don't know if it has to do with the dpi, the size I've set to my icons or that I have the paid version, but I have the option of up to 12 dock icons in Nova.
 @ajsmsg78, it didn't work. What I ended up doing is set to 320 (all 3 lcd settings) and change the app layout to reduced. That simulates de dpi i want (somewhat) Thanks for your help!

analog_user said:
I don't know if it has to do with the dpi, the size I've set to my icons or that I have the paid version, but I have the option of up to 12 dock icons in Nova.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I also have a paid version. But only 7 icons ...

Ante666 said:
Thanks, I also have a paid version. But only 7 icons ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you're probably getting that limit because of DPI. cell phone and tablet options may vary due to that particular setting. if Nova detects that you're running it on a tablet (low DPI) it will allow for more content to be displayed, therefore allowing you to set a higher limit of icons in one row.
just by your picture i can tell you have a cellphone-like/higher DPI because Nova is displaying the menu fully on your screen compared to the same menu in mine that has empty space on the sides between the menu settings and the screen vessel.
try changing the app layout (if you have that option in your ROM) from whatever you have it to 'reduced' (settings > app layout). if you already have it on reduced then look for tutorials on how to change the DPI on your device if that is something you'd like to try.

analog_user said:
you're probably getting that limit because of DPI...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I changed the DPI 300, 350, 400, 500. It is not related.
But thanks!

Ante666 said:
Thanks, I also have a paid version. But only 7 icons ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At 320 DPI I have 12 icons available in the dock on Nova Launcher as well.

ajsmsg78 said:
At 320 DPI I have 12 icons available in the dock on Nova Launcher as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right! Now I 'qemu.sf.lcd_density = 320 "and Dock 12 icons ...
But again, I have a small StatusBar ... Yes, I understand.
Somewhere I saw a change DPI for individual applications. Xposed? Do you know? Thanks!

analog_user said:
I don't know if it has to do with the dpi, the size I've set to my icons or that I have the paid version, but I have the option of up to 12 dock icons in Nova.
@ajsmsg78, it didn't work. What I ended up doing is set to 320 (all 3 lcd settings) and change the app layout to reduced. That simulates de dpi i want (somewhat) Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for the delay, as I've been out of touch due to the holidays. I did exactly what you did to fix it. I set lcd density to 320 (both qemu.sf and ro.sf), left hw.lcd.density at 480, and then set "Application display effect" to "reducing mode".

wpennhokie said:
Sorry for the delay, as I've been out of touch due to the holidays. I did exactly what you did to fix it. I set lcd density to 320 (both qemu.sf and ro.sf), left hw.lcd.density at 480, and then set "Application display effect" to "reducing mode".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hey, not a problem. happy new year! and thanks for getting back to me.