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I have been messing around with the LCD density settings on a few ICS ROMs for a little while now and after a lot of trial and error, I thought i'd share my experiences. I did some digging and I didn't see a formal write-up on this for our phones so I thought I'd give this a shot. (if anyone feels this has common knowledge and unnecessary, please just let me know and i will delete. also, I never tried this back on GB)
General Info for Beginners:
As you may already know, the standard resolution for our screens is 800 x 480 pixels. This is far below that of HD or even qHD screens. What this means in terms of real world use is that icons and text appear very large. Given our devices have a large 4.5 inch screen, it is arguable that this is not taking full advantage of all the extra screen real estate. While you cannot change the native resolution of a screen, you can do a simple build.prop tweak that can "trick" your phone into thinking that the resolution is much higher via a few simple programs.
How-To Change the Density Setting:
There are multiple programs out there for this purpose but I have found the best results with "ROM Toolbox". Feel free to buy the full version to support the dev but if all you are looking to do is change the density setting, the lite version will do just fine.
1. download and install "ROM Toolbox" from the Google Play Store
2. go to the "Performance" tab
3. click "build.prop tweaks"
4. change the "LCD Density" slider to whatever DPI you like
5. reboot
As mentioned, there are multiple programs out there but from my experience, DO NOT USE "LCD DENSITY MODDER" from the play store. This seems to soft-brick our phones as well as other GSII variants based on other reviews I've read and there does not seem to be a resolution at this time. This caused issues for me on TW-based and AOSP ROMS. It's a shame too, it seems perfect for this task, especially considering it can install a hacked Play Store (more on that later)
To see a more detailed thread on LCD Density Modder, go here (thanks kobridge!): http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1570893
What Setting to Choose:
This is matter of personal opinion, but I personally like 190 dpi (stock setting is 240). Many people swear by using 160 dpi but personally the icons and text are too small for my poor eyesight. I suggest starting from about 200 or so and working your way down. Remember, the lower the number, the smaller your icons/text will appear but will also give you more screen real estate
You may also notice that text and icons appear less sharp when messing with these settings. Keep in mind that because you are not truly changing your screen resolution, the translation will not be perfect. Personally, given the natural sharpness of AMOLED screens, i think most people while not be bothered by this or even notice
Some users like elliwigy have reported FC issues when going below 190 DPI. If you want to go lower than this, I suggest you search for the thread that has a modded phone.apk that can help with this issue
Potential Issues and Workarounds:
You will inevitably run into some compatibility issues so here are few final thoughts
Which ROM to use?
TouchWiz-based Roms: All roms based on stock Samsung TW for the E4GT were written with only the native resolution in mind. This means that certain apps will not scale well with a higher resolution and two particular ones come to mind:
- The Phone Dialer: The dialer looks like small box that fills up only a portion of the screen. To resolve, use an aftermarket dialer app like "exDialer" from the play store (thanks tenazrael!)
- TW E-mail App: The TW e-mail app (not gmail) also doesn't scale well. Instead, delete and install the AOSP e-mail apk.
AOSP ROMs: CM9 and AOKP handle the conversion a bit better. You won't run into the dialer or e-mail issue like with TW ROMs but there are still some bugs.
- Certain pictures of contacts may show up as way too zoomed in, i.e. messaging notification pictures or the favorites tab (thanks locoboi187!)
- Other aspects of the OS may become hard to read when scaled down so much, i.e. lock screen add-on buttons (thanks phpracing!)
The Play Store Doesn't Show All Apps? - This is the biggest pain in the a$$ when you mess with the lcd density settings. There is a bug in the play store that prevents you from seeing certain apps when you change the settings away from default.
I have seen a few "hacked" versions of the vending.apk out there that makes the play store think you are always set to 240 but for some reason, this only works for a little while.
Here are the steps to get the market working again:
1. Change LCD Density back to stock (240)
2. Reboot to take effect
3. Clear the data for the Google Play Store AND Google Services Framework
4. Open the Play Store app and you should see everything again
5. Change LCD density back to whatever you like.
6. Reboot
I know this is a bit cumbersome but it's the best solution for now. I haven't quite nailed down what triggers the market to "break" but hopefully you won't have to do this fix too often. In opinion, this annoyance is worth it.
To see a more detailed thread on this topic, go here (thanks kobridge!): http://forum.xda-developers.com/show....php?t=1529227
Everything Looks Too "Stretched Out"? - Having an aftermarket launcher will help with this tremendously. I personally use Apex Launcher and there are some settings you can change to make the proportions look better
1. Homescreen Settings: Change the Vertical and Horizontal margins to medium or large
2. Dock Settings: Same as above.
You may also want to mess with different grid configurations now that you have extra room but i prefer to leave mine at the default 4 x 4
And that's it. I hope this will help you out so that you won't have to go through all the trial and error I did. I promise you, after you do this, it will be impossible for you to go back to the stock resolution (everything looks HUGE)
... and for those who care, here are some screen shots and the stock e-mail app
I've found 190-200 to be the sweet spot for me no matter which rom I use. It's nice, but isn't as nice as native 720p.
Tis a pity pentile was chosen for the GN over samoled+ makes it so one must choose between awesome colors or sweet, tight rez.
heroisnotdead said:
Tis a pity pentile was chosen for the GN over samoled+ makes it so one must choose between awesome colors or sweet, tight rez.
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Click to collapse
Amen
For those people who are interested - I am currently using LCD Resolution app from the Market store to keep my phone at 200. Anything less bothers me in some way or another.
In regards to the Dialer/Contacts being off center, I use an app called exDialer + exDialer ICS theme which scales perfectly. I then use an app called Holo Launcher which I believe beats Zeam, Go, and Launcher Pro hands down! This also scales perfectly. Finally, I am running the latest Blazer ROM on GB EL29.
The Market bug is very annoying, but I'm continually doing research on how to get past it.
tenazrael said:
For those people who are interested - I am currently using LCD Resolution app from the Market store to keep my phone at 200. Anything less bothers me in some way or another.
In regards to the Dialer/Contacts being off center, I use an app called exDialer + exDialer ICS theme which scales perfectly. I then use an app called Holo Launcher which I believe beats Zeam, Go, and Launcher Pro hands down! This also scales perfectly. Finally, I am running the latest Blazer ROM on GB EL29.
The Market bug is very annoying, but I'm continually doing research on how to get past it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the dialer tip! I will update OP with this info. This is very useful knowledge. I started using AOSP roms to avoid annoying dialer bug so this may lead me to rethink what ROM i use and go back to TW based
At any lower dpi the messaging notification picture icon looks zoomed on CM9. I tried 160, 180, 195, 200
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
im running cm9 a4 and this worked for me no problems. everything works the contacts and the dialer. not off center to me. i havent really messed around with the store yet but seemed good to me. the only thing i saw that was a little out of place and i dont think it is the tweak is the favorites icons. i use the favorites alot seeing as i only really call the same 6-7 people. does the contact/dialer app fix this?
phpracing said:
im running cm9 a4 and this worked for me no problems. everything works the contacts and the dialer. not off center to me. i havent really messed around with the store yet but seemed good to me. the only thing i saw that was a little out of place and i dont think it is the tweak is the favorites icons. i use the favorites alot seeing as i only really call the same 6-7 people. does the contact/dialer app fix this?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i guarantee you that you'll see my problem listed above. Reproduceable.
Thanks for re-editing.
LCD Modder issue -
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1570893
Market download -
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1529227
elterible said:
... and for those who care, here are some screen shots and the stock e-mail app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is that a galaxy nexus or did you just change the dpi.
Also with the changes. The lock screen add on buttons (top, right, and left options) are very tiny. I didn't even notice them until I took a good look at it. Again don't think this is a problem, just a product of the modification.
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
My experience on any rom is phone fc's on any setting below 190 without modded phone.apk.. havent had any issues with market or anything when set to 190 in rom toolbox on any rom.. also if interested in native lcd changing support paranoid android is awesome! Not only does it have tablet mode it also has hybrid mode where you can change global density and even density per app while in hybrid mode
Sent from my SPH-D710 using XDA
thanks for the feedback everyone. again, i will update OP with the info
kobridge - thanks for the links to your posts. i didn't see these but will link in the OP for those who want more info.
Zero Night said:
Is that a galaxy nexus or did you just change the dpi.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just changed the DPI (don't own the GN, only E4GT). At the time of the screen shots, i was running CM9a5 with apex launcher set at 190 DPI
I didn't feel like reading the previous post but here's how to fix play store dpi issue. Steps 1 & 2 can be done in either order. Doesn't matter. Just be sure to change dpi before market updates
1) set your dpi
2) uninstall all data and updates to market.
3) reboot phone let play store update.
4) where did my dpi compatability issue go?
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Shoulon said:
I didn't feel like reading the previous post but here's how to fix play store dpi issue. Steps 1 & 2 can be done in either order. Doesn't matter. Just be sure to change dpi before market updates
1) set your dpi
2) uninstall all data and updates to market.
3) reboot phone let play store update.
4) where did my dpi compatability issue go?
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've tried both OP's solution and your solution, but neither is working, guess I'm one of the unlucky ones. It'll be a pain, but whenever I need to download something from the Play Store, I'll have to sit with 240 dpi for a bit, haha.
lucentflame said:
I've tried both OP's solution and your solution, but neither is working, guess I'm one of the unlucky ones. It'll be a pain, but whenever I need to download something from the Play Store, I'll have to sit with 240 dpi for a bit, haha.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What ROM you using?
Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2
lucentflame said:
I've tried both OP's solution and your solution, but neither is working, guess I'm one of the unlucky ones. It'll be a pain, but whenever I need to download something from the Play Store, I'll have to sit with 240 dpi for a bit, haha.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's odd. I forgot to mention u gotta wipe Google frameworks also. But its how I fix my issue. It works on cm9 and blazer 4.1
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Shoulon said:
That's odd. I forgot to mention u gotta wipe Google frameworks also. But its how I fix my issue. It works on cm9 and blazer 4.1
Sent from my SPH-D710 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, the "trick" doesn't work for me either until i wipe google services framework.
On a side note, wipe the google services framework FIRST, then the play store. If you do the GSF last, you sometimes get a weird "server error" when you open up the play store
Hello and sorry for maybe asking again the following question:
- If I want a higher resolution on my Note2... what should I do? Is it simple and safe? (this is the only thing I am really missing of my old Note)
- At which dpi should I stay in order not to corrupt built-in features?
In a few words... is it still an advisable operation, as it was for the old model?
Thank you for any hint!
Tito
You cant just increase the screen resolution... its a hardware not software thing.
Sent from my GT-N7100 using XDA Premium App
I know, but previously I used the LCD Resolution app to just change the display resolution (or dimensions of characters) from 320 to 240... and everything looked wonderful, with much more space to be used on the screen.
If it is just the big Icons you don't like, just install an other Launcher. I use NovaLauncher Prime. 6x6 Icon-Matrix. Alot of space
and still good readability. Dont know why Samsung is using that ****ed up 4 Column Layout. Lot's of wasted space from my point
of view.
They show 5 Columns in the AppDrawer thou.
By the way changing the dpi-value always drains the image-quality i think.
As well some dpi-tweaks lead to not working Apps on other devices i had, such as the HP Touchpad
Thank you, I already have Nova and changed the matrix... but what I do not like is the dimensions of characters: at 240dpi I can read extended internet pages, have more sms or the entire email on the screen with reduced need of scrolling... the device looks "more professional" and useful!
Hm okay, i agree on that. But i don't currently know about an dpi-changer for our GN2. I'll follow this thread and see how this evolves.
oh boy was it that hard to understand the op podface? -.-
anyway as for what you want:
there is a rom with touchwiz modified to 240dpi or you can either use of the paranoid roms which are highly customizable on that aspect or just use plain cm10 and there you also can use the lcd density mod app.
that means... I have to root, change the ROM, lose automatic official updates... and above all re-enter in the tremendous slavery of changing ROM every day, testing, trying all the ROMs expecting miracles... this is what really scares me! (but I enjoyed that so much on my Note some months ago!)
yup there is no way as far as i know, to change the density without root
Hey everybody
One of the most useful mods I have performed on my Note 2 is a PPI adjustment, which effectively increases the resolution of the screen. I'm not sure why this isn't more commonly discussed, because I think it really takes advantage of the phone's size and tablet-like qualities (especially with the new MultiView update, if that appeals to you). I know many users of the original Note did this mod, which is how I found out about it. I suspect that many other Note 2 users may not be aware of this trick...
WHAT IT DOES
It has the same effect as increasing one's monitor resolution - more content is able to be displayed on screen. If all the icons, text, menus, etc on your Note 2 just seem really BIG to you, this is the antidote.
Look at the two before and after screenshots attached. I would have posted them in line, but as a new user I am prohibited from doing so.
REQUIREMENTS
ROOTED Note 2 - there are other Howto's on XDA that cover this
ROM Toolbox Pro (other apps may work too, possibly including the free version of ROM Toolbox, but this is what I used)
HOW TO DO IT
Root your phone and install ROM Toolbox Pro. Go to the performance tab, and click "build.prop" editor. There will be two entries called "ro.sf.lcd_density"
Within each one, change the property value and the default value to 240. That's four numbers you're replacing. On the last change, go ahead and reboot. Done!
OTHER NOTES
With the original Note, it was common for this mod to break the Market. This is no longer the case. But, there are a few things that break to varying degrees. They're easy to fix though...
TouchWiz: The default launcher will not adapt to the new settings, and you will have a lot of blank space. Fix by installing another launcher. I use Nova.
The Clock app breaks completely. I replaced with Alarm Clock Plus.
The dialer, like TouchWiz, will remain small. You could replace with a custom dialer, but I actually left it as-is because a side effect is that it's really easy to use with one hand.
The Camera app has the same problem. Camera Zoom FX makes a good replacement.
the Samsung keyboard breaks, thus taking down handwriting input with it. Swype works fine, as does s-note.
Aside from those minor issues, everything has worked fine, including all the 3rd party apps I have.
Hope this is helpful to some of you guys.
Seriously, this phone is amazing at 240
Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 2
I have been using this since I first got my phone.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda premium
This is great. One other app is the email app only takes half the screen on portrait. Really need to figure out how to install the AOSP JB Email app on here....
Another benefit is Swiftkey Tablet keyboard now does the split keyboard on landscape which is easier to type on.
The only problem is that you can't use the handwriting mode with the stylus with the ppi set to 240 because the Samsung keyboard keeps fc'ing. That's my only complaint so far with this phone is that the handwriting mode is tied to the Samsung keyboard.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using XDA Premium HD app
I had problems with apps saying they weren't compatible with my device... cleared data in the market app... still no dice. Any insight?
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda premium
I'm not real fond of the way the dialer looks so I'm using Go Contacts which has a pretty good dialer.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using XDA Premium HD app
mrush said:
I had problems with apps saying they weren't compatible with my device... cleared data in the market app... still no dice. Any insight?
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda premium
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The market is probably filtering since at this resolution it is probably now considered an x-large device.
Really like this resolution, will need to use for a while to see which apps decide to crap out.
you can also edit the build.prop with root explorer. If you edit the it to be =160 it switched to tablet mode, but crashes a lot
=170 i think its still tablet and doesn't crash
firemedic624 said:
The only problem is that you can't use the handwriting mode with the stylus with the ppi set to 240 because the Samsung keyboard keeps fc'ing. That's my only complaint so far with this phone is that the handwriting mode is tied to the Samsung keyboard.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is true. I forgot to mention and will update the original post. Hopefully devs will fix at some point.
mhoepfin said:
The market is probably filtering since at this resolution it is probably now considered an x-large device.
Really like this resolution, will need to use for a while to see which apps decide to crap out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To be honest, with jelly bean letting us choose "tiny" text now and the screen size being so big, I'm not as inclined to change the Res on this thing anymore... in the past with my S2 that was the first thing i would do whenever I flashed a new rom.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using xda premium
installed, set to 170, put on nova launcher, and downloaded a jellybean keyboard. so far so good, but how do I get the "hold home to bring up all running apps back" feature? It looks like Nova doesn't support this...
Dioscorus said:
installed, set to 170, put on nova launcher, and downloaded a jellybean keyboard. so far so good, but how do I get the "hold home to bring up all running apps back" feature? It looks like Nova doesn't support this...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, which rom are you using? I have stock rooted with nova and this feature still works.
intelli78 said:
Hmm, which rom are you using? I have stock rooted with nova and this feature still works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also have stock/rooted...
Fixed the dialer problem for me just got exdialer it work great and looks good too!
https://play.google.com/store/apps/...251bGwsMSwxLDEsImNvbS5tb2Rvb2h1dC5kaWFsZXIiXQ..
Technically the Galaxy Note II does have a higher screen res than the Galaxy S III since the Note 2 does not have a pentile display. Paranoid Android in the future will also let you completely customize the size of everything on your phone without messing up the market due to DPI issues.
weehooherod2 said:
Technically the Galaxy Note II does have a higher screen res than the Galaxy S III since the Note 2 does not have a pentile display. Paranoid Android in the future will also let you completely customize the size of everything on your phone without messing up the market due to DPI issues.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you think PA will come to this phone? If so, it will be a great addition and will fit this device perfectly.
Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 2
anyone with issues sending MMS? I had taken a pic and tried to send MMS but got a unsupported file type or something like that and wont attach the picture. reverting back to 320dpi works.
hopefully the samsung keyboard will work with this in the future, it looks sooo much better with the dpi change .. specially with multi-view (although the menu and border of it doesnt stretch all the way across the screen).
bala gamer is hopefully going to take a shot at FIXING the bits that don't work right at 240dpi !! I especially hope he can fix the keyboard as I LOVE the keyboard.
for the multi window just drag the menu to the TOP OR BOTTOM edge and it displays correctly at 240dpi (the separator is not wide enough but thats not an issue)
Zoom FX is no good since it uses "smaller" images (really small) in burst mode NOT 8mp. I found that out the hard way after I shot some really nice shots and later discovered the res was so small it was useless to me
Since updating to 4.3 I can't use my old fonts anymore which I installed from .apk. My favorite Roboto Small for example. Only the annoying apps with their sub par fonts seem to work. Solutions?
Also, seems that due to the larger font less words fit on a single line, but to the point there's only 7 words average showing.
Those font apks won't work any more in >=4.3 android.
Use Rom Toolbox instead.
Sent from my N7100, a.k.a. THE BEAST
cabessius said:
Those font apks won't work any more in >=4.3 android.
Use Rom Toolbox instead.
Sent from my N7100, a.k.a. THE BEAST
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I figured something like that. However my phone isn't rooted and wanting to keep it that way. Ideas?
No one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!? ;]
If you want to keep your phone unrooted, you will be very limited.
My mother got a Tab S 8inch wifi model T700.
The tablet is great all around except one area. The resolution is messed up in certain apps that the layout and fonts appear even smaller than the one on her phone. I tried changing fonts from the tab setting and the app as well but it did not make much difference.
Then I tried using resolution or dpi changer after rooting and it looked so much better but then samsung keyboard did not work and crashed whenever resolution was changed.
Do you know any mod, app or even a custom ROM that can manage changing resolution on this tablet efficiently?
My time with the tablet is limited so any suggestions or tips are welcome and appreciated!
Thanks in advance!
Any cm12 based ROM like blisspop etc etc download flash change the DPI to how many you want works great