is dp really device independent?

Question

This sounds stupid , but I have confusion. I have defined a layout which have a stripe of images . Strip height is set as some x dp. But I can see difference in height , in difference phones (in samsung note2 it looks bigger than nexus 4). Can someone explain or provide some useful links ?

Thanks in advance.

read this http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2025282/difference-of-px-dp-dip-and-sp-in-android — jimpanzer, Apr 08 '13 at 12:35

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Apr 08 '13 at 12:33

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FYI, DP stands for Density independent pixel.

And Here is definition of Screen density:

Screen density

The quantity of pixels within a physical area of the screen; usually referred to as dpi (dots per inch). For example, a "low" density screen has fewer pixels within a given physical area, compared to a "normal" or "high" density screen.

Reference: http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens_support.html

answered Apr 08 '13 at 12:33

Paresh Mayani

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I have read there ,according to it x dp should look of same size independent of screen density and size. but what I have observed is different . I can see size difference in difference screen size phones. – user1875798 Apr 08 '13 at 12:43
@user1875798 you have observed it right, but button/image with 1 dp will be looking different because 1 dp measurement will be done based on the density of the particular device. If its ldpi then your 1 dp button will look small and if its hdpi screen then it will superb. – Paresh Mayani Apr 08 '13 at 12:53
1dp can have different number of pixels based on device density means a device 1dp can have x pixels and another can have y pixels but size should appear same that is what I have understood from http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens_support.html. so ideally device is ldpi or hdpi should not matter , correct me if I am wrong. – user1875798 Apr 08 '13 at 13:02
@user1875798 At one side you are saying *different pixels in different devices* and at another side you are saying it should be same, how strange !! – Paresh Mayani Apr 08 '13 at 13:03
what I know is 1 dp is equivalent to 1 pixel size in a 160 dpi device. After that If dpi differs you can cal pixels in dp but size remains constant. – user1875798 Apr 08 '13 at 13:05

score 0 · Answer 2 · edited May 23 '17 at 10:33

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These may help:

What is the difference between "px", "dp", "dip" and "sp" on Android?

http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens_support.html

edited May 23 '17 at 10:33

Community

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answered Apr 08 '13 at 12:34

TronicZomB

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score 0 · Answer 3 · answered Apr 08 '13 at 12:42

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The mdpi, hdpi, xhdpi, ... suffixes stands for generalized densities.

That means that 2 xhdpi phones might have slightly different real densities.

For example, Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy SIII are both noted as xhdpi, but Galaxy Nexus has a 316ppi screen, whereas Galaxy SIII screen is a 306ppi

source: Wikipedia

answered Apr 08 '13 at 12:42

nicopico

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I agree that both can have different density but If I am defining size in dp in that case density should not matter. Correct me If I am wrong. – user1875798 Apr 08 '13 at 13:09

is dp really device independent?

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