I posted a similar guide for my Galaxy SII, so I figured I would share the love here. Hopefully this helps out a few folks who want to better utilize the amazing screen on the GSIII. Please feel free to comment and make suggestions and please "thank" if you appreciate the post!
General Info for Beginners:
The Galaxy SIII comes with a gorgeous 4.8 inch, 1280 x 720 (albeit pentile) screen. As great as the screen looks, I couldn't help but feel that there is a lot of "wasted space" at the existing resolution. The best example of this fact is the app drawers default 4 x 5 layout. In my opinion, things look much better when the the icons are a bit smaller and more tightly grouped. For those that feel the same way, there is a simple build.prop edit you can do to "trick" you phone to thinking it is set to a higher resolution
How-To Change the Density Setting:
To accomplish this, all you have to do is change the build.prop setting for "ro.sf.lcd_density". There are multiple programs out there that makes this much easier 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 based on my personal experiences, DO NOT USE "LCD DENSITY MODDER" from the play store. This app is known to cause soft-bricks/bootloops. However, I have been told that LCD Density Modder CAN still help with the Play Store app issue, but you will have to buy the pro version for that feature. Thanks uber_mike! (more on that later)
What Setting to Choose:
This is matter of personal opinion so try out different setups and see what you like best. Remember, the lower you set the number, the smaller your icons/text will appear but will also give you more screen real estate. I suggest starting from about 280 or so and working your way down and find something you like.
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.
"Phone Mode" vs "Tablet Mode"
As some posters have reported, going to 240 dpi or below will result in Android thinking your device is a tablet. I have been running 240 for a few days now and I'm loving it. In my opinion, may apps look a lot better in Tablet mode but if there are certain phone only apps you MUST have, please keep this in mind.
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 GSIII were written with only the native resolution in mind. This means that certain apps and aspects of the OS will not scale well with a higher resolution::
- TouchWiz UX Launcher: If you are dead-set on using the default TW launcher, this mod may not be for you. The proportions will look way off and because you cannot edit things like margin or grid layout, it is not fixable. Aftermarket launchers like Apex handle the conversion much better (more on that later)
- The Phone Dialer: The dialer looks like small box that fills up only a portion of the screen. To resolve, you can use an aftermarket dialer app like "exDialer" from the Play Store
- TW E-mail App: The TW e-mail app (not gmail) also doesn't scale well. You can flash the AOSP version of e-mail as a workaround
- Stock Camera App: You will notice some of the border coloring and margins doesn't scale very well but the functionality is still perfect
- Notification Bar: I have noticed the little lines in the pull-down become off-center after you adjust the dpi. Again, a minor annoyance which doesn't effect functionality
- Twitter:*You may have profile pictures show up in 2 different sizes (Thanks Msilvame!)
Some additional feedback from other posters(thanks mhtruth!) but note that I personally do not have all of these issues
*status bar quick toggles DON'T scroll (stuck with just the 1st 5)
*status bar "remove all (X)" missing (swiping still works)
* in call speaker boost doesn't work...(only stops you from hearing not the person on the other end)
* some apps go into tablet mode (ex. HBO GO)
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. I realize there are not any AOSP Roms for the GSIII yet but this is based on my experiences from my GSII
Update: looks like we have CM9 Nightly's now!
Update 2: and now we have AOKP! Thank you devs! FYI, I've been running AOKP since last night and it's working great, not a single bug
- Certain pictures of contacts may appear too zoomed in, i.e. messaging notification pictures or the favorites tab
- Other aspects of the OS may become hard to read when scaled down so much, i.e. lock screen add-on buttons, notification pull down buttons
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 lcd 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 a stock dpi but for some reason, this only works for a little while. LCD Density Modder Pro has a feature where it can install a "fixed" Play Store app that can help with this issue also, but there is also a workaround.
Here are the steps to get the market working again:
1. Change LCD Density back to stock (320)
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 small annoyance is worth it.
Also, one thing I noticed when using Rom Toolbox is that after you set your dpi to a lower setting using the "build.prop tweaks" menu, if you go back and try to set it to the stock 320, it will max out at 280 or so. Not sure why this is the case but to do this manually, go to "build.prop editor" instead and change the "ro.sf.lcd_density" to 320.
I have been told that setting your dpi to 240 will also help with Play Store issues, since 240 is a stock resolution on other devices (GSII comes to mind). Feel free to try this out, but the size of icons and fonts may be a bit too small for some tastes (thanks DutchDogg54 and chakra!)
Everything Looks Too "Stretched Out"? - Having an aftermarket launcher will help with this tremendously, as the TW launcher does not scale well at all. 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 homescreen grid configurations now that you have extra room. I have bumped up mine to 5 x 5 and it looks great.
Bumping up the font size can also help even things out. At 260 dpi, I put mine to "normal", but at stock I used "tiny" (thanks falconator!)
List of all the ICS compatible launchers that will work for this mod:
- Apex Launcher (my fave)
- Nova Launcher
- Go Launcher
- Stock ICS Launcher / Trebuchet Launcher
- Atom Launcher (new!)
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)
Update: I have added some of my and mhtruth's screenshots for those who are interested. I also added a screenshot of HBO GO in tablet mode
My setup:
- 240 dpi (Tablet Mode)
- Team Sonic Free GS3 Rom (R3)
- Apex Launcher with kovdev ICS Theme
- Homescreen: 6 x 5 grid, Horizontal Margin: Medium, Vertical Margin: Large
- Dock: Horizontal Margin: Large, Vertical Margin: Medium
- EX Dialer and Contacts (for better scalability)
- Font Size: "Normal"
- "Enhanced Email" App (need it for exchange access)
Feel free to show off your own homescreen screenshots! I will update OP and add yours too!
Changing my dpi on the Galaxy Note was almost a necessity, not sure its required on the S3, but then again its personal preference. I might try it just to see how it looks.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
Thanks! I remember doing this on my Atrix, but I forgot how. I can't stand the large icons and such.
I tried this a few hours ago on my Verizon SGS3 and it would boot, but the screen went black after the "Galaxy SIII" text and wouldn't come back on making the device unusable. I did use LCD density modder though. I'll probably edit build.prop directly but the thought of having a broken play store doesn't thrill me.
Edit: Directly editing build.prop worked! I have it set to 260 dpi and it looks great. I also was able to use LCD density modder to fix the play store!
uber_mike said:
I tried this a few hours ago on my Verizon SGS3 and it would boot, but the screen went black after the "Galaxy SIII" text and wouldn't come back on making the device unusable. I did use LCD density modder though. I'll probably edit build.prop directly but the thought of having a broken play store doesn't thrill me.
Edit: Directly editing build.prop worked! I have it set to 260 dpi and it looks great. I also was able to use LCD density modder to fix the play store!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the input!
Did you use LCD Density Modder to edit build.prop AND fix the play store? Also, having never been able to use LCD Density Modder given the problems I had before, does the hacked Play Store come as the latest Jelly Bean version?
Nice writeup! I have practically the same setup but now I can just refer to this if I need to re-setup.
elterible said:
Thanks for the input!
Did you use LCD Density Modder to edit build.prop AND fix the play store? Also, having never been able to use LCD Density Modder given the problems I had before, does the hacked Play Store come as the latest Jelly Bean version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't get my Play Store to function properly at 260, but I LOVE the look. Maybe mod the LCD density manually and use the Modder app to fix the Store? Im going to try that.
240 is a stock density for many devices, just use 240 and the play store works as normal.
so thanks for reminding me about this. I used to do this for my Vibrant. I remember I needed to grab the spare parts app though and turn on compatibility mode or something? Currently I'm having an issue with the space between my dock and page indicators as you can see..
rom toolbox set & lcd density set to 280. Saved and rebooted a few times already
elterible said:
Thanks for the input!
Did you use LCD Density Modder to edit build.prop AND fix the play store? Also, having never been able to use LCD Density Modder given the problems I had before, does the hacked Play Store come as the latest Jelly Bean version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nope, just for the play store fix. I used root browser to edit build.prop. The play store appears to be the regular ICS version, but I haven't seen the JB one so I'm not sure.
uber_mike said:
Nope, just for the play store fix. I used root browser to edit build.prop. It appears to be the regular ICS version, but I haven't seen the JB one so I'm not sure.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I will update OP with your findings
eff0rtless said:
so thanks for reminding me about this. I used to do this for my Vibrant. I remember I needed to grab the spare parts app though and turn on compatibility mode or something? Currently I'm having an issue with the space between my dock and page indicators as you can see..
rom toolbox set & lcd density set to 280. Saved and rebooted a few times already
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, using the default TouchWiz UX Launcher is not ideal for this mod. TW does not scale well and you cannot adjust things like "margin" or grid layout to maximize the new "resolution". If you MUST use TW, then this mod may not be right for you but this is easily remedied by an aftermarket launcher, as detailed in my post. Your options are:
- Apex Launcher (my personal favorite)
- Nova Launcher
- Go Launcher
- Atom Launcher
- Default ICS Launcher
I will update OP with some screenshots
I know on some devices changing the screen density will make your phone show as not compatible with certain apps in Google Play, so be aware.
toddbw said:
I know on some devices changing the screen density will make your phone show as not compatible with certain apps in Google Play, so be aware.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, this is very annoying issue. I tried to address this as best as possible in the "Potential Issues and Workarounds" section.
elterible said:
Yeah, using the default TouchWiz UX Launcher is not ideal for this mod. TW does not scale well and you cannot adjust things like "margin" or grid layout to maximize the new "resolution". If you MUST use TW, then this mod may not be right for you but this is easily remedied by an aftermarket launcher, as detailed in my post. Your options are:
- Apex Launcher (my personal favorite)
- Nova Launcher
- Go Launcher
- Atom Launcher
- Default ICS Launcher
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oooh yeaaaah. ur right. I forgot that tw is locked in at that stock size. I'll give those a try and see what I can get
Thanks, 320 was too big for me.
Great guide, I used to do this on my og evo. It would be nice if there was a standard setting between hdpi and xhdpi to avoid conflicts on the play store (213 ftw!) though.
Also don't forget you can change text size under display settings, which has a somewhat similar effect to setting dpi lower. I find that setting it to tiny or small tightens things up a bit, although it's not truly system wide.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
falconator said:
Great guide, I used to do this on my og evo. It would be nice if there was a standard setting between hdpi and xhdpi to avoid conflicts on the play store (213 ftw!) though.
Also don't forget you can change text size under display settings, which has a somewhat similar effect to setting dpi lower. I find that setting it to tiny or small tightens things up a bit, although it's not truly system wide.
Sent from my SPH-L710 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried 240 and it works great, no play store issues. Thanks a bunch OP for mentioning the dialer/contacts app. Looks/works great!
Sent from Sprint's 3rd Blazed ICS Galaxy
Thanks for the input everyone. Again, I will update OP with notes
any apex launcher users getting app drawer lag? It's pretty noticeable to me =\
Since I have rooted, I changed /system/build.prop to use ro.sf.lcd_density=240 instead of the default ro.sf.lcd_density=320.
Most apps scale correctly and I can get more text/icons/etc on screen. More like a tablet.
The default launcher seems stuck at original size, but I use ADW Launcher EX usually and it scales fine. In ADW you can easily up the rows/cols to higher #s and things still look good. You can always up the font size in settings if you want, but icons and other things stay scaled.
Always make a backup of build.prop on your sdcard or someplace safe before changing it!
Haven't yet had the time to root (first time ever I don't void the warranty the first thing I do with a new device
Can you confirm that the camera works without problems with 240dpi?
In that case, rooting and Photoshop Touch will just be completely mandatory.
"Without Problems?" . That is probably going a bit far
Quirks I have noticed:
- default launcher only uses part of the screen; not a problem for me since I use ADW which asks the OS what the dpi is and scales perfectly
- default onscreen keyboard shrinks when you lower dpi, that can make it hard to type; but I always install Swiftkey which scales as well
I am sure there are other small things, but none of them cause me any problem at all.
cybriks said:
Haven't yet had the time to root (first time ever I don't void the warranty the first thing I do with a new device
Can you confirm that the camera works without problems with 240dpi?
In that case, rooting and Photoshop Touch will just be completely mandatory.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, knoxbrder.
Was mostly referring to the camera-app (the one you take photos with) and even the gallery-app. On my Samsung Note, those two have major hiccups when changing the dpi. And as the camera-app is pretty central for the Galaxy Camera, I don't want to mess with THAT Zohan.
No glitches there? – Default keyboard is replaced by swiftkey, default launcher by nova anyways
knoxbrder said:
Since I have rooted, I changed /system/build.prop to use ro.sf.lcd_density=240 instead of the default ro.sf.lcd_density=320.
Most apps scale correctly and I can get more text/icons/etc on screen. More like a tablet.
The default launcher seems stuck at original size, but I use ADW Launcher EX usually and it scales fine. In ADW you can easily up the rows/cols to higher #s and things still look good. You can always up the font size in settings if you want, but icons and other things stay scaled.
Always make a backup of build.prop on your sdcard or someplace safe before changing it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the post
Hey there,
I'm just coming to the note 3 from the S3. I hope I made a good choice
I've always used AOSP ROMs with the ability to change dpi, else my device just feels clunky. Having more information on screen, akin to a PC, really boosts productivity.
Which ROMS (either AOSP or TW) support DPI switching? What's best from your experience?
With Note 3 however, TW or at least Samsung Keyboard seems to be necessary for just one reason - one-handed keyboard mode. Otherwise it seems AOSP can do everything just as well. I don't need any of the pen stuff personally, smart stay, etc. Is there a way to get a one-handed keyboard on AOSP?
Otherwise the TW apps are just slow and bulky IMO (for example messaging can't handle 10k sms without lag)
The S3 with paranoidandroid worked very well to force the browser to think its a 600p form-factor tablet and show tabs at the top of the window. SMS convos would show 10 messages in one window and same goes for email or contacts. This was super efficient and worked well! Why isn't this the norm?
you have many rom with multi dpi
just look in title of the thread
Hello there,
I'm looking for a real multi dpi touchwiz. I can't stand those big ass ugly buttons and use a dpi of 298. Broken are then Kamera, Dialer, Contacts, Incallui, clock and so on but these are the most essential. There are some roms out there that claim to be multi-dpi like X-Note. I tried V6 and its nothing like on the screenshots. Its better but far from being perfect.
Are there any tutorial or anything that i propably could mod the apks myself? For now i use Appsettings for those apps but this breaks the whole feeling. I was on AOSP but the CM roms are still to laggy.
Thanks!!!
Get nova launcher, xposed plugin, app settings and change dpi to any app that have problem. You can also don't change dpi to system (so everything, camera etc will work) and change through app settings dpi to launcher and every other application that you want.
I already do this with very good result. In Touchwiz even if you change dpi you still cant have many icons in a row so you just see smaller icons without any benefit.. Thats why you need nova.. This photo is without change dpi in system. Just with app settings.
sosimple said:
Get nova launcher, xposed plugin, app settings and change dpi to any app that have problem. You can also don't change dpi to system (so everything, camera etc will work) and change through app settings dpi to launcher and every other application that you want.
I already do this with very good result. In Touchwiz even if you change dpi you still cant have many icons in a row so you just see smaller icons without any benefit.. Thats why you need nova.. This photo is without change dpi in system. Just with app settings.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah i knew of that practice but its not what i want, dpi scaling has to be across the whole system, everthing should be small so thats no solution for me sadly. I tried it that way but my "OCD" kills me when i see the big status bar. I propably will switch to another phone soon if i dont find a good solution to that. Sony did that great.
n3v3rm1nda said:
yeah i knew of that practice but its not what i want, dpi scaling has to be across the whole system, everthing should be small so thats no solution for me sadly. I tried it that way but my "OCD" kills me when i see the big status bar. I propably will switch to another phone soon if i dont find a good solution to that. Sony did that great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would advise waiting until Android 5 is released as a source on AndroidTech said that Touchwiz will be multi DPI due to the number of different devices that samsung are releasing as they have rebased Touchwiz, unfortunatley i cannot post a link as i have not made enough posts yet.
The multi DPI ROM's are not normally very good and if you cant wait i would go with the nova launcher approach as advised above!
W18WAR said:
I would advise waiting until Android 5 is released as a source on AndroidTech said that Touchwiz will be multi DPI due to the number of different devices that samsung are releasing as they have rebased Touchwiz, unfortunatley i cannot post a link as i have not made enough posts yet.
The multi DPI ROM's are not normally very good and if you cant wait i would go with the nova launcher approach as advised above!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't believe that Touchwiz will become multidpi the way the friend above wants.. Almost all Touchwiz version have the same rows and columns, so i dont believe that this will change.. Anyway we will wait and see..
The big ui is a problem, this is true..
I would change dpi to ui AND use nova. This was what i did in every phone and i was perfect. Here my problem is that I also want the finger scanner, and if i change dpi to ui, the indicator of finger scanner is out of correct position..
Noone has solve this, and i didn't expected either when i bought s5.
The truth is that after knox, the xda community support is not as in past..
I hope Samsung change this, otherwise sails will drop more (there are already 60% down..)
sosimple said:
I don't believe that Touchwiz will become multidpi the way the friend above wants.. Almost all Touchwiz version have the same rows and columns, so i dont believe that this will change.. Anyway we will wait and see..
The big ui is a problem, this is true..
I would change dpi to ui AND use nova. This was what i did in every phone and i was perfect. Here my problem is that I also want the finger scanner, and if i change dpi to ui, the indicator of finger scanner is out of correct position..
Noone has solve this, and i didn't expected either when i bought s5.
The truth is that after knox, the xda community support is not as in past..
I hope Samsung change this, otherwise sails will drop more (there are already 60% down..)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
had i known that i would have so much grief with this samsung phone i hadn't swapped it with my Z2. The phone was nice but just too heavy. Camera wasn't the best too, but the software it came with is awesome. Sony and HTC made a good Slowmo software where you could choose to start the slowmo. Samsung doesn't has it. Their whole software packet is just kinda buggy. Look at the animations while opening the gallery and camera. Completely broken.
I hope Android 5 and their will to bake something good will reverse my anti samsung feelings right now. One fact that i love about the Galaxy series : Swapable battery. Thats just awesome!
I don't know why the standard dpi is 480 on almost all phones today. Like they think I'm 100 years old and my glasses are thick as glass bottoms .. i don't know. What where they thinking?
Had CM running for some time but the battery and smoothness is just not there. There i could use 298 perfectly fine but its just to laggy to use it right now. I don't know. Debating with myself right now to switch back but i will miss the good battery life and camera probably horribly ....
Well, I believe all of us already tasted Lollipop, be it through the couple of AOSP builds or the leaked official build.
We also know that the Xposed framework won't be deployed on any device running ART anytime soon, and many of us loved those little (or not so little) tweaks we did through various modules.
Like GravityBox and Wanam's module.
Long story short: I like everything on the phone working as it should, including the camera and the S-pen, and for that, I need TouchWiz based ROM, and the two questions I want to ask are:
1. Is there any way to get the "Volume keys skip music tracks" on TouchWiz Lollipop, and remap the behavior of the home button? (what I used GravityBox for)
2. And is there any way to change a couple of colors on the whole system UI, because I don't know how stupid Samsung can be to set such bright colors on an AMOLED screen?!? Let me not mention how it hurts my eyes. (changing system UI colors was what I used Wanam's module for)
I believe I'm not the only noob that would benefit from the answer to those two.