(Android) Convert Density-independent Pixels to Pixels (dp 2 px)

By | June 28, 2014

 

A simple function to convert dp into pixels. Use when you have to pass pixels to a method and want to keep everything to scale.


private int dp2px(int dp) {
    float scale = getResources().getDisplayMetrics().density;
    int pixels = (int) (dp * scale + 0.5f);
    return pixels;
}

From Android Developer Center :

px
Pixels – Corresponds to actual pixels on the screen. This unit of measure is not recommended because the actual representation can vary across devices; each devices may have a different number of pixels per inch and may have more or fewer total pixels available on the screen.

dp
Density-independent Pixels – An abstract unit that is based on the physical density of the screen. These units are relative to a 160 dpi (dots per inch) screen, on which 1dp is roughly equal to 1px. When running on a higher density screen, the number of pixels used to draw 1dp is scaled up by a factor appropriate for the screen’s dpi. Likewise, when on a lower density screen, the number of pixels used for 1dp is scaled down. The ratio of dp-to-pixel will change with the screen density, but not necessarily in direct proportion. Using dp units (instead of px units) is a simple solution to making the view dimensions in your layout resize properly for different screen densities. In other words, it provides consistency for the real-world sizes of your UI elements across different devices.

 

 

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