Publish multiple versions of a single application on the Google Market

Question

I have an Android app with which I would like to display high-quality images. However, there are many different screen sizes and ratios. I know that there are filters for showing applications on the market only for devices with small / medium / large screens.

If I put images of both sizes in 1 application, it doubles the size of the application, right?

Can I make several versions for different screen sizes?

I would like to make 1 application in 3 versions for such devices:

• mdpi middle screen
• medium screen hdpi + large screen mdpi
• large (tablets)

If possible, how can I specify them in the manifest? Or is it somewhere in the market?

Answer 1

No one seems to address the file size issue you are really asking about, so I will try.

You should pack high-quality images as a set of separate downloads, one for each type of device that you plan to support. This makes your base application small and ensures that the end-user’s disk space is filled only with the images he needs.

I didn’t do this myself, but I hope the idea takes you on the right search path. I assume that you are creating a separate download as resources on your own server or another set of applications on the market (for example, "MyApp Image Pack HDPI", "... MDPI", etc.).

Answer 2

Android has a built-in mechanism for resources designed for different screen sizes and pixel densities. He called the resource directory classifiers , and you can read all about it here .

For example, for small screen sizes, you can create a specific layout file and place it in the res/layout-small directory. For a larger screen, you can create a layout file with the same name and place it in the res/layout-large (or res/layout-xlarge ) directory.

For pixel density, you can create a small version of the image resources and place them in the res/drawable-ldpi (lower pixel density) directory. And for a higher pixel density, you can create alternative versions and place them in the res/drawable-hdpi .

I would advise you to read the Multiple Screen Support page and let Android help you through the built-in mechanisms. Creating three separate copies of your application is more difficult for you, and this confuses potential users (most of whom probably do not know and do not care about the "pixel density"). What prevents them from downloading the wrong version of your application and getting lousy experience because of this?

Answer 3

As Donut notes above, android has excellent documentation for this here , here , here and here .

Please note that all manifest files are changing and how to create one binary file that will support different screen sizes, different densities and different SDKs on the Android website. But this requires careful planning and testing.

The best way is to have ALL device configurations (listed here , including the available Samsung Galaxy Tab simulator (large screen, hdpi) here ) in your development environment and test the application on them.

Answer 4

You need to create a different .apk for each version and define it in the application manifest file. Use this link http://developer.android.com/guide/practices/screens-distribution.html