There’s an emerging trend in the world of premium Android phones for devices with taller-than-usual screens. Both Samsung’s Galaxy S8 / S8 Plus and LG’s G6 have gotten on board with this, offering displays with aspect ratios of 18.5:9 and 18:9, respectively. But taller (or wider) screens can be a problem when using apps built for the more common 16:9 ratio, leading to unsightly bars at the top and the bottom of the display.
To combat this, Google is encouraging Android developers to adapt their apps to the new ratio. In a post on the company’s blog, developer advocate Neto Marin talks programmer through the tweaks needed to “take full advantage of the larger display formats.” It seems pretty simple to make the change, and the results are obviously worth it:
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Before and after an app has been updated to work with taller aspect ratios. Image: Google
The question is, will these new, taller screens (and their taller apps) be sticking around?
They’re a good way of creating more screen real estate without making phones unmanageably wide, but they could also make devices more prone to breakage. And while taller screens are wider screens which makes them good for watching movies, how many people regularly watch movies on their phones? Basically, we’ll have to wait and see how things shake out with these new, taller screens, but at least Google is encouraging developers to make the best of the situation.
