Large screen differentiated

Tier 1 icon

TIER 1 — The top-quality tier of the Large screen app quality guidelines.

Depiction of three tiers with the top tier, tier 1, highlighted.

APPS DIFFERENTIATED FOR LARGE SCREENS create a user experience not possible on small screen devices.

Large screen differentiated apps make multitasking and drag and drop convenient and simple. Differentiated apps support the unique features of foldable devices, like tabletop mode, for a user experience other types of devices can't match.

External keyboard, mouse, and trackpad support are on par with desktop computers. Comprehensive stylus support makes the stylus an integral part of the device.

Do's and don'ts

  • Think big
  • Design custom layouts and behaviors
  • Make your app different from anything else
  • Settle for less
  • Design for just one or two device types
  • Let your app be unremarkable

Guidelines

Differentiate your app by following the Tier 1 guidelines.

Multitasking and multi-instance

Make users more productive with multitasking on large screens.

Guidelines LS-M3 and LS-M4

What

App supports all multitasking modes, including multi‑window, multi‑instance, and picture‑in‑picture.

Why

Large screens provide plenty of display space for users to open and work with multiple apps simultaneously.

How

Learn how to include your app in multitasking in Multi-window mode and multi-resume.

Foldable postures and states

Large screen foldable devices are like a phone and tablet in one. Folding features such as tabletop posture and book posture offer new user experience possibilities.

Guidelines LS-F1 and LS-F2

What

App supports all foldable postures, including tabletop mode, book mode, and dual display. App also supports dual‑screen devices.

Why

Differentiate your app by supporting the unique features of foldable devices.

Drag and drop

Large screens are perfect for drag and drop interactions—within an app or, on Android 7.0 (API level 24) and higher, between apps in multi‑window mode.

Guideline LS-D1

What

App supports drag and drop within the app and to and from other apps using touch input, mouse, trackpad, and stylus.

Why

Increase user productivity and engagement by adding drag and drop capabilities to your app.

Keyboard, mouse, and trackpad

Provide full support for external input devices.

Guidelines LS-I10 through LS-I16

What

App provides keyboard shortcut parity with web and desktop versions, including Ctrl+click or Ctrl+tap and Shift+click or Shift+tap for enhanced capabilities. App displays a scrollbar for content scrolled using a mouse or trackpad. Users can resize and reconfigure UI panels using a mouse or trackpad. Mouse and trackpad hover activates fly‑out menus or tooltips.

Why

Give users all the input capabilities possible with keyboard, mouse, and trackpad.

How

See the following developer guides:

Stylus

Top-tier apps support stylus-equipped large screen devices. A stylus enables users to draw, write, erase, and work with your app using a variety of touch and gesture interactions.

Guidelines LS-S2 through LS-S4

What

App provides stylus support for drawing, writing, erasing, drag and drop, pressure sensitivity, tilt detection, and palm and finger rejection.

Why

Provide an exceptional user experience on premium devices. Enhance user productivity and satisfaction.

Custom cursors

Provide context for mouse, trackpad, and stylus interactions.

Guideline LS-P1

What

App displays customized cursors such as an I-beam for text, resize handles for resizable panels, processing spinners.

Why

Create a refined user experience that's pleasing as well as productive.

How

See the reference documentation: