Why is my app letterboxed?!
summary
Explains why Android puts apps into letterbox/size-compat mode (fixed orientation lock, fixed aspect ratio, or non-resizable) and how OEMs ignoring requested orientation on large screens causes recreation loops and flickering. Demonstrates a fix: detect compact windows via window size classes and WindowMetricsCalculator, call setRequestedOrientation only for compact, and preserve UI state with Jetpack ViewModel (plus RecyclerView/WebView snippets). Notes onConfigurationChanged handling (or Compose’s localConfiguration) is required for reliable behavior; the approach prevents restarts and flicker.
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chapters (9)
- 0:00Introduction to letterboxing
- 1:29What causes letterboxing
- 3:36Flickering loops explained
- 5:49Why compatibility mode exists
- 7:55Handling state loss
- 10:27Locking orientation selectively
- 14:05Window size classes overview
- 20:27Implementing the solution
- 23:59Q&A
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