Question

I am new to android. I read about DP but m still confused. In one definition it says-
dp (density-independent pixels): An abstract unit based on the density of the screen. On a display with 160 dots per inch, 1dp = 1px.

does it mean- 160 dots=1 dp = 1 px (each dot is 1 pixel , right?)
OR 1 dp = 1 dot(pixel) among the 160 dots

Pleas clarify

Answer 1

density-independent pixels is a virtual pixel unit that you should use when defining UI layout, to express layout dimensions or position in a density-independent way.

The density-independent pixel is equivalent to one physical pixel on a 160 dpi screen, which is the baseline density assumed by the system for a “medium” density screen. At runtime, the system transparently handles any scaling of the dp units, as necessary, based on the actual density of the screen in use. The conversion of dp units to screen pixels is simple:

px = dp * (dpi / 160)

For example, on a 240 dpi screen, 1 dp equals 1.5 physical pixels. You should always use dp units when defining your application’s UI, to ensure proper display of your UI on screens with different densities.

For 160 dpi screen 1 dp equals 1 px.

Refer to this blog and this answer.