I created an app in xamarin ios and used launch image option to show the launch screen. Now I replaced the launch image with launch screen (.xib file). But after changing to launch screen from launch image the look and feel of my app is also affected. Now the fonts are looking small and controls on screens are also looking little small. The size of fonts and other controls are same in both cases but looking different in both launch image case and launch screen case.
I really don't know what is the problem in it, why app looks different in both cases.
Does anyone have any idea why does it happen?
So when you want to get to an app, you have to click on the app's icon. When I do that, the icon itself stretches out to fill up the entire screen. Every icon suggestion I've read has opined that I make the icons 120X120 or some other version of a square image. I've done that, but so long as it's a square image if the app tries to make it fit into a rectangle it is going to stretch.
On top of that icon is the splash image with is rectangular and looks just fine, but I don't know how to tell it to not use the square icon behind it. Thoughts?
In case anyone comes across this for the 6+/7+ only, you need to have launch images for both portrait and landscape.
On opening the app, are you simply wanting to use the image used for your app icon to appear full screen for the splash/loading screen while it is being launched?
If this is the case, the app icon itself is not the image that will stretch, rather, you need to make a separate launch image of how you expect full screen size image to look. The app icon will display according the the image you have saved as the icon (correct HIG sizes/filenames) and then when it's loading, the app will automatically switch to display your launch image.
Please read this Apple information on Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) as it tells you what images will be needed and what to do.
I hope this helps answer you question.
Cheers, Jim.
In iOS apps you should set a launch image that looks similar to your first screen. Apple advises against using splash screens as launch images, but what if your app has a completely different first screen the first time it is launched (say registration screen) than the usual first screen? Is there a way to set two launch images and if not is there a way around it other than a blank or splash screen?
I was going through iOS Human Interface Guidelines.
It was mentioned as
Display a launch image that closely resembles the first screen of the application. This practice decrease the perceived launch time of your application.
Avoid displaying an About Window or a splash screen. In general, try to avoid providing any type of startup experience that prevents people from using your application immediately.
What is the difference between a launch image and a splash screen?
Launch image is the image that appears when you launch your app, the images you put in the xcode (iphone, iphone retina, ipad landscape, ipad landscape retina, ipad portrait and ipad portrait retina)
Apple recomends using a screenshot of your app main window, so it appears that your app launch faster (I use a screenshot without buttons)
Splass screen is, for example, the screens the games use, where you can see the company logo and some other info, some of them even use 2 or 3 splass screens. You have to include them programmatically
Wow, old question with no accepted or highly-upvoted answer, bubbling to the front page thanks to an edit. Guess I may as well try my hand at clearing things up?
Launch Image (or Launch Screen)
This is displayed by the OS itself, and appears only while the OS is loading your app (that is, before your process is running and any of your own code gets a chance to execute.
Because your app has no running code to handle display of the launch image, the way you provide one is part of your Xcode project's build-time configuration: Either you provide a LaunchScreen.storyboard, or a set of static launch images — one for each device screen size you support.
Apple's Human Interface Guidelines recommend that your launch image be a rough facsimile of the initial UI of your app. There are a couple of reasons for that:
The launch screen is displayed only briefly before your app takes over and can display its own UI, so having the launch image look like the actual UI makes the user feel more like they're jumping right into your app instead of having to wait for something else.
The launch screen is displayed only briefly, so if you display something that doesn't look like your initial UI, the user may see it flash and go away before they can get a decent look at it.
(Because your launch screen should look like actual UI, and because there are many screen sizes to support, the storyboard approach is preferred — you can use Auto Layout to ensure that your fake UI adapts to different screen sizes just like your real UI would. Xcode then generates the necessary images at build time.)
Splash Screen or About Window
This is what you see in many apps that don't follow Apple's guidance, and it comes in two forms (used separately or together):
Using the Launch Screen system to display content that doesn't look like the app's initial UI — instead, for example, it might be a logo or some other branding element, or might include static text like copyright notices, credits, or version information.
After the app has launched (and thus has control of the screen to display whatever it wants), continuing to display logos or branding or other passive content instead of a usable UI.
The second case is recommended against, but sometimes unavoidable — game engines, in particular, tend to take awhile to start up, so it might be okay to have a "loading" screen. (If so, your launch image should look like your loading screen, so that the user doesn't feel like they're separately waiting for your app to launch and then load.)
The worst offenders are apps that don't really have any extra "loading" work to do, but use a splash screen as their launch image, and then programmatically continue to display that image for an arbitrary amount of time so that the user gets more chance to see it. (And has to wait for it to get out of the way, or manually dismiss it, before actually using the app.)
Launch Image is displayed when the app loads.
Splash screen means, that you display a view with about information as your startscreen. Your User should use your app immediately.
The launch image is designed to make the perceived launch time of you app feel faster by showing something resembling the interface that will be loaded as quickly as possible. Displaying a logo does nothing but draw attention to how quickly your app loads and adds nothing to the user’s experience.
If your bundle have default.png then apps takes as a launch image and it remains on screen for 3 seconds
In iOS splash screen means when you provide any image named Default.png in the bundle and before executing the mainWindow it is just loading that image in the iPhone screen. So, Default.png image is considered as the Splash Screen in iPhone.
While you load the mainWindow in the iPhone application, you can assign any image that can be viewed in the screen in the specific size as given that is called the launch image.
So, launch image that is one which we provide run time when application launches and starting the main-window. And here launch image can be dynamically changed based on program written while Default.png / splash screen will be fixed for the application.
Please let me know if you still have any question?
Launch Image may take a little short time. It shows when app loading starts into iphone volatile memory. it shows for very short.
Splash screen means, that you display an Image until your necessary information loading not complete. Like, U can see any loading image before start any heavy game. When all data loading complete then this screen removed and game statrs.
It may shows for little long. !
Launch Image is displayed when the app loads. It is designed to make your app feel faster by showing something resembling the interface that will be loaded as quickly as possible.
Splash screen means, that you display a view with about information as your start screen. Your User should use your app immediately.
When I load my iPhone app it always loads a black screen first then pops up the main window. This happens even with a simple empty app with a single window loaded.
I've noticed that when loading, most apps zoom in on the main window (or scale it to fit the screen, however you want to think about it) and then load the content of the screen, with no black screen (see the Contacts app for an example).
How do I achieve this effect?
Add a Default.png to your project. This should be the image you want shown instead of the black launch screen.
Also just to save you some time, there is no way to change this image during the runtime of your application. If you look at Apple's Clock application you can see how depending on the last state of the application, the Default.png changes. You cannot do this in your own app because of permission limits. Also, make sure to read the iPhone HIG for best practices on Default.png use, in short, dont use it as a splash screen like Twitteriffic.
You can also take a screenshot of your app as an aid to creating the Default.png - while holding the Home button, press and release the Lock Sleep/Wake button. The screenshot can be find in your Camery Roll library in the Photos app and can be synced back to your desktop.
When the app transitions from the launch image to the actual app content, it should not be jarring to a user - content (text/images) can be added to the screen, but content should never change. If all this leaves you with is an empty blue header, a white body, and a blue footer - then that's all you should have. If you have a persistent tab bar on the bottom & a localized app (different text descriptions), then then launch image should appear with icons but no text. (See Clock.app & Facebook.app for examples.)
Screenshots can also be taken in XCode using the Screenshot tab in the Organizer window and a plugged-in device.