I understand that Flutter uses logical pixels for sizing, which convert to physical pixels at a ratio specified by the specific device the Flutter application is running on. Therefore my question is what is the purpose of libraries like flutter_screenutil, and why is this one in particular so popular?
2
Answers
The
flutter_screenutil
package takes into account the size of screen from the UI prototyping tool (such as Figma), while the regular Flutter sizing doesn’t have access to that information.For example, take a look at the package’s implementation, in
lib/src/screen_util.dart
you can find this code:The ratio of the actual screen width to the UI design width is used to scale the width used in the implementation.
The screen dimension from the UI prototyping tool is given by the user at the initialization:
You are right Flutter indeed uses logical pixels (also known as device-independent pixels or dp) for sizing, which are then converted to physical pixels at the appropriate ratio for the specific device. Libraries like
flutter_screenutil
provide a higher-level abstraction and toolset to make it easier to work with responsive layouts and text scaling in Flutter applications. The popularity offlutter_screenutil
and similar packages can be attributed to several reasons:Simplicity:
flutter_screenutil
simplifies the process of designing responsive UIs by providing straightforward APIs for defining layouts, font sizes, and other dimensions using logical pixels. Developers can work with familiar units, making the code more readable and maintainable.Ease of Use: The package offers easy-to-use methods and widgets for scaling font sizes and setting up responsive layouts. It abstracts away many of the calculations and conversions that would otherwise be necessary when dealing with different screen densities and sizes.
Customization: While
flutter_screenutil
provides sensible defaults, it also offers customization options for developers who need fine-grained control over their responsive designs. You can configure it to match your specific requirements.In summary, packages like
flutter_screenutil
simplify the process of creating responsive Flutter apps by providing abstractions and utilities that handle many of the complexities related to screen sizes and densities. Their popularity is a testament to their usefulness in making Flutter development more accessible and efficient for developers, leading to better cross-device user experiences. But in My opinion better to use Flutter property for response UI.