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Granted, the line between "tablets" and "phones" has been blurred for years, and there is no universally agreed upon distinction.

However, I am curious what metric Spotify uses to decide whether to call a device a phone or a tablet.

Most people would call my OnePlus 7 Pro a "phone", yet Spotify identifies it as a tablet:

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What metric is used here? And why?

Robert
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Fiksdal
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    I don't think that you will get a definitive answer. The common way would be to calculate the screen size using resolution and density. If the screen is larger than a specific value it is most likely a tablet. My personal suggestion for a tablet/smartphone border value would be around 7 inch screen size, but it seems Spotify uses a lower value. The only way to definitely answer your question would be to reverse-engineer the app, however Spotify is AFAIK heavily protected therefore it will be difficult to find the relevant code part. – Robert Oct 17 '19 at 12:04
  • @Robert Your hypothesis of screen size is interesting, we could test it by creating an array of virtual devices in something like Genymotion. If they all have the same characteristics, and display is the only distinguishing factor, then it would strongly support the hypothesis if at a certain point of display size Spotify starts to call the virtual device a "tablet". – Fiksdal Oct 17 '19 at 12:08

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Found this answer in a Spotify Community post:

Free account on a tablet only allowing shuffle play

Solution

  • Spotify classes a tablet as anything 7 inches or greater. Anything under this will only have shuffle play in a free account.

  • Spotify needs to identify each tablet using its ID in the build.prop of your tablet. If you are using a lesser known tablet it may be that it has not been matched in the database. Please contact support using the contact form here and let them know your device model, Android version and display size stating that you only have access to shuffle play.

Source: Spotify Community - Spotify doesn't recognize device as tablet

Andrew T.
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Findlife
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