Not Too Happy With The Android Action Bar... How Can I Reduce Its Size

I don't really like the new Action Bar Android has come up with -- and apparently forced me to use in later API levels. But, since it appears I'm stuck with it -- I have no more M

Solution 1:

You can use getActionBar().setDisplayShowHomeEnabled(false) to get rid of the button.

As for the height of the Action Bar, I don't believe it can be changed without setting up a new theme. In Android's Theme.Holo, it has an attribute <item name="actionBarSize">56.0dip</item>. You should be able to change this if you extend that theme into your own. (Keep in mind that this may denigrate the UX since people are expecting it to be of a certain size.)

As for your last question, I believe icon spacing is fixed. Can you show exactly what you mean by "a big empty black space"? They should be evenly distributed across the bar.

Solution 2:

Why don't you simply hide the action bar and provide your own menu in your activity layout? Seems to me that you want to fit a square in a disc ...

Just use the ActionBar for what it is meant to be used. If you don't like it, hide it and make your own control.

I mean, no title, no left side icon, ... Then what's the point of using it?

Solution 3:

You actually can remove the action bar:

ActionBaractionBar= getActionBar();
actionBar.hide();