My requirements are such that a large display is highly advantageous. Personal experience with virtually every size of smartphone & tablet display has taught me that 6.0" is the best size for me. I eagerly await the Lenovo Vibe Z2 Pro. If its released with the same specs recent rumors suggest, it'll be the closest thing to my perfect phone ever.

 

No SD on the Vibe

 

I don't use an SD card. I have a 40TB secure NAS equipped dedicated home server, along with 3 redundant clouds for my data. Therefore, I keep everthing resident and secure on my network. Carrying just what I want to use on my Smartphones, Tablets and Laptops. None of those are burdened with long term storage.

 

Perhaps if you explain precisely what you're trying to accomplish we can share some ideas.

What does "more useful as a tablet mean?"

 

It is if you are like me a lot of times not having data access Not much of a cloud fan as a result. Not to mention more battery use with cloud rather than local storage.

I get why folks like it though. Just not my cup of tea.

 

He's looking for a launcher to decrease the grid and icon size. Also to root to change screen dpi size

 

I would recommend using Nova Launcher (or some equivalent) that let's you resize your icons and grid. I typically run an 8x6 grid which gives me the ability add more to my home screens. In reality though, I probably run the same amount on each screen, but the larger grid size makes it seem like there is more space.

Go to this page of this home screen thread and scroll down four comments (look for my name) and you'll see a few screen captures of how my screens look:

Post your home screens thread - page 8

 

I agree withe the launcher suggestion...Nova and many other launchers will let you choose margin size top and bottom and on sides...allow for no notification bar if you choose...arrange icons in grids of 4 by 6 or 5 by 6 per page etc... also let you resize and overlap widgets.

try one of the launchers for free and see if you like it enough to get the premium version.

Here is example of widget resize and 4 by six icons with small margins all around...make your own and have fun with it.

 

He might like the little Note Pro tablet better. It's not really that much bigger than the phone and might fit what he wants better.

 

The 3D Next Launcher does all that and work very slick and smooth.

 

S-pen itself still works, but if you use any of the TouchWiz widgets, such as Action Memo or the built-in calendar app, then those will not, and likely won't be accessible.

 

I've been successful using the S-Pen and it's apps / widgets with Nova no problem. It's just a matter of setup, nothing special. (Not rooted)

Hope this helps

 

I haven't noticed any difference with s pen use, but I don't use it for notes as it doesn't make them permanent. The menu still pops up as usual when I pull out the stylus.

 

I'm still a 'bit confused by your original question, even with your explanation of what you're going for.

When I think of "screen real estate", I think of overall viewing screen (which is far superior on a 5.7 screen vs. the inch less of viewing on the S3).

That said, if you were looking for a way to change the Grid size (not really the way I would consider "screen real estate"), so that you can include what you had mentioned above, that really has more to do with the stock 4X4 Grid that Android typically has, vs. different Grid sizes you can set up using a 3rd party launcher (not all launchers have the same amount of Grid changes) without rooting or possibly even some custom ROM's (if rooted). I really am not sure of any OEM UI's that can re-configure the grid size beyond the stock Android 4X4 (although, there could be some, even if I'm not aware of them).

Nova Prime is my favorite choice, of all the 3rd party launchers, however there are quite a few available that are just as popular. You can always download the different Launchers, and use HomeSmack APP, to switch between the different launchers. That will help you decide which one is best for you. Once you've decided, just uninstall the other launchers and stick with the 3rd party launcher you've chosen.

 

I use TSF Shell launcher ($15) and you can change the draw grid size. I use 6 down by 4 across.
Also you can change the density to match to give smaller icons/words.

But the phone menus etc all stay the same. It's a shame that extra small and tiny still give the same size press boxes in the menus etc as small.

 

FYI Nova will allow you to use all the TouchWiz widgets, except some might run in the default 'easy mode' and as such won't allow full-function. Weather is one such example. i had no problems accessing Air Command or any of the Action Memo or Multi-Window features in Nova or any other launcher. they don't depend on the launcher only the TouchWiz framework.

 

I can only speak from my understanding of the op's question...I found on touch whiz even tho the screen was bigger all I got was a bigger version of my icons and widgets therefor not allowing for more items per screen...with a launcher I can adjust margins and resize widgets and icons...therefore get a lot more info on one screen as opposed to the same amount of info just larger info on one screen with touch whiz.

I cant put 30 app icons on a page with a launcher instead of 16 or so with touch whiz.

 

Okay, so if that's the case, the complaint shouldn't really be about screen real estate because of Samsung. That's not even touchwiz. All android phones are based on a 4X4 grid. If you look at the app icon shortcuts, when placed on a homescreen, you'll see that there's a rectangular shape that encompasses the part of the screen that the icon takes up.

It's Android, not TouchWiz. I don't know of any Android phones that can customize the grid from the get-go, without using a 3rd party launcher.

 

I put Nova on 2 tablets. Not for the screen real estate but so I could back up the homescreen layouts. One is a Note and the digitizer still works fine. Not sure I want it on my Note 3. I have 7 screens and lots of apps. Do some work with my telescope there. Have a 128GB exsd card. Touchwiz is fine on the Note 3 so why change a stable situation? If I need more screen I'll just add one based on my organizing structure.