Power BI App (content packs) Icon sizing and future

[cabell]

The new power BI content Apps draw their image from the workspace which they are created in, this is changed by editing the group behind the workspace. This brings two questions:

1. What is the diameter of this circular image? (for my imediate needs)

2. If PBI Apps are to eventually remove the need for o365 groups for each workspace, how is it envisaged that we will be able to add a custom icon in this circular image?

[GijsTerBeek]

Hi, I've done some research, and the problem is that Power BI resizes the uploaded image to 4 different icon sizes that are not exactly multiples, which is hell for scaling crisply:

• Left menu / Workspace list : 24px (uses actual file size), supports transparency
• Workspace header: 48px (uses actual file size), supports transparency
• App header: 40px (uses 1:3 scaled down version of 120px), does not support transparency
• App tile in homescreen: 89px (uses 2:3 scaled down version of 120px and loses 1 pixel), does not support transparency
  
  

PowerBI resizes the icons after you upload them and doesn't do a very great job at it. Anti-aliasing is all over the place. I've found that if I upload a 196x196 circular icon with an inner shape of 112 pixels, it renders the 'least bad' results. If you use line art - as I did in the example below - your line width should be 5 pixels. I use a ring around my icons to indicate whether a workspace is either Development, Testing or Production (we use deployment pipelines). 

Hope this helps. I also tried a total width of 180px as cnatx87 pointed out, but it gets washed out too much in the small icons. 

Edit: I know that 192px would mathematically be a better size (it is a multiple of 24 and 48, and also it is exactly 1.6 times 120). I found however that at small sizes, the contrast is too harsh. But this may be personal taste:

[cnatx87]

What I've found works best is to size the image content to 120x120px centered within a larger canvas space of 180x180px.

[Ajay]

[1] I will get the exact dimensions for you tomororw (and add it to the documenation as well).

[2] Once we remove the need for O365 groups, we will provide a way to change the image from inside Power BI (and we will migrate the existing image as well). 

[cabell]

Hi Ajay,

Did you have any luck with the dimensions?

Chris

[OneWithQuestion]

Bump... also any word on when PBI will migrate away from these groups?

The groups cause all kinds of annoying complications.

[Ajay]

The aspect ratio of the images should be 1:1. Ideal dimensions are 120 x 120.

Also, we are working on removing the dependency from O365 groups and we hope to complete it by the end of the year. 

[cabell]

Thanks for the update Ajay, It will be a great relief once o365 groups are no longer a product of AppWorkspaces.

Do you also have the dimensions for the Apps? as they are a circle not a square.

Cheers,

Chris

[Cbischel]

Bump> Any update here? Is it possible to change an app/report icon from the defaul two letter option?

[cnatx87]

What I've found works best is the image content is sized to 120x 120 pixels, but it must be centered within larger canvas of 180x180 pixels.

[OneWithQuestion]

It is supposed to be, but it is broken.

I've filed an issue on it, as have others, but still no changes... 😞

https://community.powerbi.com/t5/Issues/Apps-not-showing-icon-for-workspace/idi-p/255011

The issue is that while you can upload a custom icon, it never updates.

[cabell]

Any luck with the dimensions?

[cabell]

Hi Ajay, any progress on that image size? Cheers

[cabell]

Fantastic, thanks Ajay