Android emulator not rotating to landscape

Some of the emulator targets like 4.4 (API level 19) and 2.3 have a bug. Change your emulator to target version 4.2 or 4.3 and try to change the orientation.

See the history of this bug: https://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=13189

Related question: Impossible to rotate the emulator with android 4.4

If everything else fails (it did for me), as a workaround you can use application for screen orientation. In the other question (Impossible to rotate the emulator with android 4.4), user vldmrrr wrote that:

Until it is fixed I use this free application "Set Orientation". Install the apk into emulator using adb install.

The application displays a shortcut in the notification status bar. (I know it's an old question, but it's pretty high in google).

With the android L emulator you can go into landscape by opening your app, then opening the camera app (you will need to set an emulated camera in AVD) record a video. Then press ctr-f12 of 11. In the camera app click the video thumbnail and play it back. The video should go to landscape. Then press the multitasking button and multitask into your app. DO NOT GO TO THE HOME SCREEN OR YOU WILL HAVE TO GO INTO THE CAMERA APP, GO TO LANDSCAPE AND REPLAY THE VIDEO! please let me know if this works for any other android emulator versions.