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Google Drive for the web finally goes dark
Manage your files in low-light conditions without straining your eyes
Dark mode took off with the advent of AMOLED displays a few years ago, with many web developers and app management teams scrambling to implement the new feature. It makes reading much easier on the eyes, and some would argue it also reduces power consumption on AMOLEDs, but in any case, Google wasn’t a forerunner in adoption. To this day, a vast majority of Workspace apps don’t offer the convenience on the web version, but things are now starting to change, starting with Drive.
Dark mode has become increasingly popular in recent years, as users have grown to appreciate the benefits of reduced eye strain and improved battery life. Yesterday, Twitter — or X or whatever — announced that it would remove light mode and move exclusively to dark mode. Thankfully, cooler heads have prevailed and light mode will be staying around after some backlash, but another mode is still going away.
Even with the rising competition from the likes of Instagram and TikTok, Snapchat's popularity remains intact among youngsters. If you frequently use Snapchat during night hours, turn on dark mode to reduce eye strain. However, unlike the iPhone, the dark mode option isn't readily available to everyone on Snapchat for Android. You must purchase the company's subscription service, Snapchat+, to activate the dark theme on your top budget Android phone.
Google Weather finally gets a dark theme, but the forecast is still uncertain
A recent WebView update seems to have flipped the switch
Google’s Weather app isn’t an app in the strictest sense — it’s more like a direct link to search the term “weather” in the Google app — but it does give you plenty of forecast data in a tabbed interface with a friendly frog as your weatherperson. It very seldomly receives updates, so it’s had essentially the same UI for years aside from adding tablet support — and until now, that has included a blinding white background with no respect for your phone’s dark mode setting.
How to enable and schedule dark mode on your Android phone
Enabling, scheduling, and adding the dark mode tile to Quick Settings
Are you looking to reduce the battery consumption of your OLED screen, even if slightly? Maybe you’re trying to curb the blinding intensity with which your display hits your eyes when you power your phone at night. Perhaps, you’re just interested in the novelty of Android’s Dark mode or theme. Whichever it is, if you own a phone running Android 10 and above, you can rest assured that this straightforward step-by-step guide will help you activate or schedule dark mode without hassle.
Dark themes don't just look great — they're also a fantastic utility, making your display easier on the eyes at night. Chrome OS is one of the few platforms that hasn't caught up with the times. While dark mode has been in development for some time, it hasn't reached a stable build just yet. A crucial part of the Chrome OS experience is next to support darker themes: its on-screen keyboard.
Waze is an amazing resource for drivers. While Google Maps serves as your average, general-purpose navigation app, Waze is entirely built around turn-by-turn navigation and it's all about getting you from point A to point B in the shortest amount of time possible. But despite having a massive user base, with the app serving millions every month, there's still an odd omission: the app features no global dark mode (despite having other theming options). It does have a partial dark mode feature which makes the map itself dark, but the rest of the app remains white-themed. Now it looks like Waze will soon be getting a proper dark mode.
Twitter just fixed the most annoying thing about its dark mode
It does what you want it to do, whenever you want to do it
As an occasional infomercial viewer, I've always connected with Ron Popeil touting the Ronco Showtime rotisserie oven with his tagline, "Set it and Forget It!" Of course, there's plenty of stuff these days where we can set once and then forget about it and one of those things is setting up a dark mode. For Android users, Twitter has long had a dark theme, but it lagged behind many other apps in not having a mode that follows your system's theme — just automatic triggers at sunset and sunrise.
Google Assistant Reminders only now got a dark theme — with no Material You to be seen anywhere
At this pace, we'll see Material You sometime in 2023
Just in time for Material You to arrive with the imminent Android 12 launch (if the leaks are to be believed), Google has finally updated the Assistant Reminders with a proper dark mode respecting your system-wide theme. That’s right — this is not the Material You update, it’s just a dark theme, which Google introduced support for all the way back in 2019 with Android 10.
Our eyeballs have been patiently waiting for a darker version of Search on the web for years. While a few users got a peek at it earlier this summer, as of today the option for a dark-themed Google search should be coming to everyone. You can try it out now. Right now! Go! Do it! Why are you still here?!
Google Chat for web starts rolling out dark mode for late-night low-light chit-chat
It's becoming gradually easier to use your browser at night
Google has been working to support dark themes in many of its apps and services since Android 10 and system-wide dark theme started rolling out. It's been a slow and tedious process, but we're getting there. However, along the way light modes have become considerably brighter as well, with enough white to make you feel like you're being blinded — especially when working at night. That's a problem for apps that have gotten an updated UI, but were still waiting for a dark theme. Google Chat for the web has been just such an example, but luckily, it's now finally going dark.
Google Assistant is going goth, with dark mode coming to a future Chrome OS update
Light theme is getting some tweaks, too
It's been almost a year since Google started working on giving Chrome OS some darker hues. Despite dark mode's long development time, it still looks pretty unfinished today (even in Canary), and we'll probably be waiting for some time before Google officially launches it. With the highly requested feature slowly trekking its way towards the finish line, Google has been steadily rolling out updates that introduce new sprinkles of dark theme goodies, like dynamic theme switching and scheduled dark mode. And now, Google Assistant is raring to embrace its new goth makeover.
Get this app to check out Android 12's wallpaper-based themes on any phone right now
The complete rewrite of the dark mode enforcer app also packs significant technical improvements
Android introduced a proper system-wide dark mode back in 2019, but many app developers still haven't come around implementing proper dark themes for their apps — even Google didn't update Google Maps until earlier this year. That's where a neat app from a third-party developer comes in, Kieron Quinn's DarQ. It uses hidden system hooks in Android 10 and higher to force dark mode on unsupported apps, and it has just received its biggest update yet to version 2.0 — complete with wallpaper-based app colors thanks to Android 12's Monet theming system. It even works on lower Android versions.
Android Auto will finally let you choose dark mode as part of its biggest update in ages
Including changes to messaging, music apps, and more
Android Auto keeps your eyes on the road, all while mirroring the most essential parts of your phone. From maps to music and everything in between, Google's car-friendly interface has come a long way since its earliest days. Today, Android Auto is getting a whole slew of changes to help make your summer road trip even better.
Dark mode has been soaring in popularity as a design trend over the last several years, and for good reason — it minimizes eye strain when using computers over extended periods (Editor's note: It also looks slick AF). With major platforms like macOS, Windows, and Android offering darker shades, it became clear Chrome OS had to catch up with the pack. Dark mode is still in ongoing development despite work on it dating back almost a year now, and it looks unfinished — even today. But Google hasn't thrown in the towel here, and it's now adding another highly requested feature to make dark mode even better.
Even Dead Zebra's Android figurines have dark mode now
Also in standard green, if that's how you roll
Are you really an Android fan if you don't have at least one of Dead Zebra's figurines? The company has made countless limited-edition models of Google's mascot decked out in various themes, celebrating everything from Christmas and Chinese New Year to Oktoberfest and, uh, French cooking. If you've been hoping for a plain model you can keep on your desk year-round, an upgraded version of the standard Mini collectible Bugdroid is now available — and it even comes in dark mode.
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After testing it for months, Google has finally started flipping on dark theme/mode support for Search on the Web for a lucky few. So far as we can tell, it still hasn't hit everyone yet, and this could be just another test or a limited rollout ahead of a formal announcement. Still, reports today seem quite a bit more widespread than they were the last few times Google played with the feature on customers' computers.
Android 12 DP3's dark mode improvements will further protect your eyes from burning whites
Dark toast messages and dark splash screens
Android 12 Developer Preview 3 brought a whole slew of new design elements hinting that we're in for even more extensive changes in future pre-release versions. But Google is also working on eliminating smaller inconsistencies that should make the latest OS even more pleasant to use. It's introducing properly themed toast messages for dark mode, as first spotted by 9to5Google.
Arlo's Android app finally gets a dark mode (APK Download)
Just a couple of years after its iOS counterpart
Arlo is one of the leading smart home security companies out there, and its companion app is what you need to make the most of the hardware. While the iOS version of it has had a dark mode for a couple of years now, it's been woefully absent from the Android app. Fortunately, that's changing with the latest update.
Even if you don't use them often, accessibility options are some of the most important settings on your phone. Google has baked in plenty of features to help those with disabilities use Android, but over time, the accessibility menu has become cluttered and hard to navigate. On Android 12 DP2, however, Google has shuffled a few key controls to make it a lot easier to find exactly what you're looking for.