Google confirms system-wide dark mode is coming to Android Q

Google has had a complicated relationship with dark mode over the past few years, only recently embracing the eye-friendly visual styling in some of its apps. Now, at Google I/O 2019, the company has confirmed that a dark mode is indeed coming to Android Q.

“Now there’s one more addition to Android Q that’s small, but you’ve been asking us about for a while, and that is dark theme. And we’re launching it in Q,” the company’s Stephanie Cuthbertson said on-stage during the keynote address.

Cuthbertson notes that the dark mode can be activated by using a quick tile setting or by enabling battery saver mode. Furthermore, a screenshot shown at the event (seen above) also reveals that the dark mode will affect the Google Podcasts app, Google Photos, and Google Search itself.

Dark mode also saves battery life on OLED screens, the Google representative notes. In fact, Google’s own research previously showed that YouTube in dark mode delivers 60 percent battery savings when at 100 percent screen brightness.

“We’ll also be letting third-party developers easily switch to dark theme so that they can support the system-level setting,” Google executive Shenaz Zack said in a video posted to the Android Twitter account.

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