Key Takeaways
A quick snapshot
- Dark mode is a phone setting that turns bright screens into mostly black or very dark backgrounds with light text.
- By December 2025, dark mode is built into almost every major phone system, and many apps follow it automatically.
- Android phones let users switch dark theme on or off in Settings or with a quick tile at the top of the screen.
- iPhones and iPads let users change dark mode in the Display & Brightness menu or through a button in Control Center.
- Research suggests dark mode can feel gentler and may save battery on some screens, but light mode often stays easier to read for many people.
Story & Details
A small button, a big change
Many people unlock a new phone, or install a big update, and feel confused: the screen looks strange and dark, menus are black, and text glows white. Dark mode did that. In just a few years, it moved from a special setting for night owls to the default look on many devices.
The idea is simple. Dark mode flips the normal color scheme. Instead of dark text on a bright background, it shows light text on a dark one. Phone makers present it as a calm, modern style that is kinder to the eyes, especially at night, and as a way to use a little less battery on some types of screens.
How Android phones push dark mode
On Android phones, dark mode is now a core feature, not a small extra. Official guidance explains that users can turn it on or off by opening the Settings app, tapping Display, and using the Dark theme switch. It can also be controlled from the quick settings panel: the user swipes down from the top of the screen and taps the Dark theme tile.
Newer versions of Android go even further. Recent updates in 2025 add stronger system-wide dark mode options that can turn many light apps dark, even when those apps did not plan for it. This means one simple setting can change the look of more of the phone, which feels powerful for some users and frustrating for others who never wanted a dark screen in the first place.
How Apple devices handle the same idea
On iPhones and iPads, dark mode is also built in. Apple’s support pages describe two main paths. One sits in Settings: the user goes to Display & Brightness and chooses Light or Dark. The other is in Control Center, where pressing and holding the brightness bar reveals a button that toggles Dark Mode on or off.
Apple makes dark mode part of a larger story about comfort. The same screens explain how to schedule it to come on only at night, and how it works together with other tools such as Night Shift, which makes colors warmer in the evening. The pitch is clear: the screen should fit the light in the room and the person using it, not the other way around.
What research says about eyes and comfort
Dark mode is often sold as “better for your eyes,” but the picture from research is more mixed. Studies and expert reviews point out that darker interfaces can reduce glare and feel more comfortable in low light, especially for people who are sensitive to brightness or who look at screens late at night. Some tests also show that dark mode can save battery on phones with OLED screens, because black pixels use less power.
At the same time, several usability and vision studies find that, for many people with normal sight, black text on a light background is still easier to read. Light mode can help with sharpness and speed when reading long blocks of text. Dark mode, especially with low contrast between text and background, can make reading slower or more tiring in bright rooms.
The result is not a simple “dark mode is good” or “dark mode is bad.” It is more personal. Some users feel instant relief when they switch to dark backgrounds. Others feel strain and go back to a light screen after a few days.
The role of apps and icons
System settings are only part of the story. Many apps have their own theme controls and can follow or ignore the main phone setting. A person can set the whole phone to light mode but still find one app that insists on staying dark until another menu is changed. New Android versions try to reduce this problem by applying forced dark mode and themed icons to more apps by default. Newer iOS versions give more control over icon style and color, so the home screen can match the chosen look.
This slow move toward stronger system themes shows how important the topic has become. Dark mode is no longer just a color option. It is a symbol of control, comfort, and personal taste in daily digital life.
A tiny Dutch lesson about light and dark
The idea of dark mode is also a nice chance to notice how different languages talk about light and dark. In Dutch, the word for “dark” is “donker,” and the word for “light” is “licht.” When a Dutch user says “donker” or “licht” about a screen, the meaning is clear even in a simple chat: darker screens feel softer, brighter screens feel sharper.
People, phones, and the feeling of control
Behind all the technical detail sits a simple human feeling. Many people get angry when a phone suddenly changes its look after an update. Dark mode is a frequent reason: one day the familiar white screen is gone, replaced by black menus and glowing letters.
Guides from companies and universities try to calm that feeling by explaining where to find the right settings, when dark mode might help, and when it might not. But the deeper need is emotional. A phone is a very personal object. Its screen is often the first thing seen in the morning and the last thing at night. People want it to feel like their own choice, not like a decision made for them by a distant software team.
Conclusions
A calm end to a bright–dark story
Dark mode now lives in almost every pocket. In December 2025, phones, tablets, and apps offer more ways than ever to switch between dark and light, to schedule changes by time of day, and to match icons and colors to each style.
The lesson is simple. Dark mode is not magic, and it is not a problem by itself. It is one more tool. For some people it brings comfort, for others it brings headaches, and many move between the two depending on time of day and what they are reading.
Good design and clear settings give users the power to choose. A small button in Settings or Control Center can turn a harsh glow into a soft dark screen, or bring back the bright look that feels familiar. When that choice is easy to find and easy to change, phones feel more friendly, and the argument over dark mode becomes less about right and wrong and more about what feels good on a given day.
Selected References
[1] Google Support – “Change to dark theme or adjust the color scheme on your Android phone”
https://support.google.com/android/answer/9730472
[2] Apple Support – “Use Dark Mode on your iPhone and iPad”
https://support.apple.com/en-gb/108350
[3] Apple Support (YouTube) – “How to customize your Home Screen on iPhone and iPad”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACfSzTWUa1c
[4] Nielsen Norman Group – “Dark Mode vs. Light Mode: Which Is Better?”
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/dark-mode/
[5] Wayne State University Accessibility – “Pros and cons of using dark mode”
https://accessibility.wayne.edu/news/pros-and-cons-of-using-dark-mode-62969
[6] St. Pölten University of Applied Sciences – “The Impact of Dark Mode on Mobile Usability and User Experience”
https://mobile.fhstp.ac.at/allgemein/the-impact-of-dark-mode-on-mobile-usability-and-user-experience/
[7] Android Developers – “Implement dark theme”
https://developer.android.com/develop/ui/views/theming/darktheme
Appendix
Android
Android is the mobile operating system developed by Google and used by many phone brands; it offers system-wide dark theme controls in the Display settings and through quick tiles at the top of the screen.
Dark mode
Dark mode is a display setting that shows light text and interface elements on a dark or black background, often used to reduce glare, change the mood of the screen, or save battery on some types of displays.
Dutch words donker and licht
In Dutch, “donker” means dark and “licht” means light, two simple words that help describe whether a phone screen looks mostly black or mostly bright.
Home screen
The home screen is the main view on a phone or tablet that appears after unlocking the device, usually showing app icons, widgets, and basic status information.
iOS
iOS is Apple’s mobile operating system for iPhones, closely related to iPadOS for iPads, and it includes built-in settings for dark mode and other display choices.
OLED screen
An OLED screen is a type of display where each pixel gives off its own light, so dark areas can use less power, which is why dark mode can sometimes help save battery on these devices.
Smartphone
A smartphone is a mobile phone that can connect to the internet, run apps, and handle many tasks such as messaging, navigation, and media, with dark mode now a standard feature on most models.
Theme
A theme is a group of visual choices, such as colors, icon styles, and backgrounds, that together give a phone or app a certain look, often offered in light and dark versions.
My Diary - Leonardo Cardillo 