Google has been rolling out Dark Mode to various apps and services. The latest to gain Dark Mode is the Beta Google app. The new feature allows you to enable dark mode “Never,” “Follow System Setting,” or “Always.”
The new Dark Mode for the Beta Google app can be activated by going to More > Settings > General > Dark theme. It was first spotted by Android Police, though it doesn’t appear to have made its way to everyone’s Beta Google app just yet. If you haven’t received it in your Beta Google app, check out the screenshots in the image gallery below.
Keep in mind that this new Dark Mode is in Google’s Beta app, so Google is experimenting with it for now. The Dark Mode will cover the Discovery, Search, Settings, Explore, and more. The Android owner is scheduled to release a systemwide Dark Mode with the rollout of its much anticipated Android Q update, scheduled for later this year.
Last Fall, Google confirmed that Dark Mode leads to better battery life than the Light Mode (white) it had been using in its Material Design language. Android was once entirely Dark Mode, until Google went with Material Design and changed it completely. With Google’s confirmation, the Android owner encouraged developers to start using Dark Mode in their apps.
The first app to see Dark Mode soon after Google’s affirmative nod to its battery-saving capabilities was Google Contacts, as Google rolled out Dark Mode to the app in v3.2 released in November.
Earlier this year, screenshots from Android Q leaked showing a systemwide Dark Mode that can be toggled to “Automatic,” “Always On,” or “Always Off.” And yes, there is a systemwide push that will enable Dark Mode even in apps that don’t have a Dark Mode at all. So Google intends to push this across all apps and screens for the sake of a unified operating system.
Just days prior to the release of leaked screenshots from Q, Chromium bug tracker Lukasz Zbylut said that Dark Mode is a baked-in feature of Android Q and that all Android apps must be so themed by May 2019 to take advantage of the upcoming feature. Google quickly removed permission to view the Chromium bug tracker thread, adding fuel to the fire and strongly suggesting that Dark Mode is indeed on the way.
A Reddit user named “Valtism” spotted a Dark Mode for Chrome on the browser’s Canary Channel in February 2019, suggesting that a Dark Mode would indeed come to Google’s mobile web browser. Google didn’t disappoint, as the anticipated feature landed on Chrome version 73 the following month, though it was only available on MacOS at the time. A few weeks later, Chrome on Android received the new Dark Mode that was only accessible through developer settings.
In April, Google started rolling out a Dark Mode for Google’s cloud app called Google Drive. The new Material Design update for Google Drive unveiled something of a “dark gray” look across the app itself. Google Calendar and Google Keep received their Dark Mode honors just two weeks ago that can be accessed in their settings.
Google’s rollout of Dark Mode across various apps and services before Android Q lands is not surprising, as this is the typical case for the Android owner prior to a major release. It gives current Android handset owners a little foretaste of what is to come and makes the official Android system update release a bit easier to manage.
Android Q will bring not only the anticipated Dark Mode but also other features such as the Power button now enables quick emergency calls, the new baked-in Vulkan ANGLE makes mobile gaming smoother, the addition of “battery time remaining in the notification shade, more secure Wi-Fi, support for foldable devices such as the Galaxy Fold, and even a Google-made screen recorder.
