Ever since the very beginning of iOS in 2007 (then iPhone OS), Apple has always stuck on to a white background throughout the user interface. Competing platforms notably, the now-defunct Windows Phone offered a dark mode feature way back in 2010.
It was upon years and years of requests from users and inspiration from the jailbreak community that Apple finally implemented dark mode starting iOS 13 just over a year ago.
With that said, let’s take a look at how to set up and configure dark mode on iPhone and iPad running iOS 13 and higher. Dark mode turns the background from white to black and dark gray for easy night viewing. Every default and almost all third-party apps support dark mode. Folders get darker and wallpaper dims down ever so slightly.
Configure dark mode on iPhone and iPad (iOS 13 and later)
1. Launch the Settings app.
2. Tap Display & Brightness.
3. Next up, you’ll see two options namely Light and Dark. Tap either of them to switch from light to dark and vice-versa.
You can also enable dark mode automatically as per your preferred time, say 10:00 PM to 3:00 AM and from sunset to sunrise. All you have to do is toggle the Automatic switch, tap on Options and choose Sunset to Sunrise or Custom Schedule.
Related: 7 iPhone Accessibility tips to improve the usability
Enable dark mode via the Control Center
The dark/light mode button can also be accessed directly from the Control Center on your iPhone or iPad.
1. Swipe down from the top-right corner of the screen (on iPad/iPhone X, XS, XR,11, and 12) or swipe up from the bottom of the screen (iPhone 6S, 7, 8, and SE 2) to access the Control Center.
2. 3D Touch or Haptic Touch (long press) the brightness slider and tap the Dark Mode button as shown below.
Tap the Dark Mode button