During WWDC in June Apple announced that iOS 13 and iPadOS 13 would offer a Dark Mode for the first time. It was something users had been screaming for ever since macOS 10.14 Mojave received the same feature last year. And it was finally coming.
Fast forward a few months – a whole summer, even – and a pair of seriously troubled beta programs and we now have iOS 13 and iPadOS 13.1. The latter never saw a version 13 and both have been superseded a couple of times since their release, but who's counting? Not me. I lost track long ago.
Alongside the new updates we saw many of our favorite apps also get updates that added support for Dark Mode. Some of them did a better job than others. Some already offered theming of their own so nothing really changed. But being able to transform iOS and iPadOS into a full-on dark theme was absolutely new. And having multiple apps respect that choice was mind blowing. As an aside, it really is odd how easily our minds are blown, right?
At this point most people have had at least a couple of weeks to take iPhone and iPad's Dark Mode for a spin. Which leads me to my question:
Now that you've had chance to use Dark Mode properly, do you like it?
I ask this because I have a theory. My theory is that Dark Mode is one of those features that everyone clamors for until they get it. Once they do, they use it. And then they discard it when they realize that the thought of Dark Mode is way better than the execution.
Whether the fault of that failure to execute falls at the feet of Apple – did developers get the right tools? – or developers – does Dark Mode really need to be black? – it doesn't matter. It might even be our fault for setting expectations so high in the first place. All I know is my anecdotal flicking through social media and shoulder surfing tells me nobody's really feeling Dark Mode anymore.
But I want to know what you, dear reader, have to say. We've a handy dandy poll for you to use and we have comments below for you to passionately – but respectfully! – put your opinion across. I'm genuinely interested to hear your thoughts. Do you like Dark Mode?
