Northumbria University student Maximos Angelakis has developed some concept images for an iPhone X dark mode.
iPhone X Dark Mode
With many smartphone apps adding a “dark mode” to their functionality, more and more people are moving towards an aesthetic with a focus on black rather than white. For many people, it’s much easier on the eyes to stare at a black screen rather than one that is filled with bright light — especially when you wake up in the middle of the night to check your phone. An iPhone X dark mode has been rumored to be included with a software update for a long time, yet it seems that this feature is still not on the horizon. British student Maximos Angelakis has us wanting the feature all the more, with a recent mockup on what an iOS dark mode might look like.
Angelakis has stated that the concept was inspired by Apple’s watchOS, which uses black wallpapers to save power. In addition to being easier to look at, a dark mode with the iPhone X’s new OLED display would make it much easier to keep your phone topped up throughout the day. As a perk to these new power saving features, Angelaki included an always-on clock and notification center that would be possible thanks to the lower drain of an iOS dark mode on the phone battery.
The concept images, included below, show the Home screen, Control Center, the App Switcher, and skins of a number of Apple apps like Mail, App Store, and Messages. While many people may not be fans of the dark aesthetic, as it strays away from the design we typically think of when it comes to Apple’s products, it definitely would see some major adoption if the positive reaction to Angelakis’ images is any indication.
Will We Ever See This New Feature?
Looking at this impressive take on the Apple operating system makes us wonder if we’ll ever actually see such a feature come to the iPhone and iPad. There’s no doubt a demand for an iPhone X dark mode, but is there really any pressure for Apple to release one?
Apple has long been the king of design, and one of the ways in which it delivers such a recognizable and beloved operating system is consistency across its devices. While functionally a dark mode may be the same as the stock iOS operating system, it does change the overall appearance of the way the phone works. iPhones have long been criticized for their lack of customizability when compared to Android handsets, but there’s no doubt that Apple’s approach has paid off.
If we never see an iPhone X dark mode, it will likely be for that reason. With Apple’s desires to maintain complete control over the appearance of their phones, supporting one color scheme is a lot easier than working with two.
Whether or not a dark mode actually comes to fruition remains to be seen, but with no inclusion in the upcoming updates, it’s looking likely that these mockups from Maximos Angelakis are the best we’ll get.
