Google takes another step towards all systems dark

Dark modes in your apps have been big news recently and we’re going to hear more and more about them as we creep towards the launch date of the next big Android update, Android Q. Google is working to implement a system-wide dark mode on Android Q, which means it is going to have put dark modes in all of its apps before Q comes out later this year.

We’ve recently seen Chrome go dark, Google Calendar and Keep, and even the Google search app itself has got the dark mode treatment. It is now the turn of another of Google’s biggest apps to turn to its darker side as Gmail users have been reporting that the dark mode option has started appearing on their version of the app.

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Google is working on a dark mode for its Gmail for Android app

According to some users who’ve downloaded the latest Gmail APK, a basic dark mode has started to appear. The feature isn’t complete yet and only works in certain screens like the settings menu. In some screens, the options are barely visible as Google hasn’t even changed the text color yet, meaning the dark text hardly stands out at all against the dark background.

The screenshots above, published via Android Police,  show just how basic Gmail’s new dark mode currently is. There is clearly still a lot of work ahead for the search giant before one of its most popular apps gets a fully functional dark mode. This means it is highly likely that we won’t see an official release of the Gmail dark mode until later this year when Google releases, the as yet unnamed, Android Q.

As is always the case with this type of leak there is no official word from Google on this one. The screenshots are there though, so we know that the Mountain View-based company is working on the feature. It is just a matter of time then and we simply need to be patient.