Dark theme boot screen spotted in testing for Chrome OS
If you’re a Chromebook fananda Dark Theme stan, then you may be particularly excited to hear that a dark boot screen for Chrome OS has been spotted in recent Dev-channel releases. The new look started appearing late last week for devices like the Pixelbook and Lenovo Duet running the latest Dev channel Chrome OS 101 releases. However, reports indicate some subtle differences between devices.
One of two boot screens reports indicate are being tested in Chrome OS 101
There are at leasttwoversions of the new dark theme boot screen: A monochromatic one like you may see above and a version that uses the Chrome colors for the logo, seemingly varying between devices. Excluding the differences, it’s precisely what you’d expect, with a black background and a brighter, contrasting logo showing as the device boots up. It’s not clear yet if it’s tied to other settings and could be dynamic, as there are a few bugs right now with dark mode in the current Chrome OS Dev channel release.
Dark themes are popular among technical enthusiasts (including most of the Android Police staff), offering an experience that’s easier on the eyes at night while maintaining contrast. It can introduce some design challenges, butGoogle has documentationon how developers can best implement it, often preferring dark grays to pure blacks for backgrounds. Dark themes can also reduce power consumption on OLED displays, but most Chromebooks use TN or IPS displays, which don’t have the same benefits — though there are exceptions like theLenovo Duet 5andGalaxy Chromebook.
We’ve knownGoogle has been working to implement dark theme parts to Chrome OS recovery and boot screens since 2020, but there were some technical challenges associated with some of the changes. But the long-standing dream of afull and complete Chrome OS dark themeis coming closer to reality.
Some customers report that the same release that enabled the new dark boot screen also disabled dark theme support in other areas, but it seems to vary. As one of the more bleeding-edge update paths, Dev channel releases tend to enable and disable features frequently as changes are tested, so this isn’ttoounusual. According to recent commits,Google failed to extend the flag for dark mode past Chrome OS v100, andindications are it will be re-enabled soon.
The feature might land with Chrome OS 101 since that’s the release it’s currently being tested in. According to the current schedule, that version is expected to hit stable sometime around April 28th. However, Google could also push it back later or bring it up for an earlier release, as it sometimes does for Dev channel features. If and when it trickles down to Beta channel, that will give us a better idea of the timeframe.
Broader branding hints at wider paid-tier ambitions
The note-taking app I should have used all along
A hefty discount makes this a no-brainer
I found the only AI photo app worth keeping on my phone
It’s $30 off for a limited time
We just learned a little bit more about Light No Fire in a video about the Voyagers update for No Man’s Sky
