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Summary
The iPhone looks great in the dark mode, especially those with an OLED screen. However, for some reason, iOS doesn’t consistently apply the dark theme to every visual element. Thankfully, you can fix that.
What Is the Issue With Dark Mode on iOS 18?
Dark mode has been available on iPhonesfor quite some time. Whether it’s for aesthetic appeal or just to save some battery life (yes, it reduces power consumption), many iPhone users set the phone permanently on dark appearance mode.
What we don’t realize is thatiOS dark modedoesn’t take care of everything.
Sure, it applies adark-gray theme on the user interface(evident in the system apps) and reduces the overall brightness emitted by the screen, but it doesn’t darken the wallpaper or the app icons on the home screen.
But what if someone wants more granular control over the dark mode on their iPhone? It turns out thatiOS 18 has two hidden display settingsthat dim the wallpaper and change the color scheme of individual app icons for a visually consistent experience.
Darken the Home Screen Wallpaper
Let’s begin by dimming thehome screen wallpaper. To do this, press and hold an empty space on the home screen to enter the edit mode (the icons will start to jiggle).
Tap on the Edit button in the top left corner of the screen.
Select Customize from the drop-down menu.
In the menu that appears, tap on the tiny sun icon. This will darken the home screen wallpaper.
Although this method doesn’t directly apply the dark mode on the wallpaper, it makes the screen more cohesive with the system-wide appearance mode.
Apply Dark Mode on App Icons
You can also change how the app icons look on the home screen. The setting we’re about to tell youchanges the icons' color scheme, replacing most white elements with dark gray ones.
Again, press and hold an empty space, tap on Edit at the top right corner, and select Customize.
In the menu that appears, select the second option from the left: Dark.
This will modify how the app icons look, especially those of system apps likeApple Music, Phone,Messages,Fitness, Safari, Notes, and so on. It also darkens the icons of some third-party apps like Google Chrome, WhatsApp, and Instagram, and not just on the home screen, but also other places where the icons appear (like the AirDrop menu).
However, there might be a few apps that don’t support the dark icons. In my case, these were Google Keyboard and PayPal.
Not all third-party apps have dark mode icons available, so you might want tohide them from your home screenif you find that they stick out. Don’t worry, you may alwaysaccess them via the App Libraryor bysearching using Spotlight.
Moreover, these settingsimprove the visual consistency across the user interfaceand make it more comfortable for usage in low-light conditions.
Change Your iPhone Wallpaper Too
A new iPhone wallpaper can make your iPhone feel all new again (as can a new case, actually). You canuse separate wallpapers on your lock screen and home screenif you want, or simply apply a blur effect to your wallpaper when you unlock your iPhone using the built-in wallpaper tool. you may do all of this via the wallpaper gallery by tapping and holding your iPhone while it’s on the lock screen (you’ll need to authenticate with Face ID or Touch ID to make changes).
If picking a wallpaper seems like too much hassle, considercycling your iPhone wallpaper automatically instead. Space-themed wallpaper from NASA are the perfect fit for an iPhone that’s permanently kept in dark mode.
Aside from appearance settings, iOS 18 provides severalother ways to change your iPhone’s appearance. These includecustomizing the Control Centerto show only the controls that are useful to you,replacing your lock screen shortcutswith apps you actually use, andadding useful widgets to your home screenso that you may access functions outside of apps.
We’ve also compiled a list of15 new iOS 18.2 features that you should check out.
