Instagram testing dark mode for Android, no toggle present as of now

Instagram in its latest alpha update for its Android app has added a dark theme. (Image: XDA Developers)

Google with the introduction of Android 10 has added a native dark mode to the system UI. Now various third party apps are taking initiative and adding native dark mode themes to their interface. Latest of which is Facebook-owned Instagram.

According to a new report by XDA Developers, Instagram in its latest alpha update for its Android app has added a dark theme. It is an AMOLED dark theme so the background colours are black. The dark mode as of now consists of a few parts which aren’t dark.

In the report, it is stated that the black background colour doesn’t save on battery like the dark greys found in Google apps. However, it does enhance the user experience in the dark without changing the actual content.

To enable Instagram’s dark mode, you are needed to update the app to its latest version and then turn on Android’s native dark mode. You are required to turn on your phone’s dark mode because as of now, Instagram’s dark mode follows the system-wide toggle.

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So this means only smartphones running Android 10 or Samsung’s One UI can currently turn on the toggle. As of now, we don’t know when the company will be releasing the version to others with an addition of a toggle button.

Facebook has already added a dark mode theme to its Messenger app and is also testing a similar theme for WhatsApp.