Research Shows Dark Mode on Phones Can Save Battery Life

Dark mode is a feature that allows phone screens to use themes with darker tones, such as black. This feature is designed to reduce the light emitted by the screen while maintaining text readability by ensuring optimal color contrast. One of the primary benefits of dark mode is its ability to save battery life, particularly on devices with OLED screens. This is supported by a study conducted by researchers at Purdue University, Indiana, USA, which examined the impact of dark mode on power consumption and battery usage.

Dark Mode Reduces Energy Consumption
According to a report by Forbes, the study simulated user activities on six popular Google apps—Calculator, Calendar, Maps, Phone, News, and YouTube—for one minute. The researchers used several Android devices from different generations, including the Pixel 2 (2017), Moto Z3 (2018), Pixel 4 (2019), and Pixel 5 (2020).

The findings revealed that OLED screens consume approximately 44% to 73% of a device's total power in bright mode at maximum brightness. However, since not all users set their screens to maximum brightness, the study also evaluated the impact of brightness levels on energy consumption.

At 100% brightness, switching from bright mode to dark mode reduced power usage by an average of 42%. At 50% brightness, the savings dropped to around 8.5%, and at 30% brightness, the savings were less than 5%. Although the impact is not significant under normal brightness settings, dark mode can still extend battery life to a certain degree.

The study did not include iPhone devices, but since iPhones with OLED screens have been available since the iPhone X (2017), it is likely that similar power-saving patterns apply.

Guide to Activating Dark Mode on Phones

Here’s how to enable dark mode on iPhones and Android devices:

On iPhone:
1. Open the "Settings" app.
2. Select the "Display & Brightness" menu.
3. Choose the "Dark" option to activate dark mode.
4. You can also set a schedule to automatically enable dark mode at specific times.
On Android:
1. Open the "Settings" menu.
2. Select "Display."
3. Turn on the "Dark Theme" option.