Dark theme really saves phone battery?

On Android, there are many tips for extending the battery life of a smartphone. So today I decided to remedy the debt of many. Can the background of the screen also influence the battery performance? Find out here if this really true urban legend.

Most Android devices feature AMOLED or LCD technologies on their screens. Understanding the differences between these types of displays is essential to knowing how they interact with the battery.

IPS LCD Screens

LED LCD screens have backlighting, which is like a hidden layer that is always on, and on this layer where is the LCD system, where the pixels determine the colors. When the screen is black because the pixels block the light, but it is still being generated by the backlit panel.

To use an easy metaphor: as in those times when you go to the beach and get under an umbrella. The sun is still there, beautiful and shining, but you don't see straight.

Is it possible to save battery with a black background on an LCD screen? At the!

But then, does a black background save battery power on an IPS LCD screen? At the! The backlight will continue to work from behind. The only way to make an LCD screen consume less battery by adjusting the brightness.

AndroidPIT Sony XZ1 7540
The Xperia XZ1 has LCD screen / AndroidPIT

OLED, AMOLED, and Super AMOLED screens

In the case of screens with AMOLED technology, we have almost the opposite of the LCD. There is no illuminated layer behind the pixels, and it is they themselves who illuminate. That way you can choose which pixels will be lit, and they don't have to be all at once.

Generally speaking, if your smartphone uses AMOLED technology, it is recommended to use a black background and dark themes for longer battery life. According to a study by XDA Developers, the energy savings on an AMOLED display with 20% brightness at 6% every hour.

If we set the brightness to maximum, the economy goes up to 8% per hour. These results are based on an always-on screen. This is because, with AMOLED display technology, the LEDs do not emit light but go out with a black background and therefore do not work.

AndroidPIT Oneplus 5t vs Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus 6689
Examples of AMOLED Screens / AndroidPIT

Where to get a black background?

It is recommended that you change the theme of your apps and configure the Dark Theme, whenever this option is offered by your smartphone manufacturer.

Obviously, battery life depends on more than just your wallpaper. Therefore, the results will depend on the use you give your device, including processor, app usage and more. However, we believe that the savings through this kind of screen adjustment may be worth it.

What Google says

One of the factors that use more battery in a smartphone is the brightness of the screen, the higher the more it consumes. But Google has informed its developers that the colors displayed on the screen are also important.

The graph below, released by Google itself, shows that at 50% of screen brightness, YouTube in dark mode consumes 14% less battery life than when the app is in normal mode. At 100% brightness, the battery consumes 60% less battery power using dark mode.

youtube dark mode power usage
The difference through an Android / Google app itself

Google itself has brought the dark theme to its system from Oreo (even half-assed) and is updating its apps with the same feature. Android Pie offers some dark elements, but on Android 10 dark mode came to life.

This tip was valuable to you? Do you know any other battery saving tips?

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