Forget dark mode - Android 12’s extra-dim feature is built to help your eyes at night

Dark mode
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One Android 12 feature might just help you out next time you check your phone in the middle of the night, and it isn't just another dark mode. Extra-dim will supposedly mean that phone screens will be able to go darker than ever before, finally giving you a reprieve from the glare of midnight scrolling.

Not all phones are identical, meaning that even on their lowest settings some are still pretty bright. This new feature looks to go beyond previous limitations, though right now we can’t verify how effective it is on different models of Android phones.

This is a feature spotted in the Android 12 developer preview, and we expect a beta release sometime in the next month or so. The full release should happen later this year, so it won’t be long before you can try extra-dim brightness for yourself.

Currently, the extra-dim feature can’t be turned on automatically (a big missed opportunity if you ask us) but we could see this added by the official release of Android 12. Though you will be able to create a shortcut for it for access when you need it.

How to turn on extra-dim in the Android 12 developer preview 

If you’ve already got an early version of Android 12, or you’ve come back to read this article in the future, here’s how you currently turn on extra-dim brightness on your Android device.

To turn it on quickly, just pull down from the top of your home screen to open up the quick settings menu, and pull down again to see more options. Scroll through by swiping to the left until you see the extra-dim toggle (currently a blank symbol with the words underneath) and tap it to turn it on. 

Holding down on the icon will open up the settings for it, letting you alter the brightness to your liking and giving you the option to leave extra-dim brightness on after a reboot. Alternatively, you can access this menu by going to Settings > Accessibility and then 'Extra Dim'.

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Via Droid Life

Hamish Hector
Senior Staff Writer, News

Hamish is a Senior Staff Writer for TechRadar and you’ll see his name appearing on articles across nearly every topic on the site from smart home deals to speaker reviews to graphics card news and everything in between. He uses his broad range of knowledge to help explain the latest gadgets and if they’re a must-buy or a fad fueled by hype. Though his specialty is writing about everything going on in the world of virtual reality and augmented reality.