Dark Mode Support in Swift: Unlocking a Whole New Level of App Development

By /

Dark Mode Support in Swift: Unlocking a Whole New Level of App Development

In recent years, the use of dark mode has become increasingly popular among app developers. Not only does dark mode make an app look more professional and sleek, but it also helps to improve battery life on mobile devices and can provide a better user experience for those with vision impairments. With the introduction of Swift 5.1, Apple has made it easier than ever to implement dark mode support in iOS apps.

Dark mode is a visual design feature that changes the color palette of an app from light to dark. This allows users to switch between light and dark colors depending on their preference, or even based on the time of day. Dark mode can also be used to make text easier to read in low-light environments, such as on the beach or while camping.

When developing an app with Swift, there are multiple ways to add dark mode support. The most straightforward way is to use the new UITraitCollection API, which was introduced in iOS 13. This API allows developers to detect when the system’s appearance has changed and respond appropriately. For example, if the user switches to dark mode, the app can detect this and change its colors accordingly.

To use this API, developers must first create a trait collection, which is an object that contains information about the current system appearance. This can be done by calling the UITraitCollection.current() method. Once the trait collection has been created, developers can use the UITraitCollection.hasDifferentColorAppearance(from:) method to check if the system appearance has changed. If the system has changed, then the app can respond accordingly.

For example, let’s say you have a view controller with a background color of white. To add dark mode support, you could use the following code: 

let currentTraitCollection = UITraitCollection.current() 
if currentTraitCollection.hasDifferentColorAppearance(from: .light) { 
    self.view.backgroundColor = .black 
} else { 
    self.view.backgroundColor = .white 
}

This code will check the current system appearance and, if it has changed, will set the background color of the view controller to black. This allows the app to respond to changes in the system appearance without any additional code.

Another way to add dark mode support to an app is to use the NSUserInterfaceStyle key in the app’s Info.plist file. This key allows developers to specify the default system appearance for their app. For example, if the key is set to “dark mode”, then the app will always launch in dark mode, regardless of the system appearance.

Finally, developers can also use the new UIUserInterfaceStyle key in the app’s Info.plist file to specify the default appearance for specific parts of the app. For example, if a view controller has a different color scheme than the rest of the app, the UIUserInterfaceStyle key can be used to specify a different appearance for that view controller.

By using the tools available in Swift 5.1, developers can easily add dark mode support to their apps. This unlocks a whole new level of app development, allowing developers to create apps that are more visually appealing and accessible to a wider range of users. With the right tools and a bit of creativity, developers can create apps that look great in both light and dark modes.

Scroll to Top