Android users have long yearned for a dark theme for the OS but their requests have only felt on deaf ears so far. With the Pixel 2 and the new Google Launcher on it, Google does seem to have paid some attention to what its users have been asking for all these years.

By default, the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL feature a light/white theme, with their no option of switching to a black theme. However, if one uses a dark wallpaper on the new Pixel devices from Google, the system automatically switches to a dark theme. This includes the Quick Settings, Settings menu, and a few other aspects of the System UI switching to a black shade. Since the new Pixels come with an OLED display, this will not only help reduce power consumption but also look stunning on the phones.

This not a system-wide dark theme though as many aspects of the OS continue to feature a light theme.

As of now, there is no way of enabling this dark theme on the new Pixels automatically. Plus, the theme is only activated when one uses the stock Google launcher on either of the two handsets. Knowing the Android community though, it should just be a matter of time before a developer manages to workaround this limitation to enable the dark theme on the new Pixels and possibly all Oreo running devices.