Dark mode, a beloved feature in modern digital interfaces, offers a visually striking alternative to traditional light themes. Its allure lies in the striking visual contrast it provides, a departure from the light themes that have dominated our screens for decades. However, its design often misses the mark on an important element — accessibility. For users with visual impairments or sensitivities, dark mode can introduce significant challenges if not thoughtfully implemented. Hence, designing themes with these users in mind can improve user comfort in low-light settings while creating a more equitable digital experience for everyone. Let’s take a look at exactly how this can be done. The Pros And Cons Of Dark Modes In Terms Of Accessibility Dark mode can offer tangible accessibility benefits when implemented with care. For many users, especially those who experience light sensitivity, a well-calibrated dark theme can reduce eye strain and provide a more comfortable reading experience. In low-light settings, the softer background tones and reduced glare may help lessen fatigue and improve visual focus. However, these benefits are not universal. For some users, particularly those with conditions such as astigmatism or low contrast sensitivity, dark mode can actually compromise readability. Light text on a dark background may lead to blurred edges or halo effects around characters, making it harder to distinguish content. The Role Of Contrast In Dark Mode Accessibility When you’re designing, contrast isn’t just another design element, it’s a key player in dark mode’s overall readability and accessibility. A well-designed dark mode, with the right contrast, can also enhance user engagement, creating a more immersive experience and drawing users into the content. First and foremost, cleverly executing your site’s dark mode will result in a lower bounce rate (as much as 70%, according to one case study from Brazil). You can then further hack this statistic and greet visitors with a deep black, reinforcing your rankings in organic search results by sending positive signals to Google. How is this possible? Well, the darker tones can hold attention longer, especially in low-light settings, leading to higher interaction rates while making your design more accessible. The point is, without proper contrast, even the sleekest dark mode design can become difficult to navigate and uncomfortable to use. Designing For Contrast In Dark Mode Instead of using pure black backgrounds, which can cause eye strain and make text harder to read, opt for dark grays. These softer tones help reduce harsh contrast and provide a modern look. However, it’s important to note that color adjustments alone don’t solve technical challenges like anti-aliasing. In dark mode, anti-aliasing has the problem of halo effects, where the edges of the text appear blurred or overly luminous. To mitigate these issues, designers should test their interfaces on various devices and browsers and consider CSS properties to improve text clarity. Real-world user testing, especially with individuals who have visual impairments, is essential to fine-tune these details and ensure an accessible experience for all users. For individuals with low vision or color blindness, the right contrast can mean the difference between a frustrating and a seamless user experience. To keep your dark mode design looking its best, don’t forget to also: Try to choose high-contrast color combinations for improved readability. Make sure you avoid overly saturated colors, as they can strain the eyes in dark mode. Use contrast checker tools like WebAIM to evaluate your design choices and ensure accessibility. These simple adjustments make a big difference in creating a dark mode that everyone can use comfortably. The Importance Of Readability In Dark Themes While dark themes provide a sleek and visually appealing interface, some features still require lighter colors to remain functional and readable. Certain interactive elements like buttons or form fields need to be easily distinguishable, especially if it involves transactions or providing personal information. Simply put, no one wants to sign documents digitally if they have to look for the right field, nor do they want to make a transaction if there is friction. In addition to human readability, machine readability is equally important in an age of increased automation. Machine readability refers to how effective computers and bots are at extracting and processing data from the interface without human intervention. It’s important for pretty much any type of interface that has automation built into the workflows. For example, if the interface utilizes machine learning, machine readability is essential. Machine learning relies on accurate, quality data and effective interaction between different modules and systems, which makes machine readability critical to make it effective. You can help ensure your dark mode interface is machine-readable in the following ways: Use clear, semantic markup.Write your HTML so that it naturally describes the structure of the page. This means using proper tags (like <header>, <nav>, <main>, and <footer>) and ARIA roles. When your code is organized this way, machines can read and understand your page better, regardless of whether it's in dark or light mode. Keep the structure consistent across themes.Whether users choose dark mode or light mode, the underlying structure of your content should remain the same. This consistency ensures that screen readers and other accessibility tools can interpret the page without confusion. Maintain good color contrast.In dark mode, use color choices that meet accessibility standards. This not only helps people with low vision but also ensures that automated tools can verify your design’s accessibility. Implement responsive styles with media queries.Use CSS media queries like ‘prefers-color-scheme’ to automatically adjust the interface based on the user’s system settings. This makes sure that the switch between dark and light modes happens smoothly and predictably, which helps both users and assistive technologies process the content correctly. Making sure that data, especially in automated systems, is clear and accessible prevents functionality breakdowns and guarantees seamless workflows. Best Strategies For Designing Accessible Dark Themes Although we associate visual accessibility with visual impairments, the truth is that it’s actually meant for everyone. Easier access is something we all strive for, right? But more than anything, practicality is what matters. Fortunately, the strategies below fit the description to a tee. Strengthen Contrast For Usability Contrast is the backbone of dark mode design. Without proper implementation, elements blend together, creating a frustrating user experience. Instead of looking at contrast as just a relationship between colors, try to view it in the context of other UI elements: Rethink background choices.Instead of pure black, which can cause harsh contrast and eye strain, use dark gray shades like #121212. These tones offer a softer, more adaptable visual experience. Prioritize key elements.Ensure interactive elements like buttons and links have contrast ratios exceeding 4.5:1. This not only aids readability but also emphasizes functionality. Test in real environments.Simulate low-light and high-glare conditions to see how contrast performs in real-life scenarios. Pay Special Attention To Typography In Dark Themes The use of effective typography is vital for preserving readability in dark mode. In particular, the right font choice can make your design both visually appealing and functional, while the wrong one can cause strain and confusion for users. Thus, when designing dark themes, it’s essential to prioritize text clarity without sacrificing aesthetics. You can do this by prioritizing: Sans-serif fontsThey are often the best option for dark mode, as they offer a clean, modern look and remain highly readable when paired with a well-balanced contrast. Strategic use of light elementsConsider incorporating subtle, lighter accents to emphasize key elements, such as headings, call-to-action buttons, or critical information, without fully shifting to a light mode. These accents act as visual cues, drawing attention to important content. Proper font metrics and stylizationIt’s important to consider font size and weight—larger, bolder fonts tend to stand out better against dark backgrounds, ensuring that your text is easy to read. Make Sure Your Color Integration Is Thoughtful Colors in dark mode require a delicate balance to ensure accessibility. It’s not as simple as looking at a list of complimentary color pairs and basing your designs around them. Instead, you must think about how users with visual impairments will experience the dark theme design. While avoiding color combinations like red and green for the sake of colorblind users is a widely known rule, visual impairment is more than just color blindness. In particular, you have to pay attention to: Low vision: Ensure text is clear with strong contrast and scalable fonts. Avoid thin typefaces and cluttered layouts for better readability. Light sensitivity (photophobia): Minimize bright elements against dark backgrounds to reduce eye strain. Provide brightness and contrast adjustment options for comfort. Glaucoma: Use bold, clear fonts and simplify layouts to minimize visual confusion. Focus on reducing clutter and enhancing readability. Macular degeneration: Provide large text and high-contrast visuals to aid users with central vision loss. Refrain from relying on centrally aligned, intricate elements. Diabetic retinopathy: Keep designs simple, avoiding patterns or textures that obscure content. Use high-contrast and well-spaced elements for clarity. Retinitis pigmentosa: Place essential elements centrally with high contrast for those with peripheral vision loss. Avoid spreading critical information across wide areas. Cataracts: Reduce glare by using dark gray backgrounds instead of pure black. Incorporate soft, muted colors, and avoid sharp contrasts. Night blindness: Provide bright, legible text with balanced contrast against dark themes. Steer clear of overly dim elements that can strain vision. As you can see, there are a lot of different considerations. Something you need to account for is that it’s nigh-on impossible to have a solution that will fix all the issues. You can’t test an interface for every single individual who uses it. The best you can do is make it as accessible as possible for as many users as possible, and you can always make adjustments in later iterations if there are major issues for a segment of users. Understanding Color Perception And Visual Impairments To Get The Ideal Dark Mode Even though dark mode doesn’t target only users with visual impairments, their input and ease of use are perhaps the most important. The role of color perception in dark mode varies significantly among users, especially for those with visual impairments like color blindness or low vision. These conditions can make it challenging to distinguish certain colors on dark backgrounds, which can affect how users navigate and interact with your design. In particular, some colors that seem vibrant in light mode may appear muted or blend into the background, making it difficult for users to see or interact with key elements. This is exactly why testing your color palette across different displays and lighting conditions is essential to ensure consistency and accessibility. However, you probably won’t be able to test for every single screen type, device, or environmental condition. Once again, make the dark mode interface as accessible as possible, and make adjustments in later iterations based on feedback. For users with visual impairments, accessible color palettes can make a significant difference in their experience. Interactive elements, such as buttons or links, need to stand out clearly from the rest of the design, using colors that provide strong contrast and clear visual cues. In the example above, Slack did an amazing job providing users with visual impairments with premade options. That way, someone can save hours of valuable time. If it wasn’t obvious by now, apps that do this find much more success in customer attraction (and retention) than those that don’t. Making Dark Mode A User Choice Dark mode is often celebrated for its ability to reduce screen glare and blue light, making it more comfortable for users who experience certain visual sensitivities, like eye strain or discomfort from bright screens. For many, this creates a more pleasant browsing experience, particularly in low-light environments. However, dark mode isn’t a perfect solution for everyone. Users with astigmatism, for instance, may find it difficult to read light text on a dark background. The contrast can cause the text to blur or create halos, making it harder to focus. Likewise, some users prefer dark mode for its reduced eye strain, while others may find it harder to read or simply prefer light mode. These different factors mean that adaptability is important to better accommodate users who may have certain visual sensitivities. You can allow users to toggle between dark and light modes based on their preferences. For even greater comfort, think of providing options to customize text colors and background shades. Switching between dark and light modes should also be smooth and unobtrusive. Whether you’re working in a bright office or relaxing in a dimly lit room, the transition should never disrupt your workflow. On top of that, remembering your preferences automatically for future sessions creates a consistent and thoughtful user experience. These adjustments turn dark mode into a truly personalized feature, tailored to elevate every interaction you have with the interface. Conclusion While dark mode offers benefits like reduced eye strain and energy savings, it still has its limits. Focusing on key elements like contrast, readability, typography, and color perception helps guarantee that your designs are inclusive and user-friendly for all of your users. Offering dark mode as an optional, customizable feature empowers users to interact with your interface in a way that best suits their needs. Meanwhile, prioritizing accessibility in dark mode design creates a more equitable digital experience for everyone, regardless of their abilities or preferences.

While bezels are usually employed in design to provide a softer edge to a harsh corner, the examples we see in Kallista’s new Bezel collection, designed in partnership with Cristina Rubinetterie and the design team of Busetti Garuti Redaelli, offer strength in form and function. Adorned with stone and semiprecious details, this bathroom collection feels luxurious and refined. Created with a twice-sealed coating offering superior durability, the rounded square profile of these fixtures are as modern as they are timeless. A stunning collection, Kallista heightens a surface we interact with every day – water taps – to an elevated experience. Semiprecious stone details are perfectly fit to tap heads, adding a layer of fine detail to the mundane. Inspired by Art Deco silhouettes where adornment from stone was common, Bezel will remain versatile and relevant in design even one hundred years later. The Bezel collection includes Kallista’s first floor-mounted sink faucet as an option to pair with freestanding bathtubs to elevate your soaking experience. As with the rest of the Bezel fixtures, the single handle control is adorned with standard metallic finishes or a faceted stone, as if its a piece of jewelry for your bathroom. Kallista has also introduced the brand’s first stacked handle Thermostatic showering trim with two bezeled knobs for this collection, adding a special level of elegance to something we interact with daily. The Bezel fixtures are available in six finish options, including two new Vibrant finishes – blush brass and brushed brass – with stone handle upgrades in Nero Marquina, White Carrara, and serpentine green Guatemala Stone. The sky is the limit, adding the beauty of stone or other fine materials to the sink or shower. Ezio Cristina founded Cristina Rubinetterie in 1949, bringing a standard of quality and luxury to an up-and-coming market. Post-war economic expansion led to the appreciation of Italian design internationally, one of the first to adopt the thermostatic mixer in 1968. Throughout the decades, Cristina Rubinetterie has created an indelible image of timelessness and modernism, preserving classic silhouettes in innovative materials. Kallista continues a legacy of luxury bathroom and kitchen fixtures, superior style, and functionality at the core of their portfolio. For over forty years, their commitment to retaining the best materials and processes has helped them create a reputation for quality, only working with top-notch suppliers to keep their standards at a level we would expect from the brand, gracing fine interiors across the globe. To learn more about the Bezel collection by Kallista in partnership with Christina Rubinetterie, please kallista.com.

How to guide indecisive leaders to choose without taking over their jobContinue reading on UX Collective »

Notifications on the Mac show up in the top-right corner as a rule. This is fine most of the time, but on large displays you might not notice what's happening in the top-right corner if you're reading a document on the left side of the screen. Wouldn't the notifications be better in the middle, the way they show up on the iPhone and iPad?PingPlace is a free Mac application that will move your notifications to other corners or even the top center of your screen. The application lives in the menu bar and lets you choose between the four corners of the display along with the top and bottom middle.Setting the application up is easy: Just download it, drag it to your Applications folder, then launch. You will be asked to enable accessibility permissions for the application, which is common for this sort of customization app. After that, you can choose where you want your notifications to show up by clicking the menu bar icon. Credit: Justin Pot This worked for me, though not without a few oddities. When I set notifications to the center, for example, the widget area also moved to the center. Some people might actually prefer this, granted, but I like having my widgets area on the right side of the screen.The application, by default, does not start when your Mac does—you can change this by checking the "Launch at Login" button in the settings. And that's about it in terms of options.This isn't the only application that makes working with notifications easier—there's also an app that dismisses notifications using a keyboard shortcut. Hopefully a future version of macOS will make apps like this unnecessary.

If you have been hemming and hawing over whether to buy a new MacBook, then a current sale might just sway you. Right now, Apple's 15-inch MacBook Air with an M3 chip is down to $1,049 from $1,299 — a 19 percent discount. The deal brings our choice for best budget MacBook to just $50 more than its all-time low price.  Apple released the 15-inch MacBook Air with an M3 chip (along with a 13-inch model) in 2024. We gave it a 90 in our review thanks to features such as the M3's fast performance, with a much bigger speed boost than we expected. The 15-inch option also offers a six-speaker array, compared to the 13-inch's quad-speaker array. Plus, it has a sturdy design, along with a great keyboard and trackpad.  Our big con was that this MacBook Air still doesn't have USB-C ports on both sides. Yes, it seems minor, but when your charging cable just reaches where you're sitting, having the option to plug it in on either side makes a big difference.  Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-15-inch-m3-macbook-air-is-250-off-right-now-131324637.html?src=rss

Google is really paying attention to its photo and video sharing service - these 3 new features are its recent standouts.

As China imposes rare earths export controls, the U.S. is unable to make up the shortfall, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Despite a court order, a reporter and photographer from the Associated Press were barred from an Oval Office news conference on Monday with President Donald Trump and his counterpart from El Salvador, Nayib Bukele.Last week’s federal court decision forbidding the Trump administration from punishing the AP for refusing to rename the Gulf of Mexico was to take effect Monday. The administration is appealing the decision and arguing with the news outlet over whether it needs to change anything until those appeals are exhausted.The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. circuit set a Thursday hearing on Trump’s request that any changes be delayed while case is reviewed. The AP is fighting for more access as soon as possible.Later Monday, two AP photographers were admitted to an event honoring Ohio State’s championship football team on the more spacious South Lawn. A text reporter was turned away.Since mid-February, AP reporters and photographers have been blocked from attending events in the Oval Office, where President Donald Trump frequently addresses journalists, and on Air Force One. The AP has seen sporadic access elsewhere, and regularly covers White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s briefings. Leavitt is one of three administration officials named in the AP’s lawsuit.The dispute stems from AP’s decision not to follow the president’s executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico, although AP style does cite Trump’s wish that it be called the Gulf of America. The AP argued — and U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden agreed last week — that the government cannot punish the news organization for exercising its right to free speech.McFadden on Friday had rejected Trump’s request for more delay in implementing the ruling; now the president is asking an appeals court for the same thing.“We expect the White House to restore AP’s participation in the (White House press) pool as of today, as provided in the injunction order,” AP spokeswoman Lauren Easton said Monday.The extent of AP’s future access remains uncertain, even with the court decision.Until being blocked by Trump, AP has traditionally always had a reporter and photographer among the small group of journalists invited into the Oval Office. McFadden did not order that to be restored, only that no news organization should be shut out because the president objects to its news decisions — under a principle called “viewpoint discrimination.”“No other news organization in the United States receives the level of guaranteed access previously bestowed upon the AP,” the administration argued in court papers over the weekend. “The AP may have grown accustomed to its favored status, but the Constitution does not require that such status endure in perpetuity.” David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social —David Bauder, AP Media Writer

It must have been tremendous fun (and a lot of work) for Australian production designer Colin Gibson, the man tasked with designing the bikes for 2015's Mad Max: Fury Road. Gibson, known for designing and building fully functional props and vehicles, worked with motocross champ Stephen Gall, stunt coordinator Guy Norris and mechanic Matt Bromley to ensure his fantastic creations could actually tear up terrain. The team produced some 47 motorcycles with eclectic designs. Bolted to the frames was everything from upholstery, mannequin parts, leather scraps, Persian rug off-cuts, chain-link fence segments, horse saddles, bird feathers, boat sails and household knick-knacks. In some cases tires were replaced with steel paddles, the better to climb sand dunes. Paint was removed, and all bikes were given a desert patina. Those bikes are technically called props. I might refer to them as art. So too might Italian artist Mattia Biagi, who often blends industrial materials with natural elements in his sculptural works. Biagi, who is also a motorcycle enthusiast, recently collaborated with Flying Flea (Royal Enfield's electric sub-brand) to re-interpret their FF-C6, an off-road electric motorcycle. Biagi didn't hold back. His resultant Motototem, unveiled at Milan Design Week, employs a tank sculpted from travertine stone. The handlebars and pegs are made of bronze (literally imprinted with Biagi's fingerprints, a bit much, some might say). The fenders are resin with dried leaves embedded during the casting process. The seat is made of sculpted Walnut. The lighting is housed in hand-blown glass forms. To be clear, Biagi hasn't cited Mad Max nor Gibson & co. as influences; it's me drawing that connecting line. And as beautiful as Biagi's creation is, I still think Gibson and his team's feats take the cake. All 47 of their bikes ran. The non-functional Motototem is purely an art piece.

Why blend into the masses with your boring white Apple Pencil when you could opt for something vastly cooler? Meet the Apple Crayon Pro, a custom version of the Pencil Pro built by the folks at ColorWare. Designed to look exactly like a Crayola crayon (while functioning seamlessly as Apple’s cutting-edge iPad Pro stylus), the Crayon Pro comes in 7 color options, and looks perfectly gorgeous when docked to the side of your iPad. ColorWare’s built its reputation on building unique colored alternatives to regular tech products, from colorful mice to earbuds to even speakers – although the Apple Crayon Pro might just be their cutest little invention yet, paying tribute to the first ever creative tool most of us grew up using. Designer: ColorWare As its name suggests, the Crayon Pro is a customized version of the Pencil Pro, which debuted in 2024 along with the latest iPad Pro model running the M4 chip. On the inside, it’s every bit the Apple peripheral, but it gets a customized exterior, available in as many as 7 different colors – ranging from white and black, to more eye-catching options like mint green, red, and my favorite yellow. No, Space Grey and Rose Gold aren’t available yet! The Crayon Pro is undoubtedly creative, but the price of this creativity is a whopping $215, or $86 more than the original $129 Pencil Pro. For that surcharge, you do get a unique stylus like no other, and the bragging rights of being a true creative. Just don’t accidentally give your Crayon Pro to your toddler, lest they brake it while scribbling on paper, or worse, try to sharpen it! The Crayon Pro ships 2 weeks from now (so sometime in May 2025), and is compatible with the M4 iPad Pro models, the M2/M3 iPad Air models, as well as the A17 Pro iPad Mini. The post Limited Edition Crayon-themed Apple Pencil Pro is a Must-Have For Creatives first appeared on Yanko Design.