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Microsoft Outlook gets dark mode on mobile as part of new look for Office

Microsoft Outlook gets dark mode on mobile as part of new look for Office

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Microsoft goes all in on dark mode for iOS 13’s launch

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Microsoft revealed that it was working on a dark mode for Outlook on mobile devices nearly a year ago, and it’s starting to arrive today. Both Outlook apps for iOS and Android will include a new switch to turn on the dark mode, and the Android version will also automatically switch to the mode when you enable the power saver mode. The new option will match Apple’s work in iOS 13 for a system-wide dark mode, and Outlook on iOS and Android will start getting updated today.

Outlook isn’t the only Microsoft app for mobile that’s getting dark mode support, though. Microsoft is making a big effort to bring the same dark theme to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, OneDrive, Planner, and To-Do for Apple’s iOS 13 launch. Even the web version of Office.com is getting updated with a dark mode today, and the web versions of OneDrive and Planner will also get the same treatment soon.

Microsoft’s dark mode on the web.
Microsoft’s dark mode on the web.

Microsoft has spent the better part of a year working on dark mode for Outlook and more, and it’s not as simple as flicking a switch in software. “Starting from the ground up and using the new gray palette for Fluent, our app teams began by aligning to the single palette,” explains Jon Friedman, Microsoft’s head of Office design, in a blog post. “This included increasing contrast, brand color saturation, and consistency among details like how and when we use shadows when in Dark Mode.”

Microsoft even created another sultry video to highlight its broader focus on dark mode for Office. The dramatic video is just the latest in a series that’s seen Microsoft put the sexy back into unsexy software.