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In theory, dark modes in today’s software come in extremely handy, especially as they reduce eye strain during the night.
When it comes to driving, such a visual mode obviously makes perfect sense during the night when the colors must adjust automatically on the display in the cabin in order to let the driver focus on the road.
Google Maps has been designed in such a way that it can automatically switch to the dark mode when needed. On Android Auto, for instance, the app can enable the dark mode when users request it in settings, automatically based on the current visual style of the operating system and according to the current state of the headlights.
It goes without saying not everybody is a big fan of a dark mode, not only because it looks, well, darker, but also because getting rid of it is apparently quite a challenge.
Users have discovered that after a recent update, Google Maps always starts in dark mode, no matter the default settings. Switching to the light mode is possible with various workarounds, but the next time Google Maps launches on Android Auto, the dark theme is back.
It goes without saying this behavior makes Google Maps much harder to use for some users, especially given the dark mode is sometimes barely visible in direct sunlight.
Google itself hasn’t acknowledged the problem, even if, based on the reports here on reddit, this is quite a widespread glitch. The more concerning part is that no workaround is known to exist, so there’s not much you can do until a full fix is released.
In the meantime, if you’re confident this behavior was introduced by a recent Google Maps update, then the easiest workaround should theoretically be the downgrade to an earlier build using the stand-alone APK installer.
Google Maps has been designed in such a way that it can automatically switch to the dark mode when needed. On Android Auto, for instance, the app can enable the dark mode when users request it in settings, automatically based on the current visual style of the operating system and according to the current state of the headlights.
It goes without saying not everybody is a big fan of a dark mode, not only because it looks, well, darker, but also because getting rid of it is apparently quite a challenge.
Users have discovered that after a recent update, Google Maps always starts in dark mode, no matter the default settings. Switching to the light mode is possible with various workarounds, but the next time Google Maps launches on Android Auto, the dark theme is back.
It goes without saying this behavior makes Google Maps much harder to use for some users, especially given the dark mode is sometimes barely visible in direct sunlight.
Google itself hasn’t acknowledged the problem, even if, based on the reports here on reddit, this is quite a widespread glitch. The more concerning part is that no workaround is known to exist, so there’s not much you can do until a full fix is released.
In the meantime, if you’re confident this behavior was introduced by a recent Google Maps update, then the easiest workaround should theoretically be the downgrade to an earlier build using the stand-alone APK installer.
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