An Extended Analysis on the Benefits of Dark Mode User Interfaces in Optical See-Through Head-Mounted Displays

Abstract

Light-on-dark color schemes, so-called “Dark Mode,” are becoming more and more popular over a wide range of display technologies and application fields. Many people who have to look at computer screens for hours at a time, such as computer programmers and computer graphics artists, indicate a preference for switching colors on a computer screen from dark text on a light background to light text on a dark background due to perceived advantages related to visual comfort and acuity, specifically when working in low-light environments. In this article, we investigate the effects of dark mode color schemes in the field of optical see-through head-mounted displays (OST-HMDs), where the characteristic “additive” light model implies that bright graphics are visible but dark graphics are transparent . We describe two human-subject studies in which we evaluated a normal and inverted color mode in front of different physical backgrounds and different lighting conditions. Our results indicate that dark mode graphics displayed on the HoloLens have significant benefits for visual acuity and usability, while user preferences depend largely on the lighting in the physical environment. We discuss the implications of these effects on user interfaces and applications.