During this time last year, Android 13 made it to the headlines for having support for dynamic theming for icons. It’s the next logical step towards personalizing the home screen according to the user’s preferences. After that, several mainstream apps became early adopters. That even includes Google’s own apps. However, certain social apps like Instagram did not prioritize theming support.
At the core, themed icons utilize the same Material You design guidelines. The Monet theming engine of Android picks out the core colors of your active wallpaper for this process. After that, it pairs hues together to offer a cohesive yet contrasty color scheme applied to all the elements. These elements include Quick Settings toggle, notification shade, and in-app elements. But for a while, many apps didn’t adopt the themed icon, which included Instagram.
Did the Forced Icon Theming Feature Work for Instagram?
During the beta phase, one version of Android 13 offered the option to force the icon theming on apps. This forced feature aimed to offer better aesthetics even if the app you want to change didn’t embrace it. The feature worked well, but it had a couple of flaws. But it didn’t mess up the Instagram app icon.
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Unfortunately, Meta (the parent company behind Instagram) did not provide comprehensive support for the feature. But in a recent Telegram post, Mishaal Rahman, an Apex Android expert, shared that the v307.0.0.0.30 finally incorporates dynamic theming. This means anyone who will update the app to this version should see the app icon automatically borrowing the colors of the active wallpaper. (Google Play Store link)
Now, while Meta has updated Instagram for dynamic theming, Facebook still has the bright blue icon. Other social media apps, such as Reddit, Twitter, X, and LinkedIn, have already switched to themed icons. But hopefully, Meta will soon release an update for Facebook. We will keep you posted regarding the matter.
