Android is a popular OS for a variety of reasons, one of which is the ease of access for people with various disabilities. Google’s constant focus on developing features likeGuided Frameand upcoming settings for hearing devices inAndroid 14suggests the company remains committed in its efforts. Android 14 could also pack another change on the accessibility front that makes high-contrast text even more legible with dynamic theming enabled.
Android’s dynamicMaterial Youtheming engine pulls colors from your current wallpaper to stylize app interfaces including buttons and backgrounds, so they appear like a natural part of the OS. The theming engine, codenamed Monet, already accounts for color contrast issues when creating these dynamic palettes, so the readability remains about as good . Prolific Android researcher Mishaal Rahman has found evidence suggesting Monet will soon tweak palette colors further for when the High contrast text toggle is enabled.
This accessibility setting is located underSettings>Display>Display size and text>High contrast text. When enabled onAndroid 13, text defaults to white with a black outline/background, or black color with a white outline. This setting overrides the dynamic theming color assigned to UI text, making it easier to read.
Rahman explains that Android 14 adds a new feature that automatically uses a different method to calculate which Material You colors to show when someone enables high-contrast text. If you want the technical details, this works via a “dynamic” fabricated runtime resource overlay (FRRO) that replaces (or remaps) standard Material You colors with some that offer even better contrast. Google has uploaded a fulllist of these mappingsto the Android developer website. A recent commit to theMaterial Components libraryconfirms Google wants the new color mappings to help Monet handle high-contrast text better, without sacrificing dynamic theming.
If you are an app developer, it is unlikely this change will affect you. It is mostly a system-level change which Android will implement automatically. However, we suggest checking the list of mapped colors to ensure the changes aren’t inadvertently detrimental to your app interface.
That said, Google is mum on the change, and there’s no telling if this accessibility feature will make its way to the Android 14 stable version later this year. If implemented, the Android OS could use dynamic theming consistently without discoloring the UI to aid accessibility. And while you’re able to alreadyinstall the Android 14 Developer Previewon your phone, this new color mapping system isn’t live yet.
