Twitter PWA for Windows finally gets a dark mode

By Dan Thorp-Lancaster
published

Go ahead and switch off the light.

Buckle up, folks: Twitter has added one of its most requested features to its Progressive Web App (PWA) for Windows. Night mode is now available, so your eyes no longer have to feel like you're staring at the sun when you open Twitter in the dark.

If you're already familiar with Twitter's dark theme elsewhere, you'll know what to expect here. The darker color scheme enabled by night mode mimics what you'd see in a browser. Tweets in your timeline are placed against a dark blue background, which is much easier on the eyes.

But night mode is only part of what Twitter has in store for the PWA. It's also rolling out real-time updates for replies, retweets, and like counts. The compose box has also seen some tweaks to make it easier to move between a tweet and your timeline.

Twitter PWA Compose Box

See more

Here's a look at all of what's new:

  • Night owl? Love late night Tweeting? You can now switch to night mode for all that midnight scrolling.
  • Watching a Tweet go viral? The reply, Retweet, and like counts now update in real time, right before your very eyes.
  • The new Tweet compose box makes it possible for you to move more easily between your Tweet and timeline, so all of your Tweets are on point.

Because the Twitter app is a PWA, you won't have to install any updates to take advantage of the new features. Night mode should be available the next time you open the app. The feature is accessible by clicking or tapping your profile picture at the top of your timeline and toggling "Night mode" on. And as a bonus, Windows users will automatically have night mode enabled if they're using the system's dark mode.

Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time to go dark. 😎

Dan Thorp-Lancaster
Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the Editor in Chief for Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl. Got a hot tip? Send it to daniel.thorp-lancaster@futurenet.com.

65 Comments
  • Looks way better but how do I get toast notifications back?
  • There is a toast notification support, not as rich as Twitter UWP was and no Live Tile but the basic is there. If it toast notification doesn't come up, then likely there is a problem somewhere.
  • Notifications for windows PWA isn't implemented. I asked twitter support about it.
  • Then why I receive toast notifications for DMs and followed people? Is there something technical specific that I didn't know? I need clarification for this since for some reason people do mention this alot. My only complaints that I have with Twitter PWA is not the lack of notification but it is too basic, no Live Tile and no actionable notifications like aboility to reply or Like a tweet.
  • PWAs at present (as of 23rd may 2018) are repackaged websites with some additional features. In the simplest sense, the theory behind pwas is that as featuresets evolve/improve so should the app experience.
  • yassssssssssssss so happy rn
  • It's really cool how you don't have to update the app, it's just there. Also works on Win10M, including the automatic theme detection. I do wish it was actually darker, like gray and black, not blue, but oh well.
  • That's how web wrappers work. 🤗
  • Nope, not really. The web version doesn't have automatic theme detection, integration with Share system...those features are only available on the PWA from the Store.
  • Because that's what Android and iOS understand under the term 'dark mode' even though they have many OLED phones. Dark mode on Windows Phone was one of the best features.
  • For me it feels like it broke recently on 950XL, first the notifications which was announced and then the translation button was gone as well. Also since yesterday the app is glitchy and won't open. Well, one less reason to keep using the 950XL that already has hardware issues, now that I got a new PC as well
  • Finally! This is awesome! What's indeed nice is it updates without relying from the Store. Though I wish they will update the window frame too to make it same color theme as the Twitter PWA and have that scrollbar follow dark or light theme too. About the scrollbar, that needs to be auto-hidden and needs to be inside where the scrollable area and not the whole window.
  • Agree.
  • Needs more auto-refresh for the timeline. That's what's really keeping me from using it full time.
  • nice glad to see it
  • Does it works on 950xl
  • Yes.
  • Hallelujah! 🙏🙏🙏👼👼👼
  • Glad to see constant updates even if I don't use Twitter at all
  • I'm new to this, but why use the PWA app on my Windows 10 PC instead of just going to the site in Chrome? (Is it mostly for Action Center notifications ?)
  • Chrome? Oh dear god...
  • Oh dear god... That thing has been kicking Edge's ass so bad.
  • Agreed. I don't like Edge and gave up on Firefox years ago. It also works well on my Android so I don't see a need to install another browser there.
  • I use Edge on Android ... also have it on Windows (which are my primary devices). Why install another browser there?
  • I use both
    I prefer edge because it's the only browser guaranteed to be bombarded by Chrome ads daily. ha sarcasm But it's true
  • You should check out Firefox with all its recent quantum updates.
  • What does Chrome do better than Edge except RAM Allocation?
  • Ask the market.
  • if all your trying to do is look at your tweets
    or see post why would you wanna open Chrome to do that
    over the dedicated App for that
  • "Dedicated app" Or more of a web wrapper with notification integration to make gullible people compare it with a native app.
  • PWAs definitely aren't native nor will it ever be but browser and platform developers will try to make it parity with native apps' experience. But to say that it's just a web wrapper means that you haven't gotten the idea of PWAs.
  • #dontfeedthetroll
  • #Go Be Gullible Somewhere Else
  • I have a good idea of what PWAs are all about. No matter how much they say about notification integration, offline capability and most importantly "etc." It's just lipstick on a pig case. I'd rather use the same thing (or even better) on a web browser with an ad blocker. Plus, it doesn't even make sense on Windows.
  • Nah, you don't "have a good idea", you just are just throwing adjectives around.
  • P r e a c h
  • It more of a hybrid the sense it container updated through the store and it pretty native because it has share support.
  • I usually end up having Chrome open anyways but maybe I'll try using PWAs to see how I find them. Guess I'm just note used to the old way of doing things.
  • Well that's one of the most obvious benefit is the better integration to Windows notification system. There is also an integration to Share system which is system-wide. Less system resources by itself than firing up a web browser and less time to launch. Since it's actually an app, you can actually browse cache contents offline if you want to. In summary, it's the better integration to the OS as compared to running it on a web browser. As more features it gets supported, the better it will be as an app.
  • Thank you.
  • Your welcome! :) Just give Twitter PWA a try, there aren't really any cons using it. After all the point of PWA is to blur between what is a native app and web app.
  • The "firing up an browser" is not really valid, it's basically a browser. Besides that, true.
  • Technically kind of it is, but you are not still really using a web browser in that sense. For the end-user, it should behave as a standalone app. Firing up a web browser can take time sometimes especially when the user has tons of extensions and not being preloaded from Superfetch.
  • Ah the one to start the chrome arguement. You just had to mention it lol. Btw cannot see any difference between edge and chrome other than edge looks nicer and is a bit faster.
  • Both of them have their advantages and disadvantages. I've been using Edge from day one and it has come a long way. Not fully prepared to replace Chrome though. Some engine implementations are buggy and makes life difficult around the web. But one may have a selection of websites used that could for sure put Edge as a primary browser, since it may indeed be faster and more convenient to use.
  • Yes. But don't stop yourself at notifications. With background workers an app may offer, you could be provided with other services as well. But even for notifications, which could be supported by your browser, they could be enhanced with the inline commands that the Windows platform has been having for years now and that Android had begun supporting.
  • Yes but why would you choose the browser? Where's the benefit? Are you using the browser on your Android phone for twitter or just click the twitter icon on your home screen?
  • Because I don't need to install anything.
  • No update in store yet
  • It's a back end change
    you open the app and you should see it
    you can click on your profile to turn night mode on or off
  • Ok I had to close the app and open it to get the new features. We still need translation to be added
  • PWA is amazing.
  • I am wondering. How do I do to start reading tweets in exactly the point where I left them last time I opened the "app" (I mean the wrapped website of twitter)?
  • I see no answers, probably it's impossible to do that. It looks like PWA apps won't even come close to real apps.
  • Regular updates in major MS Store apps... priceless!😊
  • Best part Even PWA On Android also has Dark mode...
  • PWA is essentially cross-platform, so it reflects any platform that supports PWA. It doesn't need to update their PWA shell on their respective platforms, just server-side change.
  • Wow, such a simple change but it makes me want to use twitter more.
  • It's just lipstick on a pig. The official Twitter app remains one of the worst official apps--of any type. SO many other BETTER choices.
  • Still looks like sh*t. Pretty much like the official Twitter app on other platforms. Fortunately on Windows we don't need to use sh*tty store apps. We can simply open Twitter on Chrome, install an add-on and fix Twitter's awful designs. The old Windows app had the design done right. They made it worse. No reason to put up with the app anymore.
  • I think it's great. I love tweetium though so would love a horizontal scroll option that updates immediately. Also struggling with the scroll bar especially when minimal in split screen. That thing needs to disappear!
  • I would pay up to 29.99 for a
    PWA version of Mint (from Intuit) if it were back on the store. And yes even though I can use the web version for free! The web version is no comparison to the iPhone or iPad apps. No logging in every use, no typing in combo boxes, way better layout. Point is... I hope MS starts reaching out to some of these companies like Intuit, Starbucks, Voxer and others who used to have UWP apps on the store, and convince them... heck outright offer them a free Microsoft 365 sub for a year... to return to the MS store with a PWA version of their app.
  • That's not happening as long Microsoft solely focus on businesses and enterprise users. The crux of UWP apps is mobility. But without a windows based mobile play... But that debate has been hashed ad nauseaum.
  • Looks and works great on my L640 XL!
  • Nice...