colorprimarydark

colorPrimaryDark is an Android theme attribute that specifies the color used for the device status bar when an app uses a Material Design theme. Introduced with Android 5.0 Lollipop (API 21), it provides a distinct shade from colorPrimary and is intended to improve legibility of status icons against the status bar. The attribute is part of the app's theme and is typically defined in styles.xml and backed by a color resource defined in colors.xml.

Usage involves defining a color resource and referencing it in the app theme. For example, a color resource might be defined as colorPrimaryDark in colors.xml, such as: colorPrimaryDark = #303F9F. In styles.xml, the attribute is declared within the app theme as an item: colorPrimaryDark = @color/colorPrimaryDark. The system applies this color to the status bar on devices that support status bar coloring and where the window is configured to draw system bar backgrounds.

Night mode and theming: To support dark or alternate themes, provide a value for colorPrimaryDark under a values-night resource folder (values-night/colors.xml or values-night/styles.xml). Apps using a DayNight theme can automatically switch the status bar color when the user changes theme settings.

Compatibility and notes: colorPrimaryDark affects devices with a system status bar color feature; on pre-Lollipop devices or when the feature is disabled, the color is ignored. Some device skins or OEM configurations may alter status bar coloring. It is distinct from colorPrimary (the primary app color) and colorAccent (the accent color).