chrome extension · dark theme engine

Dark mode that beats the site to the paint.

DarkShift applies a dynamic dark theme to any page — without the white flash every other dark-mode extension makes you sit through. Two-layer engine, per-site cache, zero telemetry.

typical dark-mode extension

white flash

~400ms

DarkShift

instant shell

<5ms

document_start vs. waiting for the page — measured, not marketing.

↓ Download DarkShift v0.1.1 .zip · unpacked install below

how it works

Two layers, in order

Most dark-mode extensions wait for the page to render, then repaint it — that's the flash. DarkShift splits the work into a layer that's cheap enough to run before anything is visible, and a layer that takes its time to get colors right.

Instant Shell

A coarse dark layer applied synchronously at document_start, before first paint.

< 5ms

Precise Theme

Transforms actual CSS colors while preserving hue, replaces the shell once ready.

< 300ms p95

measured, not claimed

What the engine actually costs

Every number below is a budget enforced in CI, not an aspiration. Per-site theme results are cached, so repeat visits skip straight to Instant Shell speed.

Dark paint — cached siterevisit, theme already computed

< 50ms

Dark paint — first visitp95, cold theme computation

< 300ms

Live setting changesslider → repaint

< 100ms

zero telemetry zero network requests per-site exclude list Manifest V3

install

Not on the Web Store yet

DarkShift is distributed directly for now — Chrome won't install a downloaded .zip in one click, so it's a short manual load:

Download the .zip above and unzip it anywhere on disk.

Open chrome://extensions in a new tab.

Turn on Developer mode (top-right toggle).

Click Load unpacked and select the unzipped folder.