Android 12's best feature is still in beta on the Pixel 6

Google likes to show off Material You icon theming, but you have to activate it on your Pixel

Google has talked a lot about Material You, which is the biggest visual change for Android in years. Every promo image of the new Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro shows off the theming, but you might notice something when you get the phone in your hand: no themed icons. You can fix that, but the icon feature is still technically in beta. Did you expect something else from Google?

You can turn icon theming on by going into the Wallpaper and Style menu. Down below the wallpaper and color pickers, you should see a toggle for "themed icons" with a big beta badge. Turn that on, and you'll have colorful themed icons to match your wallpaper. However, it will quickly become apparent why Google didn't have this feature on by default.

Currently, it's just Google apps that support dynamically colored icons—not even all Google apps. The apps on your home screen out of the box will work, but start adding others, and the Material You color matching will look much less cool.

It's going to take time for third-party apps to get on board with Material You, but what else is new? We've gone through this process every time Google makes a major UI change. If you can stick to Google apps on your home screen, you'll get a very nice, unified look. Otherwise, check back in a few months.

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