Apple has developed a dark display mode that will be available on the new iPhone and iPad operating systems.

Dark mode will feature on iOS 13 for iPhone, as well as iPadOS, a brand new operating system developed especially for iPad.

It was one of many new launches unveiled at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in San Jose, California, yesterday.

Apple describes dark mode as "a dramatic new look for iPhone".

Designed to suit use in low-light environments, the dark colour scheme will work across the operating system, both in the menus and in all native apps.

Users will be able to set the mode to turn on automatically, either at sunset or a specified time.

The mode will also be made available to third-party developers, so that they can integrate the dark display into their own apps.

Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of software engineering, demonstrated the new mode during the conference. He showed it working across a range of apps, including messages, maps, music and calendar.

"We're excited for customers to experience what's coming to iPhone this fall and can't wait for them to see how great everything looks in dark mode," said Federighi.

Dark modes have become increasingly popular in recent years, as people worry about eye strain being caused by large amounts of screen time. These modes tend to use less battery life, although many users simply prefer the experience.

Google also recently launched a dark mode for Android devices, which turns on automatically when devices are in battery-saver mode.

Apple first hinted that it was developing dark mode for iPhone by introducing it to macOS Mojave, the Mac OS launched in September 2018.

Other new features that Apple has introduced in iOS 13 include an update to the photos app, making it easier to navigate your image library by date. Photos will also be more intelligently organised to hide duplicates and highlight the best pictures.

The camera app now includes improved lighting adjustments, while the maps app includes more details information and higher resolution imagery.

The other big new feature is an Apple sign in, which will allow users to easily sign into apps using their Apple ID rather than with email or a social media account. It will link to Face ID or Touch ID, but will have two-factor authentication built in for optimum security.

"iOS 13 brings new capabilities to the apps you use every day, with rich updates to photos and maps, and privacy-protecting features like sign in with Apple, all while delivering faster performance," said Federighi.