Overview
Ente Photos is an end-to-end encrypted alternative to Google Photos. A recent changelog mentions a redesigned photo viewer with an information sheet that avoids overwhelming the interface. [Observed]
What defines the look:
- Ink by opacity. Text and strokes are black or white at fixed alphas (muted 60 percent, faint 50 percent on light, 70 and 50 percent on dark), so the scheme works on any surface. [Measured]
- Gray gallery surfaces. Light pages are
#f4f4f4with white elevated layers, and dark pages are#161616with#1b1b1band#252525layers. [Measured] - Green for positive. Green
#08c225(and#1db954on web) marks success and the photos brand, while red#f63a3amarks danger. [Measured] - Medium-weight Inter. The regular weight is 500, bold is 600. [Measured]
Source for this file: the public Ente source for the mobile and web apps, read on 2026-10-06. No on-device capture was done. See Known Gaps.
Core
Colors
| Role | Light | Dark | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Page background | #f4f4f4 | #161616 | mobile scheme |
| Elevated surface | #ffffff | #1b1b1b | |
| Second elevated surface | #fbfbfb | #252525 | |
| Text | #000000 | #ffffff | |
| Muted text | black at 60 percent | white at 70 percent | |
| Faint text | black at 50 percent | white at 50 percent | |
| Base fill (buttons) | #000000 | #ffffff | |
| Faint fill | black at 4 percent | white at 12 percent | |
| Stroke muted, faint | black at 24, 12 percent | white at 24, 16 percent | |
| Grey fill | #f2f2f2 | #424242 | |
| Green | #08c225, dark #069d1e, darker #057c18 | same | |
| Green wash and stroke | #e7f6e9, #baecc2 | #212121, #1c4122 | |
| Red | #f63a3a | same | |
| Warning | #ff6565 | same | |
| Web accents | photos #1db954, share #1071ff, auth #9610d6, golden #ffc107 | web theme |
All values are [Measured]. Alpha values are stored as RGBA with the stated opacity. The web theme also defines paper #fafafa and a warm cream variant for another product, which are not listed.
Typography
Inter throughout the mobile app: h1 48, h2 32 and h3 24 at weight 500, with bold at 600; body styles at 16, 14 and smaller steps. [Measured] The web app's font stack was not captured in the file read. [Inferred as Inter]
Shape and spacing
Controls use an 8px corner on mobile and web. [Measured] Flat design: elevation is set to zero in several theme places. [Measured] Spacing values were not mapped.
Iconography and motion
Icons are thin and monochrome with tab icons at 85 percent black (80 percent white in dark). [Measured] Motion values were not measured.
Themes
Light and dark on mobile and web, with a system option. [Measured]
Platform: iOS
How the iOS app looks and behaves. Items come from public source files.
Back and up navigation
Expected on iOS: Chevron plus previous title, swipe from the left edge.
A back control and swipe-back on iOS. [Inferred]
Primary navigation
Expected on iOS: Bottom tab bar, about five items.
A bottom tab bar for the photo library and related areas. The exact tabs were not confirmed. [Inferred]
Main action
Expected on iOS: Nav bar or bottom bar button.
Backup and upload are the main actions, shown through status and a button. The placement was not confirmed. [Inferred]
Sheets, dialogs and messages
Expected on iOS: Action sheets, alerts, modals.
Custom bottom sheets and dialogs from the app's own component set. [Inferred]
Controls
Expected on iOS: Cupertino switches, pickers, segmented controls.
Custom controls: buttons with the base fill, text fields, toggles and menu items drawn by the app, not stock Cupertino widgets. [Inferred]
Text sizing
Expected on iOS: Dynamic Type.
Text scaling support was not checked. [Inferred]
Touch and pointer targets
Expected on iOS: 44pt minimum.
Not verified. [Inferred]
Insets and system bars
Expected on iOS: Safe areas, status bar.
Not verified. [Inferred]
Icons
Expected on iOS: SF Symbols or custom.
Custom icon set. [Inferred]
Account and sign-in rules
Expected on iOS: Equivalent login option when third-party sign-in exists (Guideline 4.8) and in-app account deletion. Note the date checked.
Email sign-in with end-to-end encryption keys. Guideline 4.8 is likely not triggered. In-app account deletion was not checked. [Inferred] Checked: 2026-10-06 against source only.
Platform conformance
Expected on iOS: For each important component: what iOS expects, what this app does, and why it deviates.
Shared design across platforms, so iOS does not use stock controls. The app follows its own scheme on both platforms. [Inferred]
Platform: Android
How the Android app looks and behaves. Items come from public source files.
Back and up navigation
Expected on Android: System back and gesture, up arrow in the top bar.
System back and an in-app back control. [Inferred]
Primary navigation
Expected on Android: Navigation bar, rail on tablets.
The same bottom tab structure as iOS. [Inferred]
Main action
Expected on Android: Floating action button.
Same as iOS. A floating action button was not confirmed. [Inferred]
Sheets, dialogs and messages
Expected on Android: Bottom sheets, dialogs, snackbars.
Custom bottom sheets, dialogs and toasts. [Inferred]
Controls
Expected on Android: Material switches, pickers, chips.
Custom controls rather than Material widgets. [Inferred]
Text sizing
Expected on Android: Font scale.
Not checked against system font scale. [Inferred]
Touch and pointer targets
Expected on Android: 48dp minimum.
Not verified. [Inferred]
Insets and system bars
Expected on Android: Edge to edge, system bars.
Not verified. [Inferred]
Icons
Expected on Android: Material Symbols or custom.
Custom icons shared with iOS. [Inferred]
Account and sign-in rules
Expected on Android: Account deletion and data safety requirements. Note the date checked.
Account deletion and the data safety form were not checked. [Inferred] Checked: 2026-10-06 against source only.
Platform conformance
Expected on Android: For each important component: what Android expects, what this app does, and why it deviates.
Shared design, no Material components. [Inferred]
Platform: Web
The Ente web app with a custom theme. Items come from public source files.
Back and up navigation
Expected on Web: Browser back, breadcrumbs.
Browser back and in-app navigation. [Inferred]
Primary navigation
Expected on Web: Top nav or sidebar.
Not measured. [Inferred]
Main action
Expected on Web: Page-level button.
Not measured. [Inferred]
Sheets, dialogs and messages
Expected on Web: Modals, toasts.
Dialogs styled through the theme. [Inferred]
Controls
Expected on Web: Native or custom.
Controls with an 8px shape and a green switch (#2eca45). [Measured]
Text sizing
Expected on Web: Browser zoom.
Not measured. [Inferred]
Touch and pointer targets
Expected on Web: Pointer and keyboard.
Not verified. [Inferred]
Insets and system bars
Expected on Web: Viewport, scrollbars.
Not measured. [Inferred]
Icons
Expected on Web: Any.
Not measured. [Inferred]
Account and sign-in rules
Expected on Web: Not applicable unless the product has accounts.
Email sign-in. [Inferred]
Platform conformance
Expected on Web: For each important component: what the web norm is, what this app does, and why it deviates.
A custom theme, so web shares the palette with the mobile apps while its controls are drawn differently. [Measured for the theme, Inferred for controls]
Cross-platform consistency
Consistent across platforms: black and white ink on gray surfaces, green accents, Inter, 8px corners. [Measured]
Intentionally different: the web theme carries accents for other Ente products (photos, share, auth) that the mobile photos scheme does not. [Measured]
Do's and Don'ts
Do
- Express text, fill and stroke as black or white at fixed opacities.
- Keep surfaces gray in light and near-black in dark, with two elevation layers.
- Use green only for success and the photos brand, red only for danger.
- Keep the 8px corner and flat styling.
Don't
- Don't use faint text (50 percent) for anything essential.
- Don't introduce a colored primary button. The main button is the base ink.
- Don't add shadows. The theme sets elevation to zero in most places.
Known Gaps
- No on-device capture was done. All statements come from reading source.
- The primary button color is inferred as the base ink fill, since the button component file was not read.
- Mobile navigation structure, spacing and motion were not measured, and the web layout was not measured.
- Text and stroke values are alphas over the surface, so effective contrast depends on the layer and was not computed.
- Account deletion and store policy rules were not verified for either app.