Android P no longer allows you to use Substratum themes
So we were treated to the release of Android P earlier this week, and folks are still finding all of the quirks and changes. One such change that was discovered is going to sorely upset some, as Substratum themes no longer work.
With Android Oreo, Google implemented a new theming engine called the Overlay Manager Service. This was developed by Sony, but developers took things to the next level and discovered that you could theme your device without the need of root access.
Substratum was a part of this thanks to the Andromeda app that was released and has been around for a bit longer (dating back to the CyanogenMod days). The app would theme just about every setting possible, allowing you to truly customize every aspect of your device, without fooling around with rooting
Unfortunately, it seems that Google has decided to remove this functionality from Android P. There has been no mention of whether this was done on purpose, or if it will come back in a later developer preview.
Regardless, the Substratum team has already filed a petition, along with filing a feature request through Google’s Issue Tracker. The folks at XDA have already spoken to the developers of Substratum and have stated their support.
Let us know what you think about this move and if you would like to see Google re-introduce the theming engine in Android P.