Earlier quoted context omitted.
Do people also get annoyed at printed paper being white? Do they wish books had black pages? If not, as you say, it is only a matter of adjusting the screen for the proper brightness, depending on ambient light. And it is true that, inevitably, whatever you're doing, sooner or later some white background or picture will appear on screen and blast your eyes with light. I cannot stand this, so I don't use dark themes o…
> Do people also get annoyed at printed paper being white? Printed paper glowing white would indeed be very annoying. Passive displays, such as old non-backlit LCD or e-ink, can be white and not annoying. Most people don't want to stare into a light source more than necessary. Using proper brightness helps, and dark mode can help even more.
The amount of light coming to your retina stays the same..
Just lower the brightness until it matches the amount of light reflected by a sheet of paper placed next to the screen.
If you can't read the paper, turn the lights on. Being in a dark room dilates your pupils which makes them even more sensible to bright light...