Pixel

Pixel places content on a calm paper-like workspace and reserves its pixel typeface for headings and a few identity elements. It is not a retro filter: it preserves Obsidian's native interactions while giving navigation, reading, properties, and data views a clear and recognizable hierarchy.

The theme provides dedicated light and dark designs for desktop and iOS, with support for long Markdown documents, multilingual text, Bases, Canvas, Graph, and PDF workflows. Android is currently unverified and is not a supported platform claim.

Preview

Desktop · Light / Dark

The desktop layout uses a continuous Paper workspace: navigation lives on the left, the note remains spacious in the center, and cyan signals connect the active file, focus, and status.

Features

Visual language

• Paper for notes, menus, and primary reading surfaces.
• Canvas for the cool workspace around content.
• Cyan for the active file, links, caret, and keyboard focus.
• Amber for properties, context, and attention.
• Brick for errors, warnings, and destructive states.
• A 4 / 6 / 10px radius system that balances pixel structure with comfortable touch UI.

Light and Dark use independently tuned semantic colors rather than simple inversion. Normal text, secondary text, focus indicators, and meaningful control boundaries are designed against accessible contrast targets.

Covered Obsidian surfaces

Markdown writing

• Consistent heading rhythm across Source, Live Preview, and Reading modes.
• Links, emphasis, lists, quotes, tasks, tags, highlights, and footnotes.
• Local overflow for code, tables, embeds, and media without compressing the full note.
• Clear selection, caret, active line, folding, and indentation states.

Knowledge management

• File navigation, tags, search, bookmarks, outline, backlinks, and outgoing links.
• Note properties and property suggestions, including iOS editing states.
• Global and Local Graph controls and semantic states.
• Canvas cards, groups, media, edges, selection, and editing.
• Bases tables, lists, cards, filters, sorting, and property editing.
• PDF chrome, sidebar, thumbnails, search, and selection while preserving document pixels.

Desktop and iOS

Desktop favors a continuous workspace and long reading sessions. iOS preserves Obsidian's native drawers, system navigation, virtual-keyboard resizing, and safe areas, with theme-owned touch targets of at least 44px. Android has not completed physical-device validation.

The mobile structure is selected through Obsidian's native body.is-mobile state, never inferred from viewport width.

Installation

Pixel entered public beta with 0.9.0. Once the official directory review is complete:

1. Open Settings → Appearance in Obsidian.
2. Select Manage under Themes.
3. Search for Pixel, install it, and select Use.

Future public versions are delivered through Obsidian's built-in theme updater from matching GitHub Releases.

Manual installation

1. Download manifest.json and theme.css.
2. Create .obsidian/themes/Pixel/ in the target Vault.
3. Put both files in that directory.
4. Restart Obsidian if necessary, then select Pixel under Appearance.

For a synced Vault on iOS, wait for .obsidian/themes/Pixel/ to finish syncing before restarting Obsidian. Android remains unverified.

Customization

Pixel respects Obsidian's own appearance settings without requiring a companion plugin:

• Light or Dark mode
• Text and interface fonts
• Base font size
• Accent color

Pixel does not currently expose custom Style Settings controls. The Style Settings plugin is optional and is not required to install, use, or customize the theme.

The theme embeds Fusion Pixel for identity headings. Code and technical status use Obsidian's configured monospace font with system fallbacks, while body text uses the user's text font and operating-system fallback for uncommon characters.

Pixel ships no community-plugin-specific selectors. Plugins that use official Obsidian variables generally inherit the theme naturally, but individual community plugins are not compatibility commitments.

Accessibility

• Normal text targets at least 4.5:1 contrast.
• Meaningful icons and control boundaries target at least 3:1 contrast.
• Keyboard focus uses outline, surface, and position cues instead of color alone.
• Reduced motion, forced colors, and increased contrast preferences are supported.
• User fonts, font sizes, accent, selection, and caret settings remain authoritative.
• Long text, code, and tables reflow or scroll locally instead of hiding content and controls.

Compatibility

Development

Pixel requires Node.js 24 and npm:

npm ci
npm run build
npm test
npm run check

• npm run build compiles theme.css and optionally deploys to the dedicated development Vault.
• npm run dev watches Sass sources.
• npm test runs structural, compatibility, and release-contract tests.
• npm run check verifies that generated output matches the source without modifying it.

src/scss/index.scss is the only Sass entry point. Edit sources under src/; do not edit generated theme.css directly.

For guarded deployment, see the Chinese development details.

Releasing

• manifest.json is the authoritative current version.
• versions.json permanently maps every published theme version to its minimum Obsidian version.
• Only an unprefixed x.y.z annotated tag triggers release CI.
• A verified release publishes only theme.css and manifest.json, with GitHub build provenance attestations.
• Public tags, Releases, and assets are immutable; regressions are fixed forward with a new PATCH.

See the complete release and Obsidian community update guide.

Feedback

Use GitHub Issues for public feedback. Include Pixel and Obsidian versions, operating system, Light or Dark mode, reproduction steps, screenshots, and any enabled CSS snippets or community plugins.

License

Pixel is released under the MIT License. The embedded Fusion Pixel font retains its SIL Open Font License 1.1 terms; source, checksum, and license details are available under src/assets/fonts/.