diff --git a/android/app/src/main/kotlin/dev/yukart/display/MainActivity.kt b/android/app/src/main/kotlin/dev/yukart/display/MainActivity.kt
index 83229b4..35805d0 100644
--- a/android/app/src/main/kotlin/dev/yukart/display/MainActivity.kt
+++ b/android/app/src/main/kotlin/dev/yukart/display/MainActivity.kt
@@ -2,6 +2,10 @@ package dev.yukart.display
 
 import android.content.Context
 import android.content.Intent
+import android.hardware.Sensor
+import android.hardware.SensorEvent
+import android.hardware.SensorEventListener
+import android.hardware.SensorManager
 import android.net.ConnectivityManager
 import android.net.Network
 import android.net.NetworkCapabilities
@@ -10,6 +14,7 @@ import android.os.Bundle
 import android.view.WindowManager
 import io.flutter.embedding.android.FlutterActivity
 import io.flutter.embedding.engine.FlutterEngine
+import io.flutter.plugin.common.EventChannel
 import io.flutter.plugin.common.MethodChannel
 
 /**
@@ -22,6 +27,9 @@ import io.flutter.plugin.common.MethodChannel
  *   When asked, the whole process is bound to the Ethernet (NCM) network while it
  *   exists, and unbound when it goes.
  *
+ * Also the light sensor, for auto dark/bright (lib/theme/light.dart): lux on `yukart/light`
+ * while Dart listens, where the device lets apps read one (the Redmi Pad SE does not).
+ *
  * Also a development hook: `am start -n dev.yukart.display/.MainActivity --es linktest [dl:|bi:]<label>[@<host>]`
  * runs the link test (lib/linktest.dart) without touching the screen.
  */
@@ -81,6 +89,34 @@ class MainActivity : FlutterActivity() {
             .removeCapability(NetworkCapabilities.NET_CAPABILITY_INTERNET)
             .build()
         cm.requestNetwork(request, callback)
+
+        EventChannel(flutterEngine.dartExecutor.binaryMessenger, "yukart/light")
+            .setStreamHandler(LightStream(getSystemService(Context.SENSOR_SERVICE) as SensorManager))
+    }
+
+    /** Lux from the default light sensor while listened to; an error at once without one, or when refused. */
+    private class LightStream(private val sm: SensorManager) : EventChannel.StreamHandler {
+        private var listener: SensorEventListener? = null
+
+        override fun onListen(arguments: Any?, events: EventChannel.EventSink) {
+            val sensor = sm.getDefaultSensor(Sensor.TYPE_LIGHT)
+                ?: return events.error("no_sensor", "no light sensor", null)
+            listener = object : SensorEventListener {
+                override fun onSensorChanged(e: SensorEvent) = events.success(e.values[0].toDouble())
+                override fun onAccuracyChanged(s: Sensor, accuracy: Int) {}
+            }
+            // The Redmi Pad SE lists one (derived from the front camera) but refuses apps:
+            // only the system's auto-brightness may read it.
+            if (!sm.registerListener(listener, sensor, SensorManager.SENSOR_DELAY_NORMAL)) {
+                listener = null
+                events.error("refused", "light sensor refused", null)
+            }
+        }
+
+        override fun onCancel(arguments: Any?) {
+            listener?.let { sm.unregisterListener(it) }
+            listener = null
+        }
     }
 
     private fun apply() {
diff --git a/docs/impl/plans/DASH-NEXT.md b/docs/impl/plans/DASH-NEXT.md
index a184295..15f8080 100644
--- a/docs/impl/plans/DASH-NEXT.md
+++ b/docs/impl/plans/DASH-NEXT.md
@@ -74,7 +74,17 @@ chosen readouts.
 **Done (2026-10-15):** Settings has Auto / Dark / Bright (a segmented control, kept across
 restarts). Auto follows Android's dark theme (`platformBrightness`, so its schedule too). The
 status bar's button (it moved there with item 1) holds the other variant, and a long press
-returns it to auto. Not done: the light sensor as an auto source.
+returns it to auto.
+
+**Light sensor, tried (2026-10-15):** Auto takes a light sensor over Android's dark theme
+where the device lets an app read one (`theme/light.dart`: dark at ≤ 15 lux, bright from 60,
+held 5 s; Settings shows the reading). **The Redmi Pad SE does not:** its only light sensor,
+`camera_light_Sensor`, is derived by Xiaomi from the front camera, and `registerListener` refuses
+apps at every rate (only the system's auto-brightness reads it). Its automatic brightness is not
+exposed either (`screen_brightness` is the manual level). Other lux sources, if wanted:
+the Orin's camera (its exposure and gain say how bright the road is; svc-vision would publish
+it), opening the tablet's front camera ourselves (camera permission, the in-use dot, and the
+camera's power), or sunrise and sunset from GNSS position and time (no sensor; tunnels ignored).
 What was asked:
 
 Today the variant is a switch (the Dash's top-right button, and Settings). Wanted:
diff --git a/lib/README.md b/lib/README.md
index 7da8bdb..1430a01 100644
--- a/lib/README.md
+++ b/lib/README.md
@@ -41,7 +41,8 @@ pirate-station-aide's (main views, then the rarely used ones grouped as Tools).
   and the state gradient `good` → `caution` → `alarm`; plus the derived `surface` (raised bars) and
   `onFill(colour)` (text on a fill). No widget names a colour. Themes are JSON in `assets/themes/`, `rei` by
   default; smart-serow's four-key files still load (their `highlight` is `alarm`).
-- **Dark or bright.** `Themes.mode` is `auto` (Android's dark theme, schedule included), `dark` or
+- **Dark or bright.** `Themes.mode` is `auto` (a light sensor where the device allows one, `theme/light.dart`;
+  else Android's dark theme, schedule included), `dark` or
   `bright`, chosen in Settings and kept across restarts. The status bar's button holds the other variant;
   a long press there is auto again.
 - **Cosmetic fonts are opt-in.** A widget that wants the HUD face names `fontFamily: hudFont` in its own
diff --git a/lib/main.dart b/lib/main.dart
index 2809884..b836d44 100644
--- a/lib/main.dart
+++ b/lib/main.dart
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import 'link/net.dart';
 import 'pages/link_test.dart';
 import 'shell.dart';
 import 'shell_scope.dart';
+import 'theme/light.dart';
 import 'theme/palette.dart';
 
 /// Override for development, e.g. `--dart-define=YUKART_GW=ws://halogen.local:7700/`.
@@ -18,7 +19,8 @@ const defaultUrl = String.fromEnvironment(
 
 Future<void> main() async {
   WidgetsFlutterBinding.ensureInitialized();
-  final themes = await Themes.load();
+  final themes = await Themes.load()
+    ..followLight(lightLevels());
   final usb = UsbLink();
   await usb.bindFor(Uri.parse(defaultUrl));
   final boundary = Boundary(defaultUrl)..start();
diff --git a/lib/pages/settings.dart b/lib/pages/settings.dart
index d0460fb..927862d 100644
--- a/lib/pages/settings.dart
+++ b/lib/pages/settings.dart
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import '../actions/server_url.dart';
 import '../link/boundary.dart';
 import '../link/net.dart';
 import '../shell_scope.dart';
+import '../theme/light.dart';
 import '../theme/palette.dart';
 
 class SettingsPage extends StatelessWidget {
@@ -55,9 +56,16 @@ class SettingsPage extends StatelessWidget {
             ListTile(
               leading: Icon(themes.isDark ? Icons.dark_mode : Icons.light_mode),
               title: const Text('Dark or bright'),
-              subtitle: const Text(
-                "Auto follows Android's dark theme and its schedule. "
-                "The Dash's button holds one; a long press there is auto again.",
+              subtitle: ValueListenableBuilder(
+                valueListenable: themes.lux,
+                builder: (context, lux, _) => Text(
+                  lux == null
+                      ? "Auto follows Android's dark theme and its schedule (no light sensor). "
+                            'The status bar button holds one; a long press there is auto again.'
+                      : 'Auto follows the light sensor: dark at ${LightSwitch.darkAt.round()} lux or less, '
+                            'bright from ${LightSwitch.brightAt.round()}; now ${lux.toStringAsFixed(lux < 10 ? 1 : 0)} lux. '
+                            'The status bar button holds one; a long press there is auto again.',
+                ),
               ),
             ),
             Padding(
diff --git a/lib/theme/light.dart b/lib/theme/light.dart
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..587565f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/lib/theme/light.dart
@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+// Auto dark/bright from the tablet's light sensor. The Redmi Pad SE has no separate one:
+// Xiaomi derives it from the front camera ("camera_light_Sensor") and offers it as
+// Android's ordinary light sensor, the one auto-brightness reads. No camera permission.
+
+import 'package:flutter/services.dart';
+
+/// Light levels in lux, about once a second, from MainActivity. Ends at once (an error,
+/// which [Themes.followLight] ignores) where there is no sensor or no Android side.
+Stream<double> lightLevels() =>
+    const EventChannel('yukart/light')
+        .receiveBroadcastStream()
+        .map((e) => (e as num).toDouble());
+
+/// Dark or bright from light levels, with a gap and a hold so dusk, shade and
+/// passing lights do not flicker it.
+class LightSwitch {
+  /// Dark at or below this.
+  static const darkAt = 15.0;
+
+  /// Bright at or above this; in between, whatever it was.
+  static const brightAt = 60.0;
+
+  /// How long a level must last before it switches.
+  static const hold = Duration(seconds: 5);
+
+  bool? _dark;
+  DateTime? _since;
+
+  bool? get isDark => _dark;
+
+  /// A change is waiting out its hold.
+  bool get pending => _since != null;
+
+  /// The hold has passed with no reading against it (a sensor that reports only on
+  /// change goes quiet): make the waiting change.
+  void settle() {
+    if (_since == null) return;
+    _dark = !_dark!;
+    _since = null;
+  }
+
+  /// Feed one reading; returns the verdict (null until a reading outside the gap).
+  bool? feed(double lux, DateTime now) {
+    final want = lux <= darkAt
+        ? true
+        : lux >= brightAt
+        ? false
+        : _dark;
+    if (_dark == null) {
+      // The first clear reading decides at once; one in the gap leaves it open.
+      _dark = want;
+    } else if (want == _dark) {
+      _since = null;
+    } else {
+      _since ??= now;
+      if (now.difference(_since!) >= hold) {
+        _dark = want;
+        _since = null;
+      }
+    }
+    return _dark;
+  }
+}
diff --git a/lib/theme/palette.dart b/lib/theme/palette.dart
index 5682149..2aea9ee 100644
--- a/lib/theme/palette.dart
+++ b/lib/theme/palette.dart
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@
 //
 // Pick the theme at build time: `--dart-define=YUKART_THEME=default` (default: rei, smart-serow's).
 
+import 'dart:async';
 import 'dart:convert';
 import 'dart:math' show max, min;
 
@@ -22,6 +23,8 @@ import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
 import 'package:flutter/services.dart';
 import 'package:shared_preferences/shared_preferences.dart';
 
+import 'light.dart';
+
 /// The HUD face (smart-serow's DIN 1451). Opt-in: a widget names it in its own
 /// TextStyle; everything else keeps the basic font, which covers CJK where DIN does not.
 const hudFont = 'DIN1451';
@@ -117,12 +120,12 @@ class Palette {
   );
 }
 
-/// Which variant shows: Android's own dark theme (auto), or one held fixed.
+/// Which variant shows: auto (the light sensor, else Android's dark theme), or one held fixed.
 enum VariantMode { auto, dark, bright }
 
-/// A theme: both variants, and which one is showing. Listen to it to follow a switch,
-/// and, in auto, Android's dark theme turning on or off (by hand or on its schedule).
-/// The mode is kept across restarts.
+/// A theme: both variants, and which one is showing. Listen to it to follow a switch.
+/// In auto it follows the tablet's light sensor ([followLight]); without one, Android's
+/// dark theme (by hand or on its schedule). The mode is kept across restarts.
 class Themes extends ChangeNotifier with WidgetsBindingObserver {
   Themes(this.name, this.dark, this.bright, [this._prefs]) {
     _mode =
@@ -148,10 +151,50 @@ class Themes extends ChangeNotifier with WidgetsBindingObserver {
     notifyListeners();
   }
 
+  final _light = LightSwitch();
+  Timer? _holdTimer;
+
+  /// The last light level, in lux, while a sensor reports (for Settings, to tune by).
+  final lux = ValueNotifier<double?>(null);
+
+  /// Follow a light sensor in auto. Errors (no sensor) leave auto on Android's dark theme.
+  void followLight(Stream<double> levels) {
+    void changed(bool? before) {
+      if (_light.isDark != before && _mode == VariantMode.auto) {
+        notifyListeners();
+      }
+    }
+
+    void feed(double l) {
+      final before = _light.isDark;
+      _light.feed(l, DateTime.now());
+      changed(before);
+      // A sensor may report only on change: finish a hold even if none comes.
+      _holdTimer?.cancel();
+      if (_light.pending) {
+        _holdTimer = Timer(LightSwitch.hold, () {
+          final before = _light.isDark;
+          _light.settle();
+          changed(before);
+        });
+      }
+    }
+
+    levels.listen(
+      (l) {
+        lux.value = l;
+        feed(l);
+      },
+      onError: (_) => lux.value = null,
+      cancelOnError: true,
+    );
+  }
+
   bool get isDark => switch (_mode) {
     VariantMode.auto =>
-      WidgetsBinding.instance.platformDispatcher.platformBrightness ==
-          Brightness.dark,
+      _light.isDark ??
+          WidgetsBinding.instance.platformDispatcher.platformBrightness ==
+              Brightness.dark,
     VariantMode.dark => true,
     VariantMode.bright => false,
   };
@@ -163,12 +206,14 @@ class Themes extends ChangeNotifier with WidgetsBindingObserver {
 
   @override
   void didChangePlatformBrightness() {
-    if (_mode == VariantMode.auto) notifyListeners();
+    if (_mode == VariantMode.auto && _light.isDark == null) notifyListeners();
   }
 
   @override
   void dispose() {
     WidgetsBinding.instance.removeObserver(this);
+    _holdTimer?.cancel();
+    lux.dispose();
     super.dispose();
   }
 
diff --git a/test/palette_test.dart b/test/palette_test.dart
index 17408dc..6efe01b 100644
--- a/test/palette_test.dart
+++ b/test/palette_test.dart
@@ -1,3 +1,6 @@
+import 'dart:async';
+
+import 'package:display/theme/light.dart';
 import 'package:display/theme/palette.dart';
 import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
 import 'package:flutter_test/flutter_test.dart';
@@ -33,4 +36,38 @@ void main() {
       expect(make().mode, VariantMode.dark); // kept for the next start
     },
   );
+
+  test('the light switch has a gap and a hold', () {
+    final s = LightSwitch();
+    final t0 = DateTime(2026);
+    DateTime at(int sec) => t0.add(Duration(seconds: sec));
+    expect(s.feed(30, at(0)), isNull); // in the gap: no verdict yet
+    expect(s.feed(500, at(1)), isFalse); // the first clear reading decides
+    expect(s.feed(30, at(2)), isFalse); // the gap keeps it
+    expect(s.feed(5, at(3)), isFalse); // dark, but not for long enough
+    expect(s.pending, isTrue);
+    expect(s.feed(200, at(4)), isFalse); // back: the hold restarts
+    expect(s.pending, isFalse);
+    s.feed(5, at(10));
+    expect(s.feed(5, at(14)), isFalse);
+    expect(s.feed(5, at(15)), isTrue);
+  });
+
+  testWidgets('auto takes the light sensor over Android', (tester) async {
+    SharedPreferences.setMockInitialValues({});
+    final prefs = await SharedPreferences.getInstance();
+    tester.platformDispatcher.platformBrightnessTestValue = Brightness.dark;
+    final t = Themes('t', Palette.fallbackDark, Palette.fallbackBright, prefs);
+    final levels = StreamController<double>();
+    t.followLight(levels.stream);
+    expect(t.isDark, isTrue); // no reading yet: Android's
+    levels.add(800);
+    await tester.pump();
+    expect((t.isDark, t.lux.value), (false, 800));
+    levels.add(2);
+    await tester.pump(
+      const Duration(seconds: 6),
+    ); // no new reading: the timer ends the hold
+    expect(t.isDark, isTrue);
+  });
 }