diff --git a/clients/android/NewsBlur/src/com/newsblur/util/PrefsUtils.java b/clients/android/NewsBlur/src/com/newsblur/util/PrefsUtils.java
index c19d262fb..5aa221045 100644
--- a/clients/android/NewsBlur/src/com/newsblur/util/PrefsUtils.java
+++ b/clients/android/NewsBlur/src/com/newsblur/util/PrefsUtils.java
@@ -792,7 +792,7 @@ public class PrefsUtils {
 
     public static ThemeValue getSelectedTheme(Context context) {
         SharedPreferences prefs = context.getSharedPreferences(PrefConstants.PREFERENCES, 0);
-        String value = prefs.getString(PrefConstants.THEME, ThemeValue.LIGHT.name());
+        String value = prefs.getString(PrefConstants.THEME, ThemeValue.AUTO.name());
         // check for legacy hard-coded values. this can go away once installs of v152 or earlier are minimized
         if (value.equals("light")) {    
             setSelectedTheme(context, ThemeValue.LIGHT);