Apple Offers New Accessibility Features for Users

An upcoming update from Apple will allow you to type a message and hear your voice speak the message aloud. The new features—which Apple designed for cognitive accessibility—are said to be coming to iPhone and iPad devices later this year.

These new features are a significant step forward for accessibility and allow people of all abilities to use various Apple features and participate in the conversation. Google recently announced accessibility-focused features in a new update for Chrome as well.

“Accessibility is part of everything we do at Apple,” said Sarah Herrlinger, Apple’s senior director of Global Accessibility Policy and Initiatives, in a press release. “These groundbreaking features were designed with feedback from members of disability communities every step of the way, to support a diverse set of users and help people connect in new ways.”

Four new features

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The new features from Apple were previewed in a press release this week.

Among the new features is Assistive Access, which “distills apps and experiences to their essential features” and lightens the cognitive load on users. The feature allows users to use apps like Photos and Music without extraneous buttons and features crowding the screen.

Assistive Access can also redo the home screen layout, customize Phone and FaceTime experiences, and feature emoji-only keyboards in Messages for visual communicators.

Live Speech allows users to type what they want to say (on iPhone, iPad, and Mac) and have it spoken aloud during phone, FaceTime, and in-person conversations. The technology will also save common phrases that users can use quickly. 

Users can easily create a Personal Voice, allowing vocal communication with friends and family even if speech is difficult. The synthetic voice is made in 15 minutes and works well with Live Speech.

Point and Speak in Magnifier turns the iPhone into a virtual magnifying glass. Users can interact with text labels on physical objects; their device will speak the text as they move their fingers along the text label.

Additional features:

• Made for iPhone hearing devices can be automatically paired to Macs.
• Voice Control adds phonetic suggestions for users to choose from with homonymic words.
• Switch Control lets users turn switches into virtual game controllers for iPhone and iPad games.
• Text size is easy to adjust in Mac apps moving forward.
• Now, it’s possible to pause images with moving elements in Messages and Safari automatically.
• VoiceOver users can now customize the Siri voice that speaks to them.

“At Apple, we’ve always believed that the best technology is technology built for everyone,” Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, said in the company’s press release. “Today, we’re excited to share incredible new features that build on our long history of making technology accessible, so that everyone has the opportunity to create, communicate, and do what they love.”