Apple is well known for its accessibility features in all its products. Are you interested in knowing what accessibility features are available in Apple products? Apple.com/accessibility lists accessibility features  for various categories like vision, hearing, physical & motor skills, and learning & literacy. There are also four broader categories for the products – OSX for computers, iOS for phone and tablet, watchOS for Apple Watch, and tvOS for Apple TV. Clicking on each category shows accessibility features for that specific OS. 

 

For example, for computers, a deaf person can set up Screen Flash which is kind of a visual beep. Whenever an app requires the user’s attention, it makes the screen flash instead of making a sound. For speech to text, there are more than 50 commands available that makes formatting via dictation easier. Automator can also be used by a user to create their own custom commands.

 

On the iPhone, for people with not very good motor skills, making touch gestures, especially with multiple fingers may not be convenient. AssistiveTouch lets users create their own gestures to suit their own physical needs. iOS also has Switch Control built into it so that users can navigate screens using bluetooth enabled switches. Apple has also worked with hearing aid manufacturers who have developed hearing aids that can be easily controlled by the iPhone.

 

The Apple Watch also has several accessibility features. People who are deaf in one ear may miss some audio while using headsets because headsets, which are in stereo, have distinct left and right channels. Apple Watch (and also other Apple products) can switch audio to mono so that audio channels are played in both ears. Apple Watch also magnifies the display for people with vision impairment.

 

Last, but not the least, the Apple TV! Besides some common accessibility features like changing color, contrast, text size, etc., Apple TV allows the use of Siri for dictation purposes for people who cannot use the remote, keyboard, or phone for inputting commands. Apple TV also makes it easy for blind people to watch movies. Movies with audio descriptions are labeled “AD” and can be easily streamed and watched.

 

Check out the Accessibility page for all Apple accessibility features.

 

PS: There are several popular accessibility features like VoiceOver are available across all devices!