Apple has today released iOS 8.4, bringing with it Apple’s new music streaming service and the usual "under the hood" fixes and enhancements.
The focus for this release has clearly been on making sure that everything is in place for the introduction of Apple Music and Beats 1. Consequently, we were not surprised to hear from Apple that it includes no accessibility-related changes or fixes.
What you will find in this update…
Recently, Clara Van Gerven published an article on the National Federation of the Blind website entitled, “The Sighted Guide to VoiceOver”. In the article, the author, a sighted assistive technology specialist, undertook an experiment to use only VoiceOver on her iPhone for forty days. That any sighted person, even an assistive technology professional, would undertake using only VoiceOver for forty days is to be commended,…
During the past week there has been a series of small reminders of how accessibility sits at the very heart of Apple’s ethos and practice.
The first of these came in one of the videos shown as part of the keynote presentation at last week’s Worldwide Developers’ Conference (WWDC). Featured prominently was a piano app for the iPad being developed by the Ludwig Project, which will seek to bring music to the hearing impaired by enabling them to…
Every year at its Worldwide Developers’ Conference (WWDC), Apple celebrates and acknowledges through its Apple Design Awards the mobile and desktop apps which raise the bar in design, technology and innovation.
Presented in a ceremony that traditionally follows the WWDC keynote presentation, it was tremendous to see the Workflow iOS app winning one of these prestigious awards this…
Today was Apples annual World Wide Developer's Conference keynote. This time each year, the world gets to preview the hardware and software coming out of Cupertino. We traditionally see the next iterations of iOS and OS X, and maybe a new service or cloud-based offering. This year was no exception: iOS9, OS X 10.11, watchOS 2.0, an updated Apple Pay, and the all-new Apple Music were all shown off with Apples usual flare. If…
Below is the AppleVis live blog for the June 8, 2015 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) keynote presentation. Information has been taken directly from the @AppleVis Twitter timeline, as well as from the Twitter timelines of MacRumorsLive / MacRumors, Macworld, and…
When I first saw mention of the Apple Watch having a ‘Speak On Wrist Raise’ option for VoiceOver users, my immediate reaction was that this would be one of those ‘set it and forget it’ settings. However, this is not turning out to be the case.
For those of you who don’t have an Apple Watch and are unfamiliar with this option and what it does, it simply has VoiceOver automatically speak the Watch screen when you lift your wrist (which most commonly results in the time being announced…
If you have read any of my previous posts on the Apple Watch, you might be excused for wondering at this point what else I have left to say on the topic … or, at least anything left to say that’s based upon personal experience. Before its release, I gave my reasons for not buying one. However, I was back within a few weeks to report that my inner-geek and it’s curiosity had ultimately won out, and that…
Welcome to the May 2015 edition of AppleVis Unlimited, our monthly series which aims to highlight what’s new and noteworthy in the accessible app landscape. Below, you’ll find a recap of the best content posted to AppleVis - from new app entries, to app updates, to podcasts and blogs. For easier navigation, the major sections of this post are at heading level 3, and each individual item is at heading level 4.
With Apple's annual Worldwide Developer's Conference now just days away, a lot of people are wondering what new shinies we'll see. Will there be a new Apple TV? Yet another update to some Mac or other? A better iPad Mini? What will iOS 9 and OS X 10.11 bring to the table? Will Apple continue its headlong rush into dazzling new features at the expense of quality, or will it slow down and start refining what it has already done? what shots did…
In late April, Apple began offering the opportunity for users to explore and experience Apple Watch's accessibility features at try-on appointments. After confirming that my local Apple Store had a Watch set up and ready (all stores should now have Watch units available for accessibility demonstrations, but my appointment was at the beginning of the rollout), I…
Apple has today been named as one of four recipients of the American Foundation For the Blind’s 2015 Helen Keller Achievement Award, according to a press release on the foundation’s website.
Specifically,…
Welcome to the April 2015 edition of AppleVis Unlimited, our monthly series which aims to highlight what’s new and noteworthy in the accessible app landscape. Below, you’ll find a recap of the best content posted to AppleVis - from new app entries, to app updates, to podcasts and blogs. For easier navigation, the major sections of this post are at heading level 3, and each individual item is at heading level 4.
On April 29, 2005, Apple Inc. introduced Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger. Included in Mac OS X Tiger's list of features was the VoiceOver screen reader. VoiceOver was not Apple's first foray into assistive technology: Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar introduced Universal Access which provided customizations to the operating system for those with visual, hearing, and physical disabilities. In fact, Mac OS X Universal Access was influenced by similar technologies which were bundled with the classic Mac OS (…
If you have visited an Apple Store during the past 2 weeks to check out the new Apple Watch, you may have come away disappointed that it had not been possible to fully explore the many accessibility features that it includes for blind and low vision users.
However, according to a report on…
Apple has today released iOS 8.3, bringing with it a host of new features and improvements across the operating system.
For blind and low vision users, Apple has made significant progress towards addressing many of the accessibility bugs still present in iOS 8.2. In addition, Apple has introduced a few new features specific to the needs of VoiceOver users.
At this point, it is worth noting that our testing of iOS 8.3 has…
Apple has recently updated its Apple Watch Technology page, indicating that the Apple Watch will have VoiceOver, Zoom, and Dynamic Type support built-in.
Under the heading "A more personal experience. For every person," Apple states the following:
Apple Watch comes with some powerful accessibility features. Like Zoom, a built-in magnifier. VoiceOver, so you can hear what’s on your screen. And Larger Dynamic…
Today, Apple unveiled four new things, a price change for the Apple TV, and minor updates to its existing line of MacBooks. We saw the Apple Watch, a 12-inch Retina Macbook, HBO Streaming, and Research Kit, a platform that will greatly enhance medical research and studies. We also got iOS8.2, which includes the Apple Watch app, and some small fixes and improvements.…
Today, Apple unveiled four new things, a price change for the Apple TV, and minor updates to its existing line of MacBooks. We saw the Apple Watch, a 12-inch Retina Macbook, HBO Streaming, and Research Kit, a platform that will greatly enhance medical research and studies. We also got iOS8.2, which includes the Apple Watch app, and some small fixes and improvements.…
Update, 4/5/2015: Apple has recently updated its Apple Watch Technology page, indicating that the Apple Watch will have VoiceOver, Zoom, and Dynamic Type support built-in.
Update, 3/15/2015: Following the release of the Watch Companion app in iOS 8.2, 9to5Mac has published a series of…