The invert colors feature of macOS should allow low vision users the option to also invert images and videos

Category
Miscellaneous
Severity
Serious

Description

As currently implemented, the invert colors feature doesn’t allow images or videos to be inverted. If the image/video contains dark text or lines on a light background, low vision users can’t change them to light text or lines on a dark background. The issue is system-wide and affects many apps including Safari, iTunes, and App Store.

Workarounds involving screenshots are cumbersome for images and not an option for videos.

Suggested fixes:

1) Add a “classic invert” option and allow keyboard shortcut to toggle between the three (no invert, smart invert, and classic invert).

or

2) Back out the invert colors change and restore functionality to pre-10.13.4.

A discussion of this issue can be found at https://www.applevis.com/forum/macos-mac-app-discussion/smart-invert-colors-feature-10134

Bug First Encountered

macOS 10.13.4

How often the bug occurs

Always

Status

Fixed

Fixed In

macOS 10.15

Options

Comments

By Gary C

5 years 3 months ago

I have seen the same invert colors behavior on OS X, starting in 10.13.4 High Sierra. I reported this to the accessibility team via Apple Care on 6/4/2018. I explained that visually impaired users needed a bit by bit invert colors for images and video. I emphasized video. Taylor called on 7/30/18 to assure me this would be fixed in the (then) upcoming Mojave release. It is not fixed. Safari under Mojave still does not do a bit by bit invert colors on images or video. Safari is used "under the hood" of so many apps that this single issue invades many other apps.

By James Blond

5 years 1 month ago

I have also called to register my complaint for this bug, which my call tech fellow said was a bug and a known problem introduced by Mojave, but he also said that it was behaving as it was designed to — so it was a "bug" deliberately introduced by Apple. My pet theory is that Apple has no real incentive to want pictures and videos to be inverted because that means any advertising is inverted and therefore neutralized (one of the reasons I actually use invert — as a severe ADD suffererer, the barrage of ads and videos and whatnot on compluter and online life is a real nightmare, and invert goes a long way to subvertinig that).

For what it's worth for people like me, Chrome and FRefox browsers do not do "smart invert."