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Review
. 2014 Mar 11;38(2):53-59.
doi: 10.3109/01658107.2013.874448. eCollection 2014.

Tablet and Smartphone Accessibility Features in the Low Vision Rehabilitation

Danielle Irvine  1 , Alex Zemke  1 , Gregg Pusateri  2 , Leah Gerlach  2 , Rob Chun  3 , Walter M Jay  4
Affiliations
Review

Tablet and Smartphone Accessibility Features in the Low Vision Rehabilitation

Danielle Irvine et al. Neuroophthalmology. .

Abstract

Tablet and smartphone use is rapidly increasing in developed countries. With this upsurge in popularity, the devices themselves are becoming more user-friendly for all consumers, including the visually impaired. Traditionally, visually impaired patients have received optical rehabilitation in the forms of microscopes, stand magnifiers, handheld magnifiers, telemicroscopes, and electronic magnification such as closed circuit televisions (CCTVs). In addition to the optical and financial limitations of traditional devices, patients do not always view them as being socially acceptable. For this reason, devices are often underutilised by patients due to lack of use in public forums or when among peers. By incorporating smartphones and tablets into a patient's low vision rehabilitation, in addition to traditional devices, one provides versatile and mainstream options, which may also be less expensive. This article explains exactly what the accessibility features of tablets and smartphones are for the blind and visually impaired, how to access them, and provides an introduction on usage of the features.

Keywords: Adaptive technology; low vision; rehabilitation; visual impairment.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
CCTV and tablets. (A) Desktop CCTV; (B) iPad tablet with accessibility menu; (C) iPad tablet with zoom magnification activated; (D) Android™ tablet with zoom magnification activated.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Voice command on the iPhone. (A) Siri on iPhone screen; (B) Tasks on the iPhone screen completed by Siri.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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