Apple today announced new accessibility features that will be included in its physical devices (such as the iPhone and iPad) and OS releases throughout 2022.
Among the novelties: a door detection system for people who are blind or visually impaired and the reproduction of the original sound for people with a hearing impairment. Check out more details below.
Port detection
By updating the system, it will be possible to use the iPhone to detect the presence of the door and get information about its distance, whether it is open to the front, when dragged or sliding. In addition, the device will be able to read if there are codes, numbers and warnings on this port.
This feature will be available in Magnifier, an Apple built-in app that supports consumers who are blind or have low vision. Today, the company already has people-detection and image-description capabilities.
The devices compatible with the update will be those with the LiDAR sensor, which is a proprietary scanning system, According to the company. Newer models of iPhone and iPad have the technology.
Here’s how the new accessibility feature works:
Audio transcription and translation
Another accessibility feature released by Apple is a live audio transcription system and subtitle playback. With it, people who feel the need will be able to follow content that contains audio in different tools of the Apple ecosystem.
Examples: in a phone call, in a program In FaceTime video chats, when watching content on Social media Or even content streamed to another nearby device.
Apple says its Live Action feature will add live captions to FaceTime calls, whether in live calls or group meetings – today, The Google It offers a similar solution in its own meeting service.
The company claims that scripts generated in Live Captions are done on the device, so user information is private and secure without going through the cloud.
Live Captions will work on Iphoneon iPad and Mac computers.
Watch the demo released by the company:
Other features coming throughout the year
- VoiceOver: The brand also announced the expansion of VoiceOver languages. With it, the device describes everything that is happening on the screen of the device – it has been working in Portuguese for a while. To date, there are more than 20 languages - the new ones are Bengali, Bulgarian, Catalan, Ukrainian and Vietnamese.
- buddy console: Resources where a person can ask a health professional or friends to help him play a game;
- Siri downtime: Users will be able to adjust the response time of Siri’s personal assistant before it responds to the request;
- Voice recognition: The feature can be customized to recognize specific sounds from the environment in which the person is located, such as an alarm, a house bell, or sounds made by devices.
- Gestures on Apple Watch: The company explains that hand gestures can be used to control the Apple Watch, such as the dual dial gesture to answer or end a call, dismiss a notification, take a photo, and play or pause media.
Edward Langley is a contributor at Mediarunsearch.co.uk, covering a wide range of topics including news, politics, business, technology, sport, entertainment and lifestyle. He focuses on delivering clear, balanced reporting and useful information that helps readers stay informed about current affairs and developing stories. His work highlights issues, trends and events that matter to everyday audiences, with an emphasis on accuracy, relevance and accessible journalism.