Here are some of the best accessibility tips to help you use your iPhone more productively.
Accessibility tips for visually impairedAssistive physical featuresAided hearing and other accessibility tips on iPhone
Accessibility tips for visually impaired
With iPhone, you can adjust iPhone accessibility settings to suit your vision requirements. Let me walk you through them.
1. VoiceOver
When you activate VoiceOver, it audibly reports every happening on your iPhone, including every button you touch. When you tap a button or an app, a voice tells you what it is. You can then double-tap that button to activate or launch it. To activate VoiceOver on iPhone or iPad: You can also adjust pitch range, change language settings and voice, and more.
2. Adjust text size, buttons, and more
You can also adjust text size, highlight buttons, and bold text. Here’s how:
3. Magnify content
You can use zoom to magnify the entire screen while using apps or typing on your iPhone or iPad. I recommend this option if you have difficulty seeing small texts. Or if you need a more precise focus on icons. To activate: Once active, double-tap with three fingers to switch between zooming in and out. Swipe across the screen with three fingers to move around your device when you zoom icons.
4. Reduce UI motion
It can be hard to visually catch up when actions and movements are too quick on your iPhone. You can slow them down for better comprehension and follow-up. So at least, you’ll know what’s happening next on your device. To do this:
5. Set up Spoken Content
You can also listen to written texts when you activate Spoken Content on your iPhone or iPad. This feature is helpful if you have difficulty reading. Setting it up is simple: Now, go ahead and open a message on your iPhone or online. Long-tap the Speech Controller icon at the top-left to read it in a speech.
Assistive physical features
Assistive features are physical and motor setups that let you create shortcuts for regularly-used functions on your iPhone or iPad. These are some tips to use these accessibility features.
6. Use AssistiveTouch
AssistiveTouch eliminates the need to follow several steps before you can use certain iPhone features. When activated, it spins up a single button on your device for activating gestures like switching the torch, taking screenshots, switching between apps, and more. And you can also customize what happens when you single-tap, double-tap, or long-press AssistiveTouch. For better insights, you might want to look at our comprehensive guide on how to use AssistiveTouch on iPhone and iPad.
7. Leverage back tap
There have been rumors that the Apple logo at the back of the iPhone works when you tap it. Well, it does! And it’s moderately responsive as well. But it doesn’t work until you set it up. As you can with AssistiveTouch, you can select what happens when you double- or triple-tap this logo. You’ll also need to go into Accessibility to set up the back tap gesture on your iPhone. But if it doesn’t respond sharply or doesn’t work at all, we have potent back tap fixes you can try as well.
8. Customize what happens when Face ID Unlocks iPhone
You can also modify what happens whenever you open your device with Face ID. For instance, you can set your iPhone to require attention before it opens. This makes your device stricter as it requires a closer gaze before it unlocks. You can also choose to dim the iPhone light after using it for a long time. And when you switch on Haptic on Successful Authentication, your device plays a sound indicating that it’s now unlocked. That feature is more helpful if you’re always in doubt whether your phone is unlocked or not. To access these features:
9. Tap to wake and activate Vibration
Like the raise to wake feature on iPhone, you can also configure your device to turn on the screen light whenever you tap it. Vibration keeps your iPhone in vibration mode even when the screen is off. So, at least, you can get emergency alerts even when you’re not actively using them. To activate these features: You can now wake your iPhone by merely tapping the screen when the screen light is off.
10. Use Voice Control
Perhaps another lazy feature that iPhone has added to our lives. Voice Control listens to everything happening around you and can type them for you. It’s a valuable function to explore if you hate typing all the time while texting or chatting. You might want to see this comprehensive guide on the use of voice control on the iPhone to get started.
11. Customize side button
You can customize the side button for anything ranging from activating Siri to classic voice control. You can even adjust the click speed to suit your need. To do this:
Aided hearing and other accessibility tips on iPhone
iPhone accessibility also offers features that improve hearing. And you can control the amount of sound that enters your eardrums while using your headphones or earbuds. Besides these, there are also many other general tips you can try to make your iPhone classier. Let’s explore them.
12. Pair hearing aids
If you use made-for iPhone hearing aids, you can pair them with your iPhone from the Accessibility menu. When you do so, you can improve sound quality on your iPhone while listening to podcasts, music, or making calls. To pair a hearing aid on iPhone:
13. Sound Recognition
Sound recognition lets your iPhone notify you via alerts when an event occurs or in case of a sudden event. This could be a fire outbreak or any other emergency. To activate:
14. Adjust Audio/Visual settings
The Audio/Visual section of the Accessibility menu lets you improve the quality of sounds that goes in and out of your iPhone. Here’s how to tweak features in your favor from this section:
15. Lock iPhone to a single app
For an added layer of privacy, you can lock your iPhone to a single app when you don’t want others (your kids, for instance) to access other parts of your phone when they’re using a particular feature. Once activated, all you need to do when your kid is inside an app is freeze your device with your passcode. Want to know more? Here’s a guide on how to use guided access on iPhone and Pad.
16. Customize shortcuts
Accessibility shortcuts let you access commonly-used gestures whenever you press the side button thrice. To activate: The iPhone accessibility feature comes in handy whenever you need your device to comply with your needs. Thankfully, iOS has improved these features over time, and there are always some features that suit everyone, after all. What’s your best feature? Let me know in the comment section. Read more:
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