This is a huge issue from an accessibility point of view. Screen readers are remarkably inconsistent in the way they handle phone numbers. For now, just know that it is possible to use a touchscreen device with absolutely no vision at all.Accessible phone numbers on the web is a more complicated topic than you would think. Consequently, we will wait and describe touch gestures more thoroughly as we introduce each platform. There are many other gestures that enable users with visual impairments to use a touchscreen phone or tablet, but Apple, Google, and Microsoft use slightly different commands to accomplish the various screen reading functions. Then you can return your finger to the screen to locate the next desired character, digit, or punctuation mark. At that point simply lift your finger off the screen to enter and voice the character. Touch typing mode allows you to find the key you want to enter by either touching the screen or sliding a finger across the onscreen keyboard until your device announces the character you want. Touch typing: As you become familiar with the onscreen keyboard, you may wish to speed up your text and number entry.When you find the key you want, perform a double tap. Touch the screen until you find the character you wish to enter, or swipe your finger and listen as the new character is announced. Standard typing: This is usually the default typing mode.
Most touchscreen devices offer at least two ways to type. When you double-tap an edit field, the device's onscreen keyboard appears. Accessible Typing on Smartphone TouchscreensĮdit fields are areas that require the entry of information (such as the phone number you'd like to dial or the text of an e-mail you'd like to send). The screen reader will interpret this gesture as though you were a sighted user issuing a single tap on the identified control.
To activate the Play control, you next perform a double-tap (tap twice in rapid succession) anywhere on the screen. Let's say you have tapped the display and your screen reader has identified the Play icon on your device's music player. Touch the display in different places and you will hear the names of different icons, or snippets of descriptive text. When you use a screen reader, that touch instead causes the device to speak the information located on the display directly beneath your fingertip. For a sighted person, touching a finger to an icon on a smartphone display causes a control to be activated. This membrane is smart, just like your phone. Computer screen readers respond to keyboard commands Here's how it works with a touchscreen: A smartphone touchscreen is composed of a pane of glass with a thin membrane layered on top. Smartphone screen readers use human-sounding, synthesized voices to read and review the elements displayed on the smartphone touchscreen. After reading the section below on screen readers, you may decide you also want to enable your device's built-in screen reader for even greater accessibility.
Screen reader software for smart phones how to#
We will describe how to enable screen magnification on the device of your choice, and provide guidance on how to enlarge text, adjust the color palette, and customize other display settings in order to improve your ability to use a touchscreen device. If you have never used a computer, don't worry. If you have low vision and have used a screen magnifier on a computer, you probably already know everything you need to know about how to use a screen magnifier on a mobile device. Happily, the three major touchscreen platforms from Apple, Google, and Microsoft, each include two built-in accessibility features for people with visual impairments: a screen magnifier and a screen reader. When a sighted person uses a touchscreen smartphone or tablet, he or she taps icons or slides a finger across the display in order to make things happen.