I wanted to share a simple mental model I’ve been using to think about image description tools. It isn’t about which app is “best”; this method works with Access AI, Be My AI, Perspective Intelligence, PiccyBot, and Seeing AI on iPhone. It’s about what level of reliability you actually need in the moment. The mental model I’ve created shows three layers.
This is the top layer, and it’s deliberately blunt. If the description has real…
Ahead of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) on May 21, Apple is offering a preview of accessibility features coming to its platforms later this year; including improved visual descriptions and text readability powered by Apple Intelligence, the ability to generate subtitles for videos, and more.
In September of last year, Apple released iOS 26 bringing a lot of new features and updates. Among those new features was a suite of options called Braille Access. Braille Access, specifically Live Captions, has re-opened a lot of my world, and this is not something I state lightly. I have…
AppleVis is pleased to unveil our 2025 Apple Vision Accessibility Report Card. The only report of its kind to focus specifically on the needs of people who are blind, DeafBlind, or who have low vision, the Apple Vision Accessibility Report Card provides valuable insights into the lived experiences and opinions of people who rely on VoiceOver, braille, and/or low vision accessibility features on Apple products.
Inspired by the Six…
Update, 09/29/2025: Apple released iOS 26.0.1 on 09/29/2025, bringing a fix for the issue discussed below where some VoiceOver users lost speech in iOS 26 and iPadOS 26.
Update, 09/18/2025: Apple has confirmed they are aware of the issue some users are experiencing with a loss of VoiceOver speech in certain circumstances. A fix is on the…
Ahead of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) Apple is offering a preview of accessibility features coming to its platforms later this year; including Accessibility Nutrition labels for App Store apps, Magnifier for Mac, Braille Access, and more.
Apple released iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 on Monday, September 16, 2024. This post contains a summary of new bugs impacting VoiceOver and braille support that we have identified during testing of these releases. We have also included details on preexisting bugs that our testing suggests have been fixed in iOS 18 and iPadOS 18.
As is our routine practice, each newly identified bug has been given a severity rating. These ratings are based upon what we believe to be the implications for…
Fall is almost here in the northern hemisphere, which means it’s time for another major release of iOS. There are certainly mainstream changes of note, such as a new Passwords app; an expanded Control Center; changes to the Messages app like the addition of support for RCS messaging; and many more. This article from iDownloadBlog…
The ChatGPT app has found a place in my iPhone's dock. I use it for many things, both serious and fun. Part of me is convinced that it's going to turn into Marvin the Paranoid Android from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. There it is, brain the size of a planet, and I'm constantly asking it to answer very simple or repetitive queries. Yet, it always remains eager to assist with any question.
AI is a vast topic, and…
It's difficult to believe that iOS will be turning into a legal adult next fall, though the iOS 17 upgrade is far from being minor. Many new features and functions will be available for everyone. To check out some of the mainstream changes, Apple's official iOS 17 preview page may help. Alternatively, our main post announcing iOS 17 offers a large list of mainstream enhancements as well as a list of changes in accessibility. Not all…
There has been quite a bit of discussion and debate of late around the merits of iOS and Android, and this has coincided with my own journey into using Android. In February this year, after thirteen years using iPhones, I bought a Samsung Galaxy S23. I had long been curious about Android and had dabbled with it over the years, primarily as my work phone. I had never really picked it up and used it as my primary day to day phone though, at least not since I spent a…
The Be My Eyes app is set to gain a new feature called the Virtual Volunteer, powered by OpenAI's recently announced GPT-4 model. This new tool has the potential to be a game changer for people with visual impairments, providing a virtual sighted assistant that can generate context and understanding for images in the same way as a human volunteer can.
Be My Eyes has been providing technology for the blind and low-vision…
Whether on my iPhone or my Mac, I encounter accessibility issues pretty much daily.
Yes, much of it is the usual---mouse-centric controls, unlabeled buttons, and images without ALT text---commonplace issues that have been highlighted for years. I don’t want to minimize these issues, but I view them as minor. They are well-known. They have names. We can talk about them in discussions with developers. Free utilities are readily available…
Microsoft has today announced that as of January 3, 2023, its Soundscape app will not be available for download and that existing installations will cease to work after the end of June 2023.
The Microsoft Soundscape app for iPhone was launched 6 years ago. It uses 3D audio…
I'm back yet again. Just like in years past, September brings us a new major release of iOS. This latest edition includes many mainstream changes such as a revamped Lock screen; enhancements to privacy and safety features; Focus Mode enhancements; new functionality in Messages and Mail; along with many other improvements. For Apple's official list of iOS 16 features and changes, see this webpage which Highlights many…
Ahead of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) on Thursday 19 May, Apple has previewed new accessibility features that will be coming to its platforms later this year.
Of particular note for blind and low vision users is Door Detection on supported iPhones and iPads, which will enable you to navigate the last few feet to your destination…
This review was completed after 10 days of use. Most of my comparison will be with the iPhone SE 2, since that was the phone I had been using previously. For the sake of clarity, when referring to the previous generation of iPhone SE released in 2020, it will be referred to as the iPhone SE 2. Apple refers to the current model of iPhone SE simply by that name. This was also true of the first and second generation.
The iPhone SE 3 is a…
Life is grand. I am content, happy with my home and neighborhood and live a relaxing and rewarding life. I'm just your average blind, retired and elderly fellow who wears hearing aids. The blindness is here to stay, as is my retirement status and I suspect I will continue to age. The only thing I really aspire to change is how well I hear and how well my hearing aids work with my iPhone.
I am a retired executive and computer geek who still loves problem solving. When something…
Ahead of Global Accessibility Awareness Day on May 20, Apple has previewed a number of accessibility Features coming later this year for those with mobility, vision, hearing, or cognitive disabilities.
“At Apple, we’ve long felt that the world’s best technology should respond to…
Apple marked International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3 December by launching a major redesign of the Accessibility portal on its website, released additional resources for users of the accessibility features of its products, and took part in a virtual interview at the Sight Tech Global conference.
Apple's Accessibility portal showcases the range of accessibility features available on devices such as the iPhone, Mac, and…