
Earlier this week, Apple commemorated the 2022 International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which falls annually on December 3, and released a video titled “The Greatest,” showing how some users are using its accessibility features, from door detection to sound alarm.
When Spinifex Gum’s “I Am the Greatest” (with Marliya Choir) plays in the background, you’ll see some scenes using accessibility features on iOS and macOS, such as magnifying glass, door detection, and image description on iPhone, and Alternate pointer controls on Mac, such as head tracking and facial expressions.
Granted, at the end of the day, this is an ad — a showcase of a range of features that can be used on Apple devices. However, you can’t deny that there’s something special here, and it’s had an impact on how far the software has evolved, and pretty much anyone can use these devices just like anyone else.
However, with rumors of an Apple VR headset allegedly coming in 2023, it makes me wonder how Apple fares Accessibility It can go further in AR and VR.
The days of calling accessibility “easter eggs” are over
When you watch this two minute video (with a oral version (opens in a new tab), and), you’ll be amazed at how these seven users (not actors) use iPhones, Macs, and Apple Watches to help them with everyday tasks. For example, you see a hearing-impaired mother get an alert on her Apple Watch that her newborn baby is crying, so she goes to care for her.You can do this by going to Settings > Accessibility > Voice Recognitionthen turn on sound recognition to choose specific alerts for certain sounds.
Meanwhile, the Juilliard-trained jazz pianist Matthew Whitaker (opens in a new tab) How he uses detection in the scene where he uses the iPhone to help him read the writing on the door caught my attention. I’ve been told that door detection works on any iPhone with a lidar scanner, so the iPhone 12 Pro and later, and that it works up to 20 feet away.
Watching how the detection mode in the Magnifier app read “Stage” on the door, it occurred to me that this might be the beginning of something bigger. Imagine having headphones that automatically read out menu items no matter where you put your eye or other distance-detecting notifications.
Also, if you’re walking your dog, for example, the headset can allow you to see better on a foggy morning to pick up sticks your dog might have dropped beside you, or it can guide you Where Where is the stick, and how close is it.
It all comes back to accessibility and how it can enrich someone’s lifestyle. Accessibility features have long been described as “easter eggs” or “hidden features,” and it’s time to change that. Videos like “The Greatest” show how detecting patterns and voice control not only help users every day, but allow them to thrive.
The rumored headset could take these features to the next level, and if it does release in 2023, my first question is not how much it will cost, but what accessibility features will be included from day one.
This video is one of Apple’s best in recent years – now let’s see what else the category can do to better enrich the lives of others.