Apple today announced new accessibility features that will debut later this year in iOS 18 and other operating systems.
See also: Vehicle Motion Cues comes to iPhone to reduce motion sickness
The key addition is Eye Tracking, which will allow iPhone and iPad users with physical disabilities to control devices simply by looking at them with their eyes, with a new iOS gaze system similar to Vision Pro. Other new features include music haptics, Vehicle Motion Cues, and more.
As is tradition, Apple previews upcoming accessibility features before fully unveiling new operating systems, such as iOS 18, at WWDC in June.
The big new feature this year is Eye Tracking, which uses the front-facing camera to determine what element a user is looking at on the screen, allowing them to navigate their device with just their eyes, without any kind of touch required. Users can look at a button to highlight it and hold their gaze for a few seconds to select it.
Another useful feature is Music Haptics, which is designed to help deaf or hard of hearing people enjoy music like everyone else. The iPhone will use its haptic engine to reproduce taps and vibrations that are synchronized with the music being played aurally.
See also: The iPhone 16 series will finally offer faster charging
Another new accessibility feature in iOS 18 will be Vehicle Motion Cues, which aims to help users who suffer from motion sickness when using their iPhone or iPad as a passenger in a moving vehicle. When Motion Cues is enabled, the device overlays a pattern of moving dots that follow the direction of the vehicle's movement. Apple says this reduces sensory conflict in the brain and can reduce the intensity of motion sickness.
Also new is something called Vocal Shortcuts, which lets users assign custom action phrases to launch shortcuts and perform complex multi-step actions when those phrases are spoken aloud. Apple is also adding a new “Listen for Atypical Speech” feature that helps improve dictation and speech recognition accuracy for users who suffer from conditions like cerebral palsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or stroke.
CarPlay is also getting attention for accessibility in this software update cycle. Apple says that existing iOS features like Voice Control, color filters, and audio recognition will now be available through the CarPlay interface as well .
See also: How to better hear iPhone “Alerts”?
Apple's accessibility features improve the daily lives of users with various problems, such as vision, movement, hearing, etc. With the new accessibility features that will be included in the upcoming iOS 18, Apple wants to make the use of its devices easier and more comfortable for all its users, allowing people with some form of disability to have the best possible experience.
Source: 9to5mac
