How Accessible is the iPad to Persons With Disabilities?

Just recently, Apple has released the iPad. The iPad is a mobile tablet computer that has wi-fi, 3G, media player, and other featured applications. Since its release, a lot of people have wanted to get their hands on this new device. People with disabilities, one of Apple’s most loyal markets, of course want to join in the fun too. The first question that comes into mind though, is iPad accessibility.

But how accessible is the iPad for persons with disabilities anyway? Below we take a look at what the iPad has in store for specific disability groups when it comes to accessibility.

Closed Captioning

Everyone can watch and listen to videos and podcasts using the iPad. However, persons with hearing impairments may not be able to enjoy this as much as other users. Apple has tried to address this concern by providing the iPad with a feature for closed captioning. This allows you to view the subtitles and closed captions of movies and podcasts that support this feature. In addition to persons with hearing impairments, persons with cognitive disabilities who prefer reading text content can also benefit from closed captioning.

VoiceOver

On the other hand, blind and visually impaired persons can enjoy the sounds provided by iPad, but may find it hard to navigate through the options on the screen. As an accessibility solution, Apple has provided its VoiceOver application as a built-in feature in the iPad. VoiceOver is a screen reader application that lets you hear the options displayed on the screen.

When you touch the screen, VoiceOver will speak the item under your finger. You can then perform other functions by tapping, dragging, or flicking the item. VoiceOver is also available in certain iPhone and iPod Touch versions.

Zoom Feature

Due to the iPad’s compact size, it offers a relatively small screen. This poses an issue for persons with limited vision, since they need to go near the screen to see it. Thanks to the Zoom feature of iPad, this wouldn’t be a problem for low vision individuals. Zoom allows you to magnify the screen for up to five times the normal size. Zoom also lets you move to a particular portion of the screen and magnify it.

Mono Audio

Persons who can hear in only one ear would not be able to listen to the left and right channels of the iPad’s stereo system. With the mono audio function, you can direct both channels to one headphone. This ensures that you can hear all the details of the audio file even if your hearing is present in one ear only.

White on Black

For most visually impaired persons, the color combinations on the screen may often become distracting or hard to view. Through the white on black feature of the iPad, you can set its display to the most ideal color contrast. This enables certain users to quickly locate items and easily read text.