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Blind and Visually Impaired Community

Full History - 2020 - 07 - 30 - ID#i0zd5m
6
Any other print readers switch between IPhone and Android in recent years? (self.Blind)
submitted by achromatic_03
My vision is around 20/200, I am a print reader, and I don' use any of the audio accessibility features. I've always used Android, as I like the magnification feature of using 2 fingers to magnify the screen and navigate around on the screen, which I find easy. I always knew IPhone required 3 fingers, and that made no sense to me, as you already lose field when you magnify--why would you want to cover even more of the screen? However, I recently learned about the zoom controller. I have tried it a few times in stores on the larger models (11 pro max), but so far, I can't get used to it. One thing I do like is that you have a wider range of magnification levels. The TL;DR reason of looking to switch is for work. I just want to know if anyone else has experiences, struggles, or triumphs with switching between the two recently. I say recently because the operating systems change a lot every few years. Outside of accessibility, I have had almost all my other concerns addressed by an Apple employee, except for the facial recognition's incompatibility with my sunglasses, as according to the Apple employee, they will reflect the infrared back to the screen. Let me know if I've left anything out and thanks!

Note: I don't have any allegiances or brand loyalties. My primary objective is simply to have the most practical and accessible technology.
ghetopenguin 1 points 2y ago
When I used to use print I thought android was amazing. I tried iPhones and iPads and hated the magnification. I've lost a bit more site though, and have moved over to voice-over which I think is so much better than talkback on android.
In my opinion android is the better for magnification.

Stopped using print about a year ago. Used Talkback for a few months then switch to voice-over.
achromatic_03 [OP] 1 points 2y ago
So, did you start out on Android and then try IOS? Or did it go the other way? I have also heard Iphone is better if you are not a print reader and use the voiceover, so that makes sense.
ghetopenguin 1 points 2y ago
Yeah. I started on android and then switched to iOS.

I used The magnifier on android for ages and was really happy with it. My sister had an iPhone and I always used to hate the zoom on her phone.

And then I started to lose some more site and couldn't use the magnifyer any more so I switched to talkback and used that for half a year before deciding to try voice-ver.

And now nine months later I'm a complete convert 😂😂
Broken_Peepers 1 points 2y ago
I'm not a print user, but I found the comment about facial recognition interesting. Unless I am miss-understanding what the Apple employee told you, I wear sunglasses very frequently and have absolutely no issue getting my phone to unlock with Face ID while I am wearing them.
achromatic_03 [OP] 1 points 2y ago
He mentioned that it would be an issue with sunglasses that have a lot of strength in blocking UV light, because the infrared would be reflected back at the phone and kind of bounce all over, which would confuse it. I assume my sunglasses are that type, since the ones I buy are specifically for VI individuals, with polarized lenses and pretty dark. One rumor about the 12, though, is that it will have fingerprint reading again, which I personally prefer, except maybe in the winter :-)
Broken_Peepers 1 points 2y ago
I have not heard of many people having that issue. If you have a friend, or someone who has an iPhone with Face ID, I would let them wear your sunglasses to see if their phone will unlock. A lot of sighted people have a specific feature of Face ID turned on that makes it harder for visually impaired people to unlock the phone, but that can easily be turned off.
achromatic_03 [OP] 1 points 2y ago
Hopefully I can do that at some point. Strangely, all of the people I have any in-person contact with right now have Android phones :-(
jenncork 0 points 2y ago
I switched my personal phone from iPhone to Android about 1.5 years ago. I also use magnification, read print and don't use voiceover. I much prefer iPhones, hands down. I still have an iPhone for work and find the magnification, ease of adjusting, and responsiveness of the tracking far superior to Android. I never minded the three-finger tracking, but the controller is nice too. If you happen to use any high-contrast settings and like to switch back and forth, iPhone is much better for that too with its customuzable shortcut features.
achromatic_03 [OP] 2 points 2y ago
I think you're right about the high contrast and inversion features, and the Apple employee said that with the next software update, that would get even better, s it would recognize text versus pictures, and not invert pictures coloring if you have that setting on, which sounds awesome. I'm trying to convince myself that the controller is like a trackpad on a laptop, but I think I get confused between when I need to be using the controller versus dragging my finger around on the rest of the screen. I know I was trying to move the magnifier (non-full screen) around by the "handle", and kept forgetting that I should be using the controller to do that.
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