your phone is full of awesome accessibility features
jstpst
May 21, 2026
Friend of a friend has been unable to communicate for almost a year following a stroke, they haven't been able to use their iPhone, evidently because nobody around them was aware that it's an all-in-one accessibility device.
Apple hides their features behind confusing names (it's not AAC, it's "Live Speech", it's not a virtual button, it's "Assistive Touch") which is frustrating and problematic (because nobody knows what these are or what their phones can do), but they're really good features. (At least "Eye Tracking" is named properly.)
I had the privilege of informing my friend that they actually already owned $1000 worth of accessibility devices but my heart sinks for this person who spent an entire year only being able to communicate in head nods. If I understand correctly, it's just because nobody around them knew iPhones have these features.
The best features on phones are filed under "accessibility"!!
I am sure Androids have these too, but those probably vary a lot more depending on manufacturer. For iPhones, this is a good starting reference to read up on:
https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/get-started-with-accessibility-features-iph3e2e4367/ios
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