Apple has just introduced a slew of new accessibility features for its software platforms, including iOS and iPadOS. In the coming months, the iPhone and iPad devices will get multiple accessibility functionalities including music haptics. In addition, the brand will release other features like Eye Tracking, Vocal Shortcuts, Live Captions, and more. The Cupertino tech giant made the announcement just a day before the Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2024.
iPhone’s new accessibility features like Eye Tracking & music haptics will help users with physical disabilities
The new accessibility features Apple announced today will help iPhone and iPad users with physical disabilities. One of the latest features is called Eye Tracking. It will allow people to control their iPhones or iPads with the movement of their eyes. The functionality utilizes the front-facing camera of the Apple devices to set up and calibrate in seconds. The brand mentioned that all data used to set up and control the eye tracking feature is kept securely on the device. It isn’t shared with anyone, even Apple.
The music haptics feature offers a new way of experiencing music on iPhone to users who are deaf or hard of hearing. When this functionality is switched on, the Taptic Engine “plays taps, textures, and refined vibrations to the audio of the music”. This feature works across millions of songs available in the Apple Music library. The brand will also offer this feature as an API to developers so they can make music more accessible in their applications.
Vocal Shortcuts, Vehicle Motion Cues, and more accessibility features are coming
Apart from the Eye Tracking and music haptics, Apple will release other accessibility features for the iPhone and iPad. The Vocal Shortcuts and Vehicle Motion Cues will be among the new functionalities for people with physical disabilities. The Vocal Shortcuts will allow people to perform certain tasks by making a custom sound. As for the Vehicle Motion Cues, Apple says it can help reduce motion sickness when using an iPhone or iPad in a moving vehicle.
Apple will also release a handful of new accessibility features like Live Captions for the Vision Pro headset. The tech giant is planning to launch all the new accessibility features at some point later this year. The company could reveal more details at the upcoming WWDC 2024 event in June.