News
Meta Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses to offer hands-free calling and texting
Meta, formerly known as Facebook, announced in a blog post this week that it will soon be rolling out a new feature on its Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses that will allow users to make hands-free phone calls using their phone number. Additionally, the glasses will be equipped with the ability to read incoming text messages out loud, providing an even more convenient way for users to stay connected while on the go. Launched in 2021, and combining fashion and technology, Ray-Ban Stories are the first wearable product from a partnership between Meta and EssilorLuxottica the company behind the Ray-Ban sunglasses brand. Ray-Ban Stories look similar to a standard pair of Ray-Ban glasses yet incorporate technologies like cameras, audio, touch controls, and microphones which let you capture video an...
Ring Intercom: an accessible and secure addition to your home security
When it comes to home security, there are a lot of options out there. From traditional alarm systems to smart video doorbells, it can be hard to know what’s right for you. One product that has recently caught my attention is the Ring Intercom. A major reason this smart tech product interested me is because of upper limb disability I have never been able to pick up and use the communal intercom in my block of flats. In the 32 years I have lived here it has been a constant source of frustration, and security concern, that I can’t have two-way conversations with people who ring my doorbell from the front entrance. So when the Amazon-owned company Ring announced in September it was launching a new intercom that works with the Alexa smart assistant I couldn’t wait to try it out. Rin...
Voice dictation game changer: My experience with Google’s Project Relate app
After a lifetime living with the effects of the progressive muscle wasting condition muscular dystrophy I would describe my speech as non-standard because I don’t have the breath to speak long sentences, and when I am tired some words are occasionally slightly slurred. I also need to use a ventilator to help me breathe parts of each day, and wearing the accompanying nasal mask also affects my speech. It’s all meant that using on-device dictation on Apple and Android phones, as well as Dragon and Apple Voice Control dictation apps, which I rely on because I cannot take to the keyboard to type, can be frustrating when it comes to accuracy. I’m constantly having to correct and clear up annoying little errors with speech recognition in emails and WhatsApp messages etc, which ...
Enhancing accessibility: WhatsApp Mac beta with native Apple Silicon support now available to all users
WhatsApp has been working on an updated Mac app that features native Apple silicon support, and a beta version of the app is now available to all WhatsApp users. This beta version is a significant upgrade from the previous version as it brings several new features and improvements, including accessibility enhancements. One of the most significant changes in this update is the optimisation for Apple silicon-based Macs. The app can now run faster and use fewer resources on machines with the M1, M1 Pro, M1 Max, M1 Ultra, M2, M2 Pro, and M2 Max chips. This optimisation is possible because the app is now a Universal binary, meaning it is built specifically for Apple’s new processors. Another major change in this update is the integration with Apple’s Voice Control accessibility ...
How Ray-Ban Stories help me take photos and videos for the first time
Ray-Ban Stories are wearable smart glasses that give you a new way to capture photos and video, message and call with WhatsApp, listen to music, and like all sunglasses protect your eyes from glaring rays on a sunny day. Launched in September 2021, these wearable tech spectacles are a collaboration between Facebook (aka Meta) and Luxottica (the parent company of Ray-Ban the sunglasses maker). The Wayfarer-style glasses feature a pair of cameras for photos and videos, as well as microphones and speakers. They connect to a Facebook app on your smartphone called View via a Bluetooth connection. Ever since I tried Amazon’s first attempt at smart glasses in 2019, the Echo Frames with Alexa built in, I am convinced that augmented reality AR smart glasses with voice control have huge potent...
Apple Accessibility Preview: the unanswered questions
Ahead of its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on the 6th of June Apple has previewed updated accessibility features coming to its platforms later this year. Among the software updates with the potential to change lives are LiDAR-powered Door Detection for blind or visually impaired users, Live Captions for deaf people or those with hearing loss, and features which give those with physical and motor disabilities the ability to control the Apple Watch via an iPhone. It is the second year in a row Apple has previewed accessibility updates ahead of its annual cycle of more general software updates, which this year will be unveiled at WWDC next week. This is what Apple has announced, with particular interest to disabled people with physical and motor impairments, as well as some qu...
KeyboardMike: how I invented a microphone for speech recognition
Getting high levels of accuracy in the words you dictate into a email client, website text box, or document on a computer with speech recognition applications is no easy task. Tech companies that make voice dictation apps, like Microsoft’s Voice Typing tool, Apple’s Voice Control, and Nuance Dragon Professional, don’t manufacture microphones and often they will offer up the impression that all the magic, when it comes to accuracy, happens in their applications. They even suggest the internal microphones on computers, or wireless earbuds, are all you need for accurate speech recognition. However, from my experience the situation is more complicated. The quality and characteristics of the microphone you use plays a significant role in accurate voice dictation. After all, the better the...
Apple adds useful new feature to Mac Voice Control but didn’t tell anyone
The third update to macOS Monterey for Mac computers was released last week. Among the headline grabbing new software tricks in macOS 12.3 is Universal Control, a feature that lets you control multiple Macs and iPads using a single mouse, keyboard, and trackpad. However, another feature of interest to Mac accessibility users made a quieter debut in macOS 12.3. Although it wasn’t shown in the release notes, its been added in macOS Monterey 12.3. Voice Control is designed to allow people to control their Mac using voice commands, rather than a mouse or trackpad. Text can also dictated rather than typed. Both features are important to those who don’t have full use of their arms. Voice Control and dictation on Apple devices work offline. However, this causes a problem when you replace yo...
iOS 15.4 update: Face ID works again for CPAP mask wearers
This week has seen Apple release iOS 15.4 for iPhone users. It’s a big update that brings quite a few useful new features to the iPhone, including the ability to turn off notifications for personal automations in Shortcuts, and 37 new emoji. One of the biggest feature updates for me is a new option in iOS 15.4 to unlock your iPhone while wearing a mask with no additional hardware like the Apple Watch required. Last September, I highlighted how Apple made some changes to the iPhone 13 Face ID setup in terms of both hardware and software, which caused problems for some disabled people who wear Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) masks to assist with their breathing. After upgrading to a new iPhone 13 Pro I found Face ID registration was failing when I was wearing my CPAP mask – ...
Overdue Apple Voice Control upgrade should include better dictation accuracy
Apple operating systems and apps face various performance and reliability issues: AirPlay reliability when connecting multiple HomePods, a HomeKit bug that can kill iOS devices, and more… However, what no one, (apart from disabled users), ever talks about is how buggy, unreliable and inaccurate dictation is in Voice Control, the company’s flagship speech recognition application for disabled people with upper limb mobility impairments. With Voice Control, Apple says you can navigate and interact with your iPhone, iPad or Mac computer using your voice to tap, swipe, dictate and more. The application was unveiled in 2019, to much fanfare on stage at Apple’s WWDC 2019 conference for developers and this was just a few months after Nuance removed support for its then leading Dragon s...
Apple accessibility 2021: the good and the bad
Autumn has been a busy period for Apple. Following a summer of beta testing it released major updates to its operating systems, including iOS 15, watchOS 8, and macOS Monterey. The company also released a bunch of new hardware, including iPhone 13, Apple Watch Series 7, AirPods 3 and new Apple Silicon MacBook Pro laptops. Over the past few weeks, I have managed to get my hands on the new iPhone 13 Pro, Apple Watch Series 7, and AirPods 3 and have been trying them out along with iOS 15 and watchOS 8. Here’s my experience of how accessible Apple gear is in 2021 for anyone who uses a wheelchair and has limited use of their hands. Auto-answer A new option to have calls answered automatically with the introduction of a auto-answer feature on the Apple Watch cellular has been one of the st...