1. Phones for low vision and blind seniors
Amy Mason & Clara Van Gerven
National Federation of the Blind, Jernigan Institute
9/16/2018

2. What to look for (aka FAQ)?
Most of the users who call us are looking for some combination of the following features:
Carrier that works for the area
Easy to use
Speech
High contrast
Large fonts, items and icons
Tactile buttons
Emergency contact
Voice dialing
9/16/2018

3. Speech vs. no speech
In this presentation we have chosen to focus on the talking phones, as these offer the best accessibility for all blind and many low vision users. There are a number of easy-to-use, high contrast, tactile button feature phones which those with minor vision loss may find useful:
Snapfon
Emporia
Doro phones
9/16/2018

4. Decision tree Carrier: Do you need speech?
Rural or urban? If rural, likely Verizon or AT&T
In between? Try Sprint
Do you need speech?
If no:
Low vision is very varied, so workable options will differ by user
Consider Doro, Jitterbug, Snapfon, other large button and/or tactile phone
If yes
Feature phone
Smartphone
9/16/2018

5. Verizon - LG Terra Full readout Invert color Large text Mono audio
5 speeds
Not much lag
Nice speech engine
Invert color
Large text
Mono audio
Sleek and a bit slippery
Voice commands
$96 retail price
9/16/2018

6. Verizon - Kyocera Dura XV
Full readout
5 speeds
Very laggy, muddy
Contrast
Normal
Black & white
No speech for app menu
Rugged, grippy phone
Still listed but not available through Verizon
9/16/2018

7. Verizon – Convoy 4 Full readout Not much for low vision users
5 speeds
A bit muddy
Not much for low vision users
Unlock is not accessible with speech unless you know what button is intended
Grippy and ruggedized
Voice commands
$192 retail price
9/16/2018

8. Verizon - Samsung Gusto 3 (still)
Tutorial
Full readout
5 speeds
Not the best speech
Slick outer casing
Slightly defined keys
Voice commands
$49.99 retail price
9/16/2018

9. Sprint - Alcatel Go Flip
KaiOS
Turn on/off speech ##258#
Fairly tactile keyboard
Unlabeled message fields
Tabs in Settings not obvious or spoken
Speech a bit muddy
Nifty browser interaction with speech
$99.99 retail price
9/16/2018

10. Once and future phone - iPhone
Massive amount of supporting material
Large blind and low vision community
More complex
Steeper learning curve
From $399
9/16/2018

11. Smartphones – Samsung Android
Custom features
TouchWiz
TouchWiz Easy Home
Larger icons and touch targets
Contacts favorites page
Voice Assistant (TalkBack)
Low vision notes
No good default backgrounds
Limited font sizing options
Contrast issues throughout UI
Keyboard
Nonvisual notes
Three-finger swipe is easier to use than the rotor
More reliable gesture recognition
Simpler gestures
9/16/2018

12. Samsung Android - keyboard
9/16/2018

13. Smartphones – LG Android
Custom features
EasyHome – simplifies the home screen only
Low vision notes
EasyHome separates the icons better
EasyHome contacts are easy to find, but contrast is poor
Nonvisual notes
Some TalkBack traps in EasyHome
No real advantages
9/16/2018

14. Launchers - Wiser Custom phone and mail interface
Many unlabeled buttons (TalkBack)
Visuals not customizable
Secondary page not customizable with Talkback
Poor app icon contrast
Free
9/16/2018

15. Launchers – Big Launcher
Varying use of Home or soft keys depending on the phone used
Custom phone and mail interface
SOS button
Very easy and high contrast dialer
Works well with TalkBack
Easily customizable
$9.99
9/16/2018

16. Launcher - Necta Unlabeled buttons (TalkBack) including dialer
Good white on black mode
No black on white mode
ActivePERS option goes to web, changes contrast
SOS option
GPS and send current position
Simplified camera interface
Simplified media gallery
News
Apps are well separated and provide good touch targets
Alarm has tricky visuals
$6.99
9/16/2018

17. Launchers - conclusion
There are many supposedly simple launchers out there, but not many live up to the needs of their target audience.
9/16/2018

18. Contact info
Clara Van Gerven
Manager of Accessibility Programs
(410) , extension 2410
Amy Mason
Access Technology Specialist
(410) , extension 2424
9/16/2018