Apple today announced new accessibility features that will debut later this year in iOS 18 and its other operating systems (though , as usual, Apple doesn't mention “iOS 18” prematurely).
The headline addition is Eye Tracking, which will allow iPhone and iPad users with disabilities to control their devices just by looking at them. it's with your own eyes, with the new iOS gaze system, somewhat similar to Vision Pro. Other new features include haptic music, car motion alerts and more …
Traditionally, Apple announces its future accessibility features before the full reveal of new operating systems at WWDC in June.
This year's biggest new feature is eye tracking, which uses the front-facing camera to determine when The user looks at the element on the screen, which allows him to navigate around the device simply by looking, no touch input is required. Users can look at a button to highlight it and hold their gaze for a few seconds to select it.
Music Haptics is designed to help deaf and hard of hearing people enjoy music just like everyone else. iPhone will use its haptic engine to produce tapping sounds and subtle vibrations that sync with the sound of the music being played.
Vehicle Motion Cues is designed to help iOS users suffering from motion sickness when using their iPhone or iPad as a passenger in a moving vehicle. When Motion Cues are enabled, the device overlays a pattern of animated dots that follow the direction the car is moving. Apple says this reduces sensory conflict in the brain and can reduce the intensity of motion sickness sensations.
Also new is so-called Vocal Shortcuts, which allows users to assign special action phrases to trigger shortcuts and perform complex multiple actions. step-by-step actions when these phrases are spoken out loud. Apple is also adding a new feature called “Listen to Atypical Speech.” A mode that helps improve dictation accuracy and speech recognition for users with conditions such as cerebral palsy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or stroke.
CarPlay is also getting attention in this round of software updates in terms of accessibility. Apple says existing iOS features such as voice control, color filters and sound recognition will now also be available through the CarPlay interface.
Apple also announced a number of small accessibility improvements coming later this year , including new voices for VoiceOver Commenting, a new hover input feature that magnifies the current contents of a text field while editing, access to Magnifier app discovery mode using the action button on iPhone 15, and improvements to braille input.
You can find more information in Apple's press release.
