NEWS

The Google accessibility team has released TalkBack 5.1 for devices running Lollypop, Marshmallow, and Nougat. TalkBack 5.0.7 has been released for devices running Jelly Bean and KitKat.
There are no new features for TalkBack 5.0.7. Here is a list of the changes to TalkBack 5.1 from the eyes-free Google group. read more

Uber is launching a new feature starting on New Year’s Eve. Drivers in four cities will be given glowing beacons that attach to the windshield. You can select the color that you wish for the beacon to project in the Uber app. This will make it easier to pick out which vehicle is your ride. The program is intended to help the visually impaired and people who can’t distinguish their ride in a crowd of cars. Uber is also adding more detail to the vehicle description in the app. You will now be provided with the color of the car that is coming for you in addition to the license number, model, and the name and picture of your Uber driver.
The beacon program will start in Miami FL, Denver CO, Nashville TN, and Newcastle England. More cities will be added in 2017.

I have some exciting news, but first, “Let me take a selfie!
Google accessibility has launched a major improvement to the Google camera app for people using Talkback on a Google Pixel or Google Nexus device running Nougat 7.1 or higher. Talkback will announce the number of faces and their position within the frame. It will also let you know what percentage of the frame is occupied by the face or faces. This way you can tell when the focus is centered and how close the camera is before snapping that all important shot. It works on both the front and rear facing cameras. I tested it on my Google Pixel, running Nougat 7.1.1, and it worked extremely well. If you have access to one of these devices, I highly suggest that you try it. It is a lot of fun!

Yesterday, Apple released TVOS 10.1 for the fourth-generation Apple TV, and with it came the much-anticipated TV app. Unfortunately, the TV app isn’t ready for release. The number of satellite and cable subscription services that are integrated with the TV app is almost non-existent, and although Hulu is integrated with the app, Netflix is not.
Even if you have no interest in the TV app, you will notice that when you press the home button on your remote, it will launch the TV app at the point where you were last watching. If you press it again, the home button will bring up the home screen. If you want your home button to bring up the home screen without first launching the TV app, go to settings; then remotes and devices; and then select home button to change its function back to what it was before the update.
I am enjoying that I can use Siri to play my favorite shows on Hulu, both on the Apple TV and on my iPhone, but my cable provider and Netflix are not yet integrated; therefore, it isn’t a one stop place for video content yet.

With the addition of Actions, which allows third parties to integrate their applications with the Google Assistant, be prepared to see a host of apps being integrated with Google Home and the Google Pixel. The Nest thermostat is now integrated with the Google Pixel, and Netflix and Google Photos are integrated with Google Home. Through a Chrome Cast, you can control Netflix and Photos on your television by just using your voice to tell Google Home what to watch or what picture to display. Open your Google Home app on your smart phone, navigate to your Google Home Assistant settings, and select video and photos. If you don’t see that section, it will roll out to you later.

Odds are, you might have tried VR. But maybe you’re not as familiar with “augmented reality” or “mixed reality” headsets that blend virtual things into actual reality, like Microsoft’s HoloLens does. That could change once more affordable phone accessories start to arrive. Occipital Bridge is an iPhone headset that does all of these, and it’ll cost $399 when it arrives next March, or $499 for an early “Explorer Edition” shipping this month.

Actions on Google is now available for developers to creates skills, conversations, and bots for their apps to be integrated into Google Assistant. Google Assistant is the personal assistant that works with Google devices. It is like Siri, Alexa, and Cortana. It is currently part of Google Home, which is a standalone device like Amazon’s Echo device, and the Google Pixel, which is Google’s newest flagship phone. The Actions SDK is currently only available for Google Home, but it will open to the Google Pixel and Allo soon.

This past summer, Pokemon Go generated a mobile gaming craze, and now the excitement is building once again as Nintendo has announced a launch date for Super Mario Run which will be available on iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. You can download the game from the App Store on December 15. An android version will be released in 2017. The app is free to download, but only the first four levels are free. After that, you will need to pay $9.99 to unlock the remaining levels. Many blind and visually impaired gamers have had a great deal of success playing Nintendo games by using sound to navigate the game environment. Hopefully, Super Mario Run will be a game that the blind can play.

At its WWDC event back in June, Apple promised a new feature called Single Sign-On. This feature allows users to authenticate their cable or satellite subscription with just one entry instead of having to authenticate it each time they add a new app to their device. Unfortunately, there was a delay in rolling out this feature, and it was not a part of iOS 10 back in September. It is now available, but it is still only available for a very small list of providers. More providers will be added over time. To access this feature: on Apple TV; Go to Settings/Accounts/TV Provider/Sign-In; On iPhone or iPad; Go to Settings/TV Provider. There is where you will see if your provider is listed. Here is the current list of available providers. read more

CAPTCHA stands for (Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart). In its most common usage, CAPTCHA requires a user to answer a question or enter text that is displayed on the screen. Often the text is not accessible to the visually impaired, and even people who can see can find it difficult to determine the text that needs to be entered.
Google has developed a system called, Invisible ReCAPTCHA, that uses an algorithm to determine whether you are a computer or a human without any input from the user. For many visually impaired users, a CAPTCHA can bring a halt to them proceeding any further on that website; therefore, this solution will not only make life convenient for sighted users, but it will open many websites to the visually impaired that were previously inaccessible.