Need help and advice from accessibility experts

[Idgit]

I've got an elderly family member who is not tech savvy at all and has some mobility issues with her hands (arthritis) and vision degradation due to detached retinas.

She's really struggling to use her iPhone SE. She finds it almost impossible to tap the buttons in Messages, for example, and the workflow for attaching a photo in Messages confuses her, in particular because there are all these extra buttons and options that Apple includes. She finds that the target buttons are two small for her. Even with a stylus, it takes multiple attempts to hit the target exactly so it registers. She also finds a lot of the text hard to read. For instance, if you add the wrong photo to a text message, the X to remove is absolutely tiny.

Can anyone recommend some good options to enable on iOS 15 that would make her life easier? Increasing text size doesn't seem sufficient in a lot of cases. Obviously increasing text size is one, but there must be others as well.

 

[now i see it]

The iPhone SE is a tiny phone even for me. I don’t like using phones that small (I use a Plus phone but also have the smaller ones).
Not the answer you’re looking for but an iPhone isn’t a good match for everyone. Maybe an iPad would be easier to navigate. Everything is definitely a lot bigger.
Agree with you on the complexity of Message. In iOS 9 it is very simple and clean. No extra buttons & stuff. On the latest iOS it’s horrible.

Someone with poor vision and trembly fingers is going to find an iPhone almost impossible to use especially if they’re not familiar with the logic of how the interface works.

When I first tried an iPhone (4S) I was disgusted with the interface. I hated the thing. Despised it. iOS is not user friendly or intuitive when you use it for the very first time. It’s kinda a nightmare.

 

[Idgit]

The iPhone SE is a tiny phone even for me. I don’t like using phones that small (I use a Plus phone but also have the smaller ones).
Not the answer you’re looking for but an iPhone isn’t a good match for everyone. Maybe an iPad would be easier to navigate. Everything is definitely a lot bigger.
Agree with you on the complexity of Message. In iOS 9 it is very simple and clean. No extra buttons & stuff. On the latest iOS it’s horrible.

Someone with poor vision and trembly fingers is going to find an iPhone almost impossible to use especially if they’re not familiar with the logic of how the interface works.

When I first tried an iPhone (4S) I was disgusted with the interface. I hated the thing. Despised it. iOS is not user friendly or intuitive when you use it for the very first time. It’s kinda a nightmare.

Yeah, they're getting a new iPhone this year. But really, iOS's user interface is a big problem. I was just hoping there were some workarounds.

 

[Isamilis]

Maybe combined between iPhone and iPad (regular iPad). She can call from iPad. Or if all her contacts have FaceTime, no need to have an iPhone.
What actually she plan to do for phone / tablet? Is it call? Text? Watching movie? Watching YouTube? Read a book? Read aloud the book? Reading the news? Different use case can have very different solution.

I bought iPad 11 for my father in law (80 yo). He had suffered from light stroke. And he used the iPad for simple reading, watching YouTube and FaceTime. I setup separate YouTube account (premium) for him. In parallel (he lived in different house) I “like” some videos that I consider as fit and good video for him. Also, he has apple Id as my ”child” account so I can share my purchase as well as control if he accidentally purchase app / in-app. I also use nextdns profile to block if he accidentally browse ”inappropriate” content.
I plan to share some family pictures of mine and also his other children on his iPad.

 

[Idgit]

Maybe combined between iPhone and iPad (regular iPad). She can call from iPad. Or if all her contacts have FaceTime, no need to have an iPhone.
What actually she plan to do for phone / tablet? Is it call? Text? Watching movie? Watching YouTube? Read a book? Read aloud the book? Reading the news? Different use case can have very different solution.

I bought iPad 11 for my father in law (80 yo). He had suffered from light stroke. And he used the iPad for simple reading, watching YouTube and FaceTime. I setup separate YouTube account (premium) for him. In parallel (he lived in different house) I “like” some videos that I consider as fit and good video for him. Also, he has apple Id as my ”child” account so I can share my purchase as well as control if he accidentally purchase app / in-app. I also use nextdns profile to block if he accidentally browse ”inappropriate” content.
I plan to share some family pictures of mine and also his other children on his iPad.

Hmm, this might be a good alternative. Basic iPhone for calls and photos and then an iPad (iPad mini?) for regular use when at home.

 

[KaliYoni]

an iPad (iPad mini?)

If an iPad user is vision impaired, I think it will be better to not go with an iPad mini. I have a family member with poor vision who is raving about moving from a mini to the current iPad Air because the screen is so much easier for them to view.

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Edited to add:
It sounds like buying a stand or case-stand for the iPad might be a good idea.

 

[Idgit]

If an iPad user is vision impaired, I think it will be better to not go with an iPad mini. I have a family member with poor vision who is raving about moving from a mini to the current iPad Air because the screen is so much easier to view.

I was thinking primarily of weight. I'm not sure if they would find the bigger iPad comfortable to hold, but I'll have to take them into an Apple store to try the various models out.

 

[MisterSavage]

• Don't just increase the text size in regular settings. Under accessibility, display & text size, there is "larger text" where you can select REALLY large text.
• I'd turn on button shapes.
• You could look into teaching her how to use VoiceOver. It's jarring at first, but it reads everything and you can move between different UI elements by just swiping.
• I haven't used it but there's also an accessibility feature for Voice Control.

 

[phrehdd]

I've got an elderly family member who is not tech savvy at all and has some mobility issues with her hands (arthritis) and vision degradation due to detached retinas.

She's really struggling to use her iPhone SE. She finds it almost impossible to tap the buttons in Messages, for example, and the workflow for attaching a photo in Messages confuses her, in particular because there are all these extra buttons and options that Apple includes. She finds that the target buttons are two small for her. Even with a stylus, it takes multiple attempts to hit the target exactly so it registers. She also finds a lot of the text hard to read. For instance, if you add the wrong photo to a text message, the X to remove is absolutely tiny.

Can anyone recommend some good options to enable on iOS 15 that would make her life easier? Increasing text size doesn't seem sufficient in a lot of cases. Obviously increasing text size is one, but there must be others as well.

A while back, I left the iPhone went to the dark side - Android. For me, found Apple was far too rigid in how we can custom the screens with icons. People told me to use the accessibility options which I found even more cumbersome than I would have imagined. Ultimately, within 1 day of owning my Android phone (Samsung in my case), I was able to have less icons per a screen, make them larger and the text below (along with some bells and whistle features). I do miss the advantages of Mac/iPad/iPhone communication.

Though I haven't used iPhones for a long while, I might suggest you ask folks about setting up screens with widgets that act on behalf of the application (and its icon). Widgets can and are larger than the usual icons on the screen. This might be easier on those with arthritis and visual challenges.

 

[Isamilis]

A while back, I left the iPhone went to the dark side - Android. For me, found Apple was far too rigid in how we can custom the screens with icons. People told me to use the accessibility options which I found even more cumbersome than I would have imagined. Ultimately, within 1 day of owning my Android phone (Samsung in my case), I was able to have less icons per a screen, make them larger and the text below (along with some bells and whistle features). I do miss the advantages of Mac/iPad/iPhone communication.

Though I haven't used iPhones for a long while, I might suggest you ask folks about setting up screens with widgets that act on behalf of the application (and its icon). Widgets can and are larger than the usual icons on the screen. This might be easier on those with arthritis and visual challenges.

That’s good idea to use widget instead of icon. Will try it. Thanks!