‘Third-Party Products’ Archives

The IconFactory has released the much anticipated Twitterific 4.0 for Mac OS X. Though Twitterific was one of the first OS X Twitter clients to incorporate accessibility, the application has taken a huge step backward with this release. The message timelines are not exposed to VoiceOver, making the app unusable. Interestingly, much of the app [...]

Garmin StreetPilot, a GPS navigation solution for iOS devices, has been updated to version 6.5.4. The developer notes that this version is now VoiceOver accessible. The app offers all the features one would expect, along with some unique capabilities which differentiate it from the competition. Perhaps most notable among these is the fact that it [...]

iOS developer Marcel Nijman has recently updated his assortment of chess and checkers games for iOS to include VoiceOver support. Besides traditional versions, several variations, such as Chinese Chess, are available as well. With increasing frequency, we are seeing developers implement accessibility in their iOS applications, and the result is a rich platform that blind [...]

Inkling for iPad is a platform for interactive textbooks, built specifically for iPad. It turns paper-based textbooks into interactive learning experiences while staying compatible with printed textbooks for classroom use. Inkling is a completely new way to learn, and now it is accessible, too! In a recent blog post, the folks behind Inkling describe their [...]

It has recently come to our attention that DropBox, the popular cloud storage solution used by many Mac users, visually impaired or otherwise, is now essentially impossible to setup by VoiceOver users on the Mac platform. Previously, the application was difficult to use with VoiceOver, but users, with some patience, could navigate the setup screens [...]

Audible.com recently updated its mobile web site. Part of this new design is the ability to sample Audible titles on iOS accessibly. Simply tap the "Excerpt" graphic beside any title and the sample begins playing. The mobile version of the site also works quite well under Mac OS X. Instead of fighting with the inaccessible [...]

With much fanfare, News Corp launched its long anticipated and much hyped iPad publication The Daily. This new vision of journalism is a blend of multiple traditional news mediums into an iPad app, incorporating textual, video, audio, and interactive content. Unfortunately, though the Daily’s web site appears to be largely accessible, no effort to make [...]

We’ve recently been made aware of an assistive technology software company named Smarty-Ears LLC., which develops a range of iOS apps to assist children with language or communication difficulties. Smarty-Ears’ apps are designed to improve communication skills in fluency, articulation, language, and more. Smarty-Ears was founded by Barbara Fernandes, a practicing Speech and Language Pathologist. [...]

A new iPhone app, DanKam, is an experimental new way of filtering input from the iPhone’s camera or from previously taken photographs to make the colors more discernible to users who are color blind. The app provides a variety of experimental solutions to assist color blind individuals, including converting colors to different regions in the [...]

In celebration of the season, Digital Miracles, L.L.C. is offering a 33% holiday price reduction on its popular Digit-Eyes application, making it $19.99. The Digit-Eyes iPhone app is a tool for blind and low-vision users to identify and label products and other physical items. You can find Digit-Eyes on the iOS AppStore.

iOS developer Matt Gemmell recently wrote a piece which makes the case for third-party developers to ensure accessibility of their iOS applications, as well as the ways in which they can easily do so. It is a must-read for developers considering application accessibility, and will be of interest to users of iOS in general. It [...]

In this episode of the Round Table, our knights discuss FaceTime for the Mac, iLife 11 accessibility enhancements, (including GarageBand), and more. Notes: Holly’s picks – NewsRack for iOS and The AppStore Pundit podcast Darcy’s picks – Hazel for Mac and RememberTheMilk.com (service) M.J.’s picks – oMoby for iOS and StoryMill for Mac Josh’s pick [...]