Hannah Hopkins 
Dec 02, 2023
As the world gears up to celebrate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, Gadinsider takes a look at some of the special features of the iPhone which makes it more suitable for people with special needs.
It should be noted that the United Nations is celebrating the day to raise awareness and promote the welfare of persons with disabilities around the world.
Apple — along with the iOS 17 update that rolled out to the iPhone XR and newer models up to the iPhone 14 series — rolled out features powered by artificial intelligence that allow users, who are at risk of losing their voice due to medical conditions, to preserve a digital version that sounds like them, which can be used in apps.
3 special features
Live Speech (iOS, iPad, macOS)
Apple allows people who have lost their voice due to any illness to type their message which would then be read out via the device's speaker for conversations with other people during calls or FaceTime.
Users during an active group conversation, can also save certain phrases that can be tapped at will. This allows them to join the conversation. According to Apple’s support documentation, this feature also works on iPad and Mac computers
Personal Voice (iOS, iPad)
Apple’s new personal voice feature — which is powered by on-device machine learning — allows users who have been diagnosed with a medical condition such as ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) to interact with others.
This feature requires users to read out 15 minutes of random text that is generated on an iPhone or iPad, and the audio is then recorded for synthesis.
Once the new voice has been saved, it should provide an artificially generated voice that sounds similar to your voice. The Personal Voice feature — which is generated and processed completely on the same device — can also be used alongside Live Speech for a more personal touch when communicating with people.
Assistive Access (iOS, iPad)
Apple provides a standard visual interface on iOS, but it can appear somewhat complex for users with vision-related disabilities. To make the iPhone and iPad user interface more accessible, Apple introduced a new Assistive Access mode with the update to iOS 17 that greatly simplifies the user interface for users who just want a simple interface.
With Assistive Access enabled users will see much larger icons and text labels along with a simplified interface for optimised apps. They can also use bigger buttons for commonly used actions like answering calls, clicking photos, and navigating back to the home screen. The feature can also come in handy for elderly users, making it easier for family members to stay connected with them.
