New Accessibility Options in iOS 7 Allow iPad or iPhone to Be Controlled with Head Movements

[Terrin]

This. Will be fun to try out. However is it meant for drivers?

Paraplegic or quadriplegic people who have limited body movements. For instance I have a friend who broke his back on a diving board. From below the waste he has no control of his body. He can move his arms, but he has limited control of his fingers. He can move his head though. This is the type of person this is for.

I suspect a large percentage of disabled people use Apple products because it puts so much effort into accessibility. Microsoft still does or used to charge big dollars for these types of features on Windows.

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That's what I just said... But it's a gimmick if they're advertising it as something for everyone to use.

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It is listed under Accessibility. That should tell you something. Second, Apple has not advertised the feature at all.

 

[donutbagel]

I figured it out... I was scared for a bit. It was in a mode where it would scroll through the possible touch zones on the screen one at a time and I had to tap to select the one I wanted. very slow and tedious but I have regained control of my iPhone.

Yeah guys, don't do it. I'm also stuck. I can't even scroll down in the settings, so it's impossible to disable. Also, selecting anything is like playing Storm Stopper in an arcade. Luckily, it was not my phone I enabled it on.

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It is listed under Accessibility. That should tell you something. Second, Apple has not advertised the feature at all.

I never said that they did. Actually, I misunderstood what the feature did. I thought it would scroll using head movements. Anyway, not everything in the "Accessibility" menu is meant strictly for people with disabilities.

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Seems sort of gimmicky really. One of the reasons I dislike the Galaxy S4. Unnecessary software bogging down the phones resources.

"For example, the setting can be programmed to allow a left head movement to activate a tap, while a right head movement can be programmed to perform to another function."

I thought it was like the S4 one, but it's something totally different. I enabled it and now seriously doubt that anyone would use this voluntarily.

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In response to all of the negative criticism, I'll admit I didn't read the last paragraph. However I couldn't help but think of some of the gimmicky features the competition has dreamed up. But in defense of the truly handicapped, I think this would be greatly appreciated, and could prove extremely useful.

I'm in a similar camp, except people are calling me names even though I never called it a gimmick.

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The stuff that you so cleverly removed from the article indicated that you have only a very vague idea of what an API is. And while I don't know whether you posted an article about Snapchat or not, the description how Snapchat behaviour changed in iOS 7, which you also deleted from the article, was clearly wrong.

Instead of deleting it, you might have just corrected it.

Hilarious, nice catches ^^^

 

[WestonHarvey1]

Unfortunately, somebody wasted resources on him/her.

Calm down. That person misunderstood or didn't completely read the article. I'm sure he or she does not hate handicapped people.

 

[Eduardo1971]

Why on earth do people take the time to make a comment but not read the article?

Unfortunately there are some here that just do that. They make emotional posts/replies without thinking about the question. No critical thinking skills.

 

[filmantopia]

Which head?

The one you think with. So for you it would be none.

 

[Fishticks]

Too late for Christopher Reeves.

 

[Smartass]

Introducing on iOS7: Stephen Hawking mode.

Alright alright, I am already out...

wouldnt help him much since he cant move his head

just sayin

 

[everything-i]

Seems sort of gimmicky really. One of the reasons I dislike the Galaxy S4. Unnecessary software bogging down the phones resources.

Its not a main feature it is to make it easier for disabled folks use the phone and has to be specifically enabled. This is a good use for this type of technology.

 

[GenesisST]

I can see this feature being useful for non-handicapped people. The thing that comes to mind is preparing a messy recipe and not having to touch my iPad to scroll or flip a page.

 

[mdelvecchio]

Seems sort of gimmicky really. One of the reasons I dislike the Galaxy S4. Unnecessary software bogging down the phones resources.

clueless. it's not a gimmick when you have ALS and lose your motor skills. further, it bogs down nothing since the support isn't running in the background for you or anything.

 

[Mactendo]

further increasing the utility of Apple's devices

Amen.

 

[ibuddha]

Supporting diversity

Apple should be congratulated on extending the accessibility feature set within the iOS settings and APIs . The accessibility features empowers empowers individuals with diverse and special needs to choose the features they require to participate as equals. To the individuals on this forum making disparaging and distasteful comments about people with disabilities (and of Apple's effort to empower all users) grow up! You should be ashamed of your sad and ignorant comments which only reflect poorly upon yourself.

 

[kis]

And who invented it? Correct - Samsung. Yet another blatant copy of functionality (albeit of dubious use) introduced by Samsung.

When Samsung introduced that stuff in the Galaxy S3 and S4, everyone here was going "cheap crap", "nobody needs that" etc. etc. - now everyone's going "ooooh, aaah" over it. Come on, get real.

 

[Mike MA]

Headbangers will appreciate.

 

[powers74]

Discrimination

Beta test it on the cripples Apple, I see how it is. Now you show your true colors...

 

[Zealous]

It's About Time!

Finally a phone that can recognize both me and my siamese twin!!

 

[tbrinkma]

You're about as low as it goes. This is intended for people who are unable to use their hands/arms, such as quadriplegics. It's not a gimmick or something to "whatever" about. It's a serious addition to the software so the device can be used by those who otherwise would not be able to use one.

You do realize you just insulted him, and then agreed with him.

 

[chrisbru]

And who invented it? Correct - Samsung. Yet another blatant copy of functionality (albeit of dubious use) introduced by Samsung.

When Samsung introduced that stuff in the Galaxy S3 and S4, everyone here was going "cheap crap", "nobody needs that" etc. etc. - now everyone's going "ooooh, aaah" over it. Come on, get real.

Seriously...?

 

[KdParker]

Seems sort of gimmicky really. One of the reasons I dislike the Galaxy S4. Unnecessary software bogging down the phones resources.

Your gonna take a beating on this post.

This is a nice (maybe nessasary) feature for disabled users

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And who invented it? Correct - Samsung. Yet another blatant copy of functionality (albeit of dubious use) introduced by Samsung.

When Samsung introduced that stuff in the Galaxy S3 and S4, everyone here was going "cheap crap", "nobody needs that" etc. etc. - now everyone's going "ooooh, aaah" over it. Come on, get real.

Not sure invented is the right word.

 

[kis]

Seriously...?

very much so.

 

[Glassed Silver]

It's an accessibility feature. It's very closed minded of you to think of it as a gimmick. Someone who has a handicap that prevents regular interaction with the phone.

It is not using resources on you.

Yes it is. 2 kilobytes of code he has to download for the iOS update package.

Glassed Silver:mac

 

[chrisbru]

very much so.

Well then you should really get your **** straight. Samsung definitely did not invent motion detection as a means of controlling an electronic device. Furthermore, it's hardly copying to implement an accessibility feature to provide use of the device to people with disabilities. This is not a named feature, it is not encoded for general use, and most people will never know about it. Finally, the way Samsung has promoted their similar feature really does make it seem like cheap crap. It's probably not significantly better on iPhone, but they are providing the option in case people need it.

Stop being so dense. Not everything is a patent fight.

 

[r.harris1]

very much so.

Introducing similar (though not the same) functionality first isn't the same as inventing first. I'd expect both companies have significant patents in place on their various implementations - and they are different. I've got both phones (I5/S4) sitting on my desk right now. One has a more system-wide, consistent implementation focused on accessibility and the other is more limited to very specific apps. Both need work. And while you may (or may not) have an axe to grind with Apple (don't know, don't care), they didn't just bang this out over a few weeks or months to shove into an OS to trump Samsung.

Both companies have likely been working on this for quite some time, perhaps years.

 

[ChrisTX]

Your gonna take a beating on this post.

This is a nice (maybe necessary) feature for disabled users

Haha, I already have, but my second post clarifies the point I was trying to make.

 

[Gasu E.]

very much so.

No, he meant, like "seriously, you didn't even read the previous comments in this thread before you wrote that." Your post was pretty much written in auto-troll mode. Which is fine; the world really needs more kneejerk uninformed opinions, as there has been a terrible shortage of those in the Internet Age.