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#iACast 68: CES 2018 and Combined Apple Apps

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CES 2018

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Welcome back to the latest episode of the iACast. We’ve been gone for a while, but here’s an episode sure to inform and entertain. This week, it’s all about the Consumer Electronics show, held in early January. We’re joined by hosts Michael, Aleeha, Jason, Matt, and, for her iAccessibility debut, Allison Hartley! Here’s some of the stuff we found among the many products from this year’s lineup.

Kohler’s $6,000 smart toilet

Kohler’s smart mirror

This $16,000 robot uses artificial intelligence to sort and fold laundry …

Somnox’s robotic pillow is designed to snuggle

Our second topic of the show deals with Apple reportedly merging iPhone, iPad, and Mac apps in 2018. Join us for a very lively discussion, and leave your feedback in the comments or on social media.

Managing Your Busy Life: Accessible Task Management Apps

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Task management apps Reminders iOS icon

We get it. Managing all that you have to do in your busy life can be a difficult task. That’s why I have gathered four task management apps for analysis here on the iAccessibility Report. I’ll be analyzing Apple’s Reminders app, Things 3, WunderList, and Trello. All are very powerful apps, with very unique feature sets. Let’s dive right in.

Apple’s Reminders App

This one needs little introduction. It’s been a part of the iOS experience for many years and it’s the one that many users turn to for access to all their tasks in one spot. On the up side, this app allows the user to use Siri to add reminders to any list, set time sensitive reminders, and even set location based reminders, such as “remind me to call the doctor when I get home.” Time sensitive reminders appear on the screen when they are due, and managing the notifications on the Apple Watch is easy. The app is available on all Apple devices, but there is no availability for Windows or Android. Also, when checking off items, the app does not appear to work in a way that is helpful. The boxes are checked, but the items do not immediately disappear from the list. As someone who gets overwhelmed by large lists of things to do, I don’t want extra items hanging around once I’ve taken care of them. A workaround for this is to simply swipe up and delete the item, but it will not show up in the completed list.

Things 3

This next app happens to be one of my favorites. Things 3 offers a great deal of functionality, but the interface is quite simple. It has Siri integration, although the language you need to use is definitely a bit clunky. The user can create multiple projects, which are categories for different lists. Checking off items is very easy: simply double tap on the checkbox and the item moves to your logbook, where all completed tasks go once removed from their lists. The app also has the ability to import tasks from the reminders app to assist in easy transition. The app is $10 for the iPhone version, $20 for the iPad version, and $40 for the Mac version, making it a definite expensive solution. Also, the Mac app does not appear to be accessible at all, but I have been talking with the developers, who are working on a solution for this issue. The iOS apps also have some problems, but are not unusable.

Trello

Here’s a very interesting approach to task management. Trello is a free app for many different platforms, including Windows and Android, that allows you to create and share boards: groups of cards, which are like tasks, with whomever you want who has the app, making it ideal for cross-platform collaboration for work, school, or any other project. It does not rely on checkboxes, but rather uses drag and drop to organize cards, which I find a little clunky but which others may find handy. I’m a checklist kind of girl when it comes to these things, so Trello isn’t my favorite, but it’s here and it’s very accessible on all platforms.

WunderList

The final app in this throwdown is Wunderlist: To-Do List & Tasks. It appears to be very accessible on all platforms, has the ability to have multiple lists, has collaboration features like Trello, and makes things disappear with a satisfying little sound when you check them off. I have found free apps for iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac. I am very happy with this app, as it combines the simplicity of Things with the sharing features and low price of Trello. It appears to be the best of both worlds.

Conclusion

There’s an app out there for everyone, and I hope this article helps you if you’re looking for something to make your life just a little easier. Did I miss your favorite? Let me know in the comments or mention us on Twitter with your thoughts.

 

What is a Computer? iPad Pro Hardware

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Logitech Slim Combo Case for iPad Pro

During its latest iPad Pro ad, Apple asked the question, “What is a computer?” This is the second article written by iAccessibility that aims to answer this question. Our goal is to understand if the iPad Pro can replace the modern PC, and what kinds of accessories or apps one would need to accomplish this. Today, we will be looking at the iPad Pro’s hardware.

Form Factor

At the time of this writing, The iPad Pro comes in two variants: a 10.5 inch and a 12.9 inch. The 10.9 inch model is best suited for portability, whereas the 12.9 inch is best used in a sit-down environment, like at a desk. Both devices have a retina display, as well as 4 speakers that provide an  amazing sound experience. The 12.9 inch iPad Pro does have a better sound profile, but the 10.5 inch is still an amazing device for listening to audio. The 12.9 inch also contains more battery, but it does take longer to charge than its smaller counterpart.

The Processor

The 2017 iPad Pro models have an A10X hexa-core processor which has the power to out-perform some MacBook Pro models doing similar activities. This processor is not limited, as iPhone models are, by size or cooling, and can run for extended amounts of time at high speed.

Storage

The iPad Pro can be configured to have up to 512 Gigabytes of storage built in, which is the same as many MacBook Pro models. My MacBook Pro has a built-in 512 Gigabyte drive, but I went with the 256 Gigabyte iPad Pro.

Ports

The iPad Pro only has a lightning port and a headphone jack, which makes it very limited with regard to what devices can be used with it. It is worth noting, though, that the iPad Pro can support a USB 3 connection dongle so that you can plug in hard drives, microphones and other PC based equipment. You will need access to external power for this to work.

Wireless

The iPad Pro comes with your standard WI-FI and Bluetooth connectivity to connect to all modern routers and bluetooth devices. It also lets you connect to the Apple Pencil for on-screen writing.

iPad Pro Accessories

The iPad Pro allows you to connect a keyboard to the tablet through the smart connector, adding keyboard support without the need for Bluetooth. We will discuss keyboard cases in a future article, but it is worth noting that the Pro is more like a PC with this accessory. The Apple Pencil, while expensive, lets users have better control over drawing and graphics design on their tablets than most other devices like it. I personally think that the Apple Pencil is more accurate than the Surface Pen, or any similar stylus.

Conclusion

While the iPad Pro doesn’t come standard with a keyboard and mouse, it does have the necessary hardware and accessories to make it into a PC replacement with the addition of a smart keyboard and Apple Pencil. The speakers deliver beyond stellar sound, and the retina display is enough for any user to get the best viewing experience any laptop or pc could offer.

Going off hardware alone, the iPad Pro is a computer replacement.

#iACast 62: Fall 2017 Phone Comparisons

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Picture of iPhone X with gradient wallpaper

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On this episode of the iACast, Aleeha, Michael, and Matt discuss the following topics:

 

iA DemoCast 13: iAccessibility for iOS

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iAccessibility Logo

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On this episode of he iA DemoCast, Jason Earls demonstrates the iAccessibility app for iOS by going through each element of the app.

iAccessibility on the App Store

Access Your Movies From All Your Accounts with the Movies Anywhere App for iOS

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Movies Anywhere

Recently, a new app was released, in collaboration with Disney and several other movie studios, called the Movies Anywhere app. It’s available for iOS and Android, and offers some unique functionality for blind movie lovers. You can sign into Amazon, Google, and iTunes to link all your accounts together. For a limited time, if you link your Google Play Movies account with the app, you will get access to five free pre-selected movies. How, though, can a user access audio described content? The answer is this: once all your accounts have been linked, go into iTunes on your Apple device, access your purchased movies, and, voila!, you have access to your purchased movies from all platforms, enabling audio description for those that have it in the iTunes store, even if you bought them elsewhere.  So, essentially, you can use the Movies Anywhere app as a method of collecting all your movies into one place, but don’t use it to watch them if you want audio description. Access them from the iTunes app and you’re all set!

#iACast 56 – Apple iPhone Event 2017

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iPhone X Home Screen

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As predicted, Apple released all new hardware at their September 2017 event Just as predictably, iACast hosts Jason, Michael, Aleeha and Meaghan talk about the latest hardware announcements on this episode of the iA Cast. Here are the highlights of what was talked about.

Known iOS 11 Bugs

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iOS 11

Each year, Apple releases a new version of iOS with new features which change the operating system in ways that can cause bugs for users. While we all wish this did not happen it is inevitable, and it is good to know what works and what does not work, so in this article, you will find what we have found to be known bugs in iOS 11.

  • iPad multitasking with split view apps is broken currently with VoiceOver. Workaround can be found at https://iaccessibility.net/guide-getting-around-ipad-multitasking-bug-ios11/
  • Zoom will not rotate between portrait and landscape properly all the time. This occurs when the device is rotated to landscape and back to portrait. Sometimes, the device will rotate back to portrait but the zoom window will stay in a landscape state.
  • A VoiceOver bug has been found that causes drag and drop of icons to not work correctly in the Dock and on the Home screen This causes the entire device to hang for an unpredictable amount of time, and is not always seen to happen. Only known fix is to reset your device’s settings.
  • A VoiceOver bug has been found that causes Messages on iOS to say, “null” when a conversation is deleted. This does not display visually but does show with VoiceOver. @mcourcel on Twitter reports that closing Messages after deleting a conversation fixes the null conversation.
  • A bug has been found that causes iOS to relaunch Springboard when a user activates the App Switcher or opens an app from the App Switcher while VoiceOver is running. This does not happen if VoiceOver is not running. and does not always happen when switching apps.

What bugs have you found? Let us know and we will post them here. To send us your bugs, email us at feedback@iaccessibility.net or tweet us at @iaccessibility1 on Twitter.

#iOS11 is not as social as iOS 10

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iOS 11

Background

In the past, iOS contained built in social media sharing features which included Twitter and Facebook. These features made it easy for apps to connect to social platforms in order to share content with features built right in to iOS. In iOS 11, the latest version of Apple’s mobile operating system, these features have been removed. As a result, users will now be responsible for installing and using social network apps from the App Store that have share extensions and account management.

While, on the surface, this seems like a big deal, it really has been coming for some time. For a while now, Facebook has been authenticating 3rd party app logins through their own app or from their mobile webpage, instead of using the iOS login prompts.. You can even sync your contacts through the Facebook app, which used to be managed in iOS settings

So What Does This Mean for Apps?

At the time of this writing, a lot of Twitter applications use the built-in Twitter APIs in iOS. As a result, they will need to be updated so that they do not give an error that there are no Twitter accounts set up in the settings app.

Conclusion

While I think that this update to the handling of social sharing will not change much in the way of everyday consumers using their iOS devices, I think it was a great thing to be able to manage all  social account logins from one place in the Settings app. Android has this, and a user can even add accounts  that were not included with the OS. I doubt they would do this, but I really hope that the engineers at Apple have something in mind to replace the previous social framework, and will surprise us in a future version of iOS.

#iACast 55 – 2017 iPhone Pre-Show

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Apple Special Event September 2017

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In this episode, Jason, Michael, Aleeha, Jade, and Anne discuss what we possibly  can expect from Apple’s event on Tuesday. We have posted this episode before Wednesday as a special to prime everyone for the upcoming event.

#iACast 54 – Sports Apps

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Baseball

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On this episode of the iA Cast, Aleeha, Matt, and Michael discuss what sports teams each person likes, and which apps they use to track their favorite teams. We also look at which personal assistants work best with finding sports team and player statistics and we compare them to see which ones are the most efficient.

Mentioned Apps

#iACast 52 – Music Streaming Services

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Apple Music icon with music note with many colors

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On this episode of the iA Cast, Michael, Jason, Aleeha, Dan, Matt and Anne discuss the different music streaming services and which ones everyone uses and why. Here is the list of services.

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