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iOS Bug Tracker

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picture of Apple feedback assistant icon.

This post will be updated often with new bugs found by iAccessibility authors and by our readers, so please check back often. We will also mark a bug fixed when has been fixed or resolved by Apple.

Zoom Scrolling issue

This bug occurs in iOS 10 for iPhone and iPad when Zoom is enabled. It doesn’t matter if you are zoomed in or not, but when scrolling on the home screen or in scroll views, the system will think you are trying to touch an item and will not scroll. You must stop interacting with the device and try again several times to get the desired result. This has persisted in all betas of iOS 10.

Quick Tip: Bypass iOS Wi-Fi requirement

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Personal Hotspot icon

There are some occasions where you might want to download something on your iOS device but you are told that you must have a Wi-Fi connection. Here is how you can get around this obstacle. Just remember though that this will take up your data plan but if you are wanting to try this then you probably realize this. Here is what you will need to do this.

Requirements

  1. You need an iPhone that has the personal Hotspot feature enabled
  2. A Mac running a newer version of OS X or Mac OS.
  3. A Lightning Cable

Instructions

To use your iPhone to download items that require Wi-Fi, do the following.

  1. make sure Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are turned off.
  2. Connect your Phone to your Mac using a lightning cable.
  3. Turn Personal Hotspot on and select USB Only
  4. In yourMac’s menu bar, turn Wi-Fi off.
  5. You may need to go to Network settings under System Preferences and enable iPhone USB.
  6. Go to System Preferences and then to Sharing.
  7. Select the iPhone USB in Source, and Wi-Fi under, “to computers with.”
  8. Find the checkbook under the sharing table and check share Internet connection to start the connection.
  9. You can now connect to your Mac with your iPhone over Wi-Fi and it will think it is getting Internet from your Mac.

This is a great process for using your phone with your Mac to download any content that would require a Wi-Fi connection. You can also do this with a Windows PC if you create an Ad Hoc connection as well.

Get Me some Accessibility

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Image of Get Me icon

With everything that has happened in Austin and with other cities with ridesharing, we find ourselves without the services we come to rely on and must attempt to use similar services to fill the void. Get Me, a service supported by the City of Austin, is one such service, but is Get Me’s app accessible?

Accessibility of Get Me

If you have read the title of this article then you already know the answer to the above question. Get Me for iOS has absolutely lousy accessibility, and that is not a subjective opinion. Lets start at the signup process.

While I am a low vision user that uses magnification, I attempted to sign up with Get Me with VoiceOver. I filled out much of the information until I reached the portion where they ask for your card method. This does not include Apple Pay or anything like that, but only a card. There is only one text box, which changes when you enter certain information in there. Once you enter your debit card number, they want the expiration date which is 4 numbers. they then want your CVV and then your zip code but this information is not spoken to the user as you enter it. I have heard that there is a way to take a picture of the card, which may be easier for some than entering the numbers without knowing what to enter when.

Once I signed up (using vision) I was presented with two buttons that are badly labeled. They are Home Delivery 2 and Home Ride 2. These are the buttons where you pick if you want something delivered to you, or if you want to get a ride. Obviously, these buttons are badly labeled, and should be changed.

Requesting a ride is impossible with VoiceOver The only things VoiceOver can find on the request a ride screen are the cancel button, and the title of the screen. VO does not see any buttons on the screen, such as where to enter the pickup or destination address, where to pick the type of ride, or even the request button. These all appear to be standard iOS controls, but Get Me does not seem to be using a standard method for creating their app for iOS, which will require them to invest a LOT of time in making their app accessible.

Conclusion

While the City of Austin might find the Get Me service to be an alternative to Lyft and Uber, it is not an accessible alternative to blind and low vision users. When using VoiceOver, a person needing a ride would need to have sighted assistance in requesting a ride, which is not an alternative by any means.

Get Me [Something or Somewhere]

#iACast 14: Wi-Pi

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Raspberry Pi Logo

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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Episode notes

ON this episode of iA Cast we discuss the latest Apple news, and we talk about the new version of the Raspberry Pi, a $35 computer that can fit in your pocket We discuss that Sony is bringing their streaming PlayStation game playing service to the Mac, and the latest in gaming news.

We hope you enjoy iA Cast. Please use our social links to leave us feedback about the podcast, and please rate us in the iTunes Store, or wherever you listen to our podcast.

#iACast 12 – Digital Accessible Art!

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Image of Apple Pencil being used with iPad Pro on flat surface

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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Episode Notes

It has been since December since we recorded a new podcast, so here is what we have covered this week.

  • We discussed the updates that have been made here at iAccessibility concerning the podcast and our website.
  • Review of the new iPhone 6s battery case
  • Discuss the pros and cons of removing the iPhone headphone jack in the iPhone 7
  • Discuss error 53 and what it means. We also touch on the new iOS date bug.
  • We discuss the latest news about iOS 9.3 which will come out to everyone in March
  • Apple is rumored to release the iPhone 5se next month, and we talk about what features it should have and if people want a 4 inch iPhone
  • We discuss the New Apple TV and if people still use it
  • Facebook is a modern name in browsing the web, but do we really need the app on our devices to use their services?
  • We discuss the latest in entertainment news, which include movies, gaming and books
  • The Apple Pencil is a new way to draw on a tablet screen, and you can learn how to pair it and draw with it by listening to this episode

We will continue this podcast each week now and all episodes have been migrated over to this site. If you do not see episodes 11 and 12 in your podcast app of choice then please unsubscribe and re-subscribe to our podcast and you should see the new episodes there.

iAccessibility is on slack at iaccessibildtyslack.slack.com We encourage everyone who wants to communicate on what we discuss to contact us and we can add you to the accessibility Slack community.

Slack is accessible and it will work with all modern screen readers on any platform.

Please email Michael Doise if you have any questions or suggestions for this podcast. You may also find us online at the social links below these show notes.

We hope you have enjoyed this podcast and will listen next week.

Speculation: Penciling in OS X?

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Image of Apple Pencil being used with iPad Pro on flat surface

Many writers at iMore have stated that Mac OS X is not designed to be a touch based operating system. This is because the programs are not built to work with a touch interface, but what if a team were to build apps for iOS that did the same as Mac OS X but for iOS? If these apps were built for the iPad, then the user could use the pencil for an easier touch experience in selecting files rather than using their finger. The Apple Pencil offers a very precise tool for manipulating objects on the iPad Pro, and it would be logical to speculate that it would be an essential tool for bringing full Mac OS support to an iPad or iPad Pro near you.

Pairing Apple Pencil with iPad Pro

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Image of Apple Pencil being used with iPad Pro on flat surface

This weekend I received my Apple Pencil, and the first thing I did was get my iPad Pro and pair it with the Apple Pencil. The process is very simple and will take less than a minute. Here is how you pair the two devices.

Pairing the Apple Pencil

The Apple Pencil has a magnetic cap on the end opposite the nib. You will feel a metal ring, and the cap will be above that ring. Simply pull the cap off the back of the pencil and you will see a Lightning connector. You can pair your Pencil by either plugging that lightning connector into the iPad Pro and have it stick out the bottom of your iPad, or by using the adapter that comes with the pencil. This will allow you to plug a lightning cable into the pencil, and then into the iPad. This will make sure you don’t hit the pencil breaking the lightning connector on it. This would be the best for charging, but to pair it is just simple to plug the pencil right into the iPad for a few seconds.

Once you plug the Pencil into the iPad Pro, you just have to wait until a pairing dialog appears. Once it does, double tap on the pair button to pair your Apple Pencil, and you will be ready to write in the Notes app or other apps that work with the device. When the battery gets low on the pencil, the iPad will tell you to charge the pencil by using a method mentioned above.

We will soon have an article here on iAccessibility’s website discussing how to do more with the Apple Pencil with VoiceOver, so keep checking back to learn more about this amazing device. We will discuss how to use it with drawing apps, and how to navigate the iPad Pro with the Apple Pencil.

Is the new Smart Battery Case worth a hump?

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Apple Smart Battery Case for iPhone

Late last year, Apple released the new Smart Battery Case for the iPhone 6s. This battery was created for the iPhone 6s only as the 6s Plus contains 1/3 more battery power than the smaller phone. So is this case worth spending $100 for better battery life, and is it worth the hump on its back?

Smart Battery Case Dimensions and Characteristics

The iPhone 6s Smart Battery Case comes in at a size similar with the 6s, but adds a small amount of space at the bottom that contains its own lightning port, and puts the speaker on the front along with the microphone. The headphone jack is still on the bottom as well.

The case also contains a hump on the back that contains the battery pack. This is a change compared to the Mophi cases as the Mophi cases make the back of the phone the same thickness throughout the design where there is no hump on the phone or case.  The hump really doesn’t add much of a difference how you hold the phone, in fact, the hump on the back adds extra grip for the iPhone which can help some hold their phones better.

The color of the Smart Battery Case comes in either charcoal or White, which limits you to how your phone would look, so if you have the space grey phone then I would go with the charcoal, but it is up to you to customize your phone as you like it.

Performance

The Smart Battery Case promises 18 hours of web browsing and 20 hours of video watching, which is nearly doubled the amount that is offered on the built in battery on the 6s. The way this case works is that you use the battery on the case first and then your phone will then use its battery. You can even see your case’s battery in Notification Center under the batteries notification widget. When you plug your phone in to charge your phone will charge first, and then the case will finish charging.

Conclusion

While the iPhone 6s Plus has more battery built in, it is still a big phone, and not everyone needs a big phone. If a smaller phone is for you then this case adds a new way to keep your phone charged and is officially from Apple. If you do have the 6s then I highly recommend this case if you don’t already have a way to keep your phone charged as the 6s does burn through battery life fairly quickly.

Apple Smart Battery Case for iPhone 6s from Apple.com

Cortana, Microsoft’s Personal assistant for iOS

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Image of Cortana
Image of Cortana

Microsoft has created its own personal assistant for iOS, and its name is Cortana. Cortana is a character from the Halo video games that assists the main hero on his quests. She is an AI that works within the main character’s helmet, which is why Microsoft chose to use her name for its personal assistant. Also they chose this because she is one of the coolest video game characters ever. The question we must ask though is if Cortana is accessible for iOS. At the time of this writing the answer is yes. Cortana contains accessible buttons, and images that contain alt text. The microphone image was labeled correctly, and everything worked extremely well with VoiceOver.

Is Cortana useful for iOS?

While Cortana is useful in windows 10 and on the other windows devices, it is not as useful as Siri can be on iOS. While Cortana is new and flashy, it still takes longer with or without voiceover to find information as with Siri. For one you have to be in the app and find the microphone button to speak into Cortana and you also must then flick to find the result you are interested in.

Since Siri is built into iOS you can simply hold the home button to do the same thing instead of having to open an app. I would say that Cortana has the same usefulness as Google Now, but it also depends on if you have used the Microsoft or Google ecosystem before iOS.

Conclusion

Cortana for iOS is the third personal assistant for iOS, but it really does not add any new features that are already offered by Siri and Google Now. This app works really well if you are based mostly in the Microsoft world, but really shows limitations when compared to the other two assistants since Siri is built into the phone, and Google Now contains more options and features than what can be done with Cortana.

Is it an iPad Pro, or is it just a big iPad?

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iPad Pro with Smart Keyboard

So recently, Apple released the iPad Pro, and promised that this device would be a computer alternative, so  have decided to do as many have done and try to use the iPad as a main computer. In many wyas, the iPad Pro has things that are better than an iMac or Macbook, and in some ways the iPad Pro is not. In this article we will explore how it is better and how it is not.

Why the iPad is a computer Aleternative

The iPad Pro comes with a beautiful 12.9 inch Retina display that looks amazing for web design and other professional and creative ventures. The on screen keyboard is no longer the basic iOS keyboard we have come to know, but is now a full featured keyboard with a number row and the punctuation in the correct places. You can even press the shift key and find the question mark or number row characters as you would on the computer. The current version of iOS also contains more keyboard shortcuts like Command Tab to switch between apps.

Safari on the iPad Pro also behaves more like Safari on the computer. I am actually writing this article on my iPad Pro, and have full access to the Squarespace tools as if I was on my Macbook. The only thing I did not see is how to drag and drop items into the correct places.

The Sound quality on the new iPad Pro is amazing, in fact it really rivals the sound quality on many desktop computers.

The battery life on the iPad Pro is amazing as well. I unplugged the iPad around 8 this morning and have played games and surfed the web on it all day and the iPad is still at 82% battery life. This does outlast the Macbook or Macbook Pro’s battery life.

Photos look great on the iPad Pro. You can get a good look at your high resolution photos that you have taken on your iPhone 6s or 6s Plus and they will look amazing on the iPad Pro.

Another advantage of the iPad Pro is that it will eventually get USB 3.0 support. The iPad Pro does not currently have any usb 3 accessories but iFixit has determined that there is USB 3.0 support built into the iPad mainboard.

How the iPad Pro is not like a computer

While the iPad Pro has many features that make it comperable to a computer, it still has its limitations.

The iPad Pro does not have XCode or the professional Mac apps for creatives. While the iPad software can support it, Apple will not add these programs to their iOS devices at this point.

Podcasting is still difficult on the iPad Pro because of sound and audio input limitations. I do not know if you can hook up a USB Mic to it yet. That will be tried shortly. This is still where the MacBook has an advantage.

Many also do not like the fact that the iPad still does not have multi user support. I think this may be coming in iOS 10.

The last major issue with the iPad Pro is the lack of a filesystem browser. Apple has added iCloud Drive support, but I believe that you will always need Internet Access for this to work.

Conclusion

The iPad Pro is really Apple’s best creative device. If you need a device with a filesystem and full podcasting support, then use a Mac. If you do not need these features and want a touch centric device, then the iPad Pro is best for you. If you want a good device to watch movies and TV Shows then the iPad Pro is amazing. I even use it as my home speaker system if I just want to fill a room with audio. The iPad Pro’s 4 speakers really are amazing to hear, and no writing can express how well these things sound.

The big thing is that you will not be able to write code for apps or create the most professional movies with this device, but you can start a project on it and do the heavy lifting on a Mac.

Please let us know what you think about the iPad Pro and write how you use it or not use it as a computer.

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