Tablet's got you covered

Not that long ago Gizmodo posted an article around one of its journalists attempting to last a week using a Dell Venue 8 (an 8" Windows 8 Tablet) as their primary device. |success? Sort of....

But the possibility of using your talet as your main computing device is becoming more of a reality with a scattering of high end tablets, wireless connecivity options and the ubiquitious OTG (let's you use your micro USB charging port with any standard USB device).

Admittedly some of these devices are rather expensive when compared to a similarly specified laptop/notebook/ultrabook (thehigher end ones such as the Lenovo Yoga Pro 3) but these can be had for a much cheaper price point (Teclast X series). Some even offer Dual boot capabilities in Windows 8 and Android.

Armed with a tablet with Bluetooth, WiFi and WiDi (Wireless Display) you don't even need any cables to get yourself setup for a tablet centred desktop PC (Masking tape maybe to stick it to the back of your monitor??).

And combine it with a bluetooth keyboard case/cover and you've not only got a touch tablet but a fully functional laptop to go.

Time to go Tactile

It's no secret that I've often lamented the loss of tactile interaction caused by the use and continuing popularity of Touch Screens.  Touch screens have of course proven useful and particularly versatile as they have the ability to modify your interaction technique depending on what's displayed. But this versatility came with the trade-off that you had no way to physically provide a response to the user that a button had been pressed or a knob was turned common occurences when we interact with the day-to-day environment of our world.

This challenge has long been a "dream goal" of many hardware and software developers and generally speaking, the domain of Science Fiction. But not anymore, the ability to actively permeate a surface has arrived and no longer just in development (it's been actively under development from many fronts since some of the first touch screens became commercially used).

Tactus Technology has now introduced its new Phorm cover for the iPad mini. Granted, it's not the end product or even an integrated solution but it's a very promising start. No longer will you need to fumble around and actively seek keys with your vision (a common issue with most current touch screen interfaces that often require a "Search and peck" approach to typing).

Mobile Screen Magnifier Round Up

Not that long ago I took a look at the Windows Mobile Phone 8 Screen Magnifier in comparison with the iOS Zoom functionality.  Back then I was a bit oblivious to the fact that at long last Android had acquired its own in-built Screen Magnifier (note that I have no idea about Blackberry OS....).  So, now that all three major players in the smartphone and tablet markets have similar functionality, let's line then up and take a closer look at what each has to offer over the other.

 

Android Screen Magnifier

As the newcomer to this particular functionality (at least to my knowledge) Android has some expectations to live up to and a fairly high bar to match.  There are some key and interesting differences between this implementation and the one present on WIndows and iOS based devices even though at first glance, it offers the same feature set.

Unlike iOS and Windows Phone the Android based magnifier does not zoom in on the keyboard.  What?  Yes that's right it doesn't zoom in on the on-screen keyboard.  This may sound odd at first but if you've ever attempted to type while the screen is magnified you can probably recognise that this actual feature comes in handy.  This one works by retaining the screen itself still being magnified (in particularly the text you are entering) while slotting the standard keyboard at the bottom of the screen.

The other odd feature is that when you get a notification in a dialog box the screen automatically disengages the magnifier.  This might seem unusual to start with as well but ends up working favourably as it stops you from remaining oblivious when there is a change in focus in the application which can sometimes occur in iOS (where you might be zoomed in somewhere and not aware of an item requiring your attention somewhere else on the screen).

Apart from this, all functionality is essentially identical to those in Windows Phone and iOS based devices.

iOS Zoom

The iOS Zoom has been around since the first iPad and offers the same functionality as that available on the Windows Phone and Android based devices.  It's key difference here is that it utilises three fingers to implement its functionality.  This can be both good and bad as it's distinct and you won't be setting it off accidentally but it can sometimes be hard to pull off without accidentally clicking on an icon or something you didn't intend to.

Perhaps the most useful distinction here is that the iOS Zoom still retains its kinetic scrolling and flick functionality.  This is handy for reading long lines of text or if you want to quickly go from one side of the screen to the other without zooming out.

WP8 Screen Magnifier

There's nothing really here to set it apart.  About the only thing I can mention here is that the combination of the layout design, capability to enlarge the font sizes in all aspects of the OS and the implenentation of a basic, but well executed magnifier works well.

So which one's for me?

In my view, Android has the edge on the other mobile OS' here.  The way it implements its magnifier is a much more readily useable system that ensures you stay aware of your full screen content while allowing you to zoom in on what's important

Activating the Magnifier in Android

My apologies to those with Android devices or who were contemplating the purchase of one and my misinformed post about the fact that Android does not appear to yet have a screen magnifier.

The good news is that it does.  Although since there are several versions of ANdroid running around from Honeycomb to Jelly Bean, so you might need to make absolutely sure that the version you are getting has it.  I was lucky enough to have a little play with a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 today and found out that it does at least have magnification.

To Activate the screen magnifier...
1. Open Settings
2. Open Accessibility
3. Open Screen Magnification and turn it on.

Now that it is turned on you can activate it by triple tapping with one finger.  Controlling the magnification is done by using 2 fingers.  I'll have a better look when I get a chance and let you know the exact details on how to appropriately use the magnifier (instructions are provided in the activation setting screen for the magnifier).

WP8 Magnifier vs iOS Zoom

Both Windows Phone 8 and iOS offer an in-built screen magnifier as part of their accessibility repotoire  Both pretty much do exactly the same thing but Windows Phone 8 uses 2 fingers while iOS requires 3 but there are minor differences that might give one an edge over the other.

iOS Zoom
 iOS Zoom works by utilising a double tap with 3 fingers to activate/deactivate.  From there you are free to utilise other gestures including a 3 finger flick (which dependant on the speed at which you do it will set the screen scrolling at  a particular speed). This is aprticularly handy if you need to zoom in a fair bit and then find a corner of the screen.  Unfortunately when you try to drag with 3 fingers you can sometimes set this off and find yourself nowhere near where you want to be (often requiring a Zoom out and Zoom In again to find where you are).

Using 3 fingers can be a bit inaccurate on a smaller device like the iPhone and this Zoom feature seems more at home on the iPad.  It is quite easy to accidentally "press" a button while you are trying to activate/deactivate or utilise the Zoom.  In terms of clarity the Zoom retains a high level of clear text/graphics even at its highest level of zoom.

Windows Phone 8 Magnifier
The Windows Phone 8 Magnifier, once initiated, works in almost exactly the same way but utilises 2 fingers instead of 3.  At first this does not "work" because you need to make sure you have your fingers slightly spread apart and it is easy to forget to do this (doing it with 3 extended middle fingers tends to spread them apart a litle bit by nature).  But once you get your head around this little trick you will probably find it easier to use 2 as opposed to 3.

A 2 fingered flick has no effect so this gesture appears to be disabled.  WHile I find this a little annoying it tends to work well for phones where small movements are necessary and/or you require much greater control over the position of the zoomed area.

Like the iOS Zoom feature you may also find yourself accidentally generating a "click" instead of 2 finger presses but after a little while and making sure my fingers were seperated I did not have this issue so much with Windows Phone 8.

Overall
Both are good and well implemented and I suspect whichever device you choose, you are likely to be happy with it after a little practise.  For me, the Windows Phone 8 implementation is a slightly better approach for a small screen size (it is also available for Tablets) while I feel the iOS solution is a better approach for larger formats such as the iPad where further scrolling might be required.

Related Topics :
Activating the Screen Magnifier in iOS
Activating the Screen Magnifier in Windows Phone 8

Android Accessibility still Lacks Screen Magnifier?

While Android has always seemed to have decent Accessibility options which have improved over the years, now including such features as KickBack (Haptics), it still appears to be missing a Screen Magnification system built in.  Of course, as with any platform that is as open as Android there are ways around this but it's generally not as simple to use as the magnifiers available in Windows Phone and iOS.

The easiest way to accomplish this is to utilise a screen capture utility and then zooming in using a photo editor/viewer.  It's not a very elegant way to implement the functionality but it might hold you out while you're waiting for one to arrive.

I do understand that not everyone requires a screen magnifier.  Indeed, everyone's accessibility requirements are different, but you only need to do a search online to realise there are quite a few people asking for one.

Activating the Screen Magnifier in iOS

There isn't much in the way of 3rd party screen magnification in Apple products as the Apple Magnifier usually works a treat.  iOS devices are no different except for maybe the iPod Nano (if you can double tap with 3 fingers you might get away with it...).

To Activate the Screen Magnifier in iOS devices :

1. Open Settings (The grey icon with Gears on it)

2. Select General (on an iPad this is the default start location for settings)

3. Scroll down until you get to and select Accessibility.

4. Select Zoom and turn it on.

To activate Zoom simply double tap your screen with 3 fingers (note that Windows Phone 8 uses 2).  To deactivate the Zoom simply double tap with 3 fingers again.  To Zoom in double tap with 3 fingers and then hold, drag your fingers up to increase the zoom.  To Zoom out, double tap with 3 fingers and hold, then drag your fingers down.  You can scroll around the screen by swiping with 3 fingers.

App'y Independance

The boom of the App which combines with an internet enabled Multifunction device has seen an explosion in things you can achieve easily with your Smartphone or Tablet.  Here are 10 things you can do that might help your ability to be more Independant :

1. GPS Navigation
GPS in Australia still has its flaws due to a lack of Satellite visibility (it works by triangulating your position by bouncing a signal off several satellites) and this also causes problems with Urban Canyoning (Signals get bounced off buildings and/or blocked due to the low angle of the Satellite).  But thigns are slowly improving and the ability to utilise Mobile towers for triangulation improves performance and accuracy in urban areas.  There are many Apps available on all platforms so its more a matter of what suits your fancy (I prefer Sygic for walking and TomTom when I'm helping navigate in a car).

2. Document Scan
While I haven't seen fully featured Object Character Recognition (OCR) Apps yet there are plenty of Apps available that will do Document Scanning into PDF file formats.  From here you can import it into many other Reading Apps and use Pinch to Zoom functionality to view the text at what size you need.

3. Instruction Manual Reading
I honestly don't know how MOST people can read those manuals in 8 point font sizes but most companies now supply manuals in an electronic format.  Apps like Good Reader will keep you organised with easy access to all your Manuals and you can zoom in and out to your hearts content.  I use this for all sorts of things from building Lego to reading manuals for my new Hardware.

4. Public Transport Route Planning
Since Public Transport is State based and access to route information and timetables is different in each State you get different functionality depending on where you are.  But these Apps are generally a good overview to plan your trip especially if you are very reliant on Public Transport.

5. Business Card Recognition
You might get mixed results with these but they work well if you can get a decent photo (since cameras on phones have improved this is getting better) and your card is a fairly standard layout.  They promise to take a photo of a card and automatically fill in the details for your Contacts but sometimes they can get so muddled its easier to do it by hand than trying to fix up the mashed up results.

6. Easy Share Contacts
Forget the Business Card altogether and go straight to being Bump Buddies!  Apps like Bump let you automatically share your contact details with another person by simply being close in proximity (they generally use Near Feild Communication).

7. Make Relay Calls
Ever since the Internet Relay Service was established and the release of Internet capable devices this sort of thing has been looked into.  Nowadays you can access it via several means including Instant Messaging services (like WIndows Live Messenger for Mobile) or by SMS relay.  Video Relay is also becoming possible as more devices become enabled with Video capabilities.

8. Communication Board
Whether you can't hear or speak, mobile devices offer an infinite source of communication capabilities that range from the simple note App to a more complex and customisable communication board (where you press pictures).

9. Dictation
I've never had much luck with Dictation programs but Dragon has introduced its free software on various platforms.  Supposedly it does not require training but I've never had much luck with these (they still get affected by background noise).  But as the technology progresses they should remove the need to type.  Apps like Siri have been met with mixed experiences (Android is considered to be better at this if not as comedic.  ie you can ask Siri to marry you and she will reply that it's not in her license agreement).

10. Emergency Distress Button
If you are someone who is at high risk of Health issues but want to live independantly this might be your answer (alternatively there is VitaCall but you need to be within a certain range).  Many of these can be set to do things such as automatically dial a number and leave a voice message, send an SMS containing a plea for help along with your GPS coordinates and much more.