Apple Announces WWDC 2014: Will Accessibility Enhancements Take Center Stage Once Again?

Apple announced that their World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC) will take place from June 2nd - 6th in San Francisco, California. At the event, Apple will preview the future versions of iOS and OS X. It is unknown what these changes will entail, but if history is any indication Apple will preview iOS 8 and OS X 10.10. Consistently, over the past few years Apple has steadily improved the accessibility features of both iOS, which runs the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch and OS X, which runs on Mac computers. Last year with OS X 10.9 Mavericks, Apple added Switch Control, large text, VoiceOver enhancements, customizable closed captioning, and enhanced dictation. iOS 7 added Switch Control, improved Siri, and ability for developers to utilize system text-to-speech voices.

At WWDC 2012, Apple devoted precious time during their Keynote to detail improved accessibility features found in iOS 6. With millions of users any accessibility improvements can have a dramatic impact on many users. Hopefully, Apple can continue to improve their current accessibility options while continuing to insure that any possible future devices are also accessible to people with all abilities. For attendees, the venue is fully ADA compliant.

Stay tuned to the Assistive Technology Blog to learn all about how the WWDC 2014 announcements impact accessibility.

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