The range of apps for people with disabilities is quite extensive. There are some general ones, but obviously there are apps targeted at people with specific mental and physical challenges. If you are challenged yourself, are a parent or carer, you might find some expert advice or extra and welcomed help in apps for people with disabilities.
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If you are looking for great general apps for people with disabilities, the first app that you should download is the Voice Dream Reader – Text to Speech app. For just $9.99, you can download one of the most comprehensive text to speech apps available on the iTunes market. This app will help those with both hearing and visual impairments, providing them with the option of communicating with others simply through the use of textual input or voice input. The app will either read aloud a message or, for those with hearing impairments, it can interpret spoken words into text. This two-way system makes it one of the best apps available.
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Learning the braille alphabet can be tricky, but through the use of this iPhone and iPad app, you can make it an enjoyable task. There are games which help to reinforce braille, and a basic interface which explains clearly the different braille symbols. If you are a beginner at learning the braille alphabet, for just $1.99 you really can’t go wrong.
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One of the greatest apps for people with disabilities is the TapToTalk app, which allows users to do just that: tap on the screen to ‘talk.’ This app turns the device into an AAC (augmentative and alternative communication) device, by allowing the user to click on words or symbols to verbally communicate with others. This app is especially helpful for people with autism or cerebral palsy, as well as any speech-preventing condition, as it moves away from the necessity of sign language towards a more 21st century approach to dealing with disabilities. I love its sales strapline, which is “give a non-verbal child or adult a voice.”
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Voted in the top 5 apps for medicine in 2010, SoundAMP Lite is an app for people with hearing impairments that really does enhance lives. All the user has to do is plug in their headphones, load the app and then adjust the volume accordingly: if you have trouble blocking out other noises in lecture theatres or at a music concert, you can utilise the app to make your experience much more enjoyable. This is one of the best free apps for people with disabilities, so if you struggle with hearing it’s very much worth downloading.
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One of the most debilitating afflictions in the world is Alzheimer’s disease, due to the slow effect it has on sufferers. This is an app to help with the disability as much as possible, through stimulating conversation and memories based on the images that are shown on the app. This app is really for the loved ones of sufferers, who want to remember the mother or father that they used to love. Through the use of this app, which is based on real life studies, you can try to help the sufferer remember as much as possible.
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If you want to make sure that your loved ones are safe, this one of the very useful apps for people with a disability. If the person has an iOS device, such as an iPhone or iPod Touch, you can download the My Emergency Info app to provide anyone who may come across them with all the necessary information needed to get in contact with you or their doctor. The app also holds vital medical information such as allergies and medications.
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You need to know your rights, and the best way to do that as a disabled person is to reference the ADA. However, as with all congressional legislation, the details are cumbersome and often hard to navigate for people without legal training. This app provides you with a handheld version of the Act, with FAQs and simple sections of the bill so that you can make sure that you are being treated fairly. If you ever need to reference the law, you can now use your iPhone to do just that!
With these apps for people with disabilities there’s no reason why anyone who has to face challenges cannot make fabulous use of an iPhone. Help sometimes comes in the most unlikely forms, so apps are definitely worth investigating further- especially ones designed for specific disabilities. Do you have any other apps to suggest?