Google's Latest Accessibility Feature Is So Good, Everyone Will Use It

Google's new Voice Access feature, announced at I/O 2016 as something that will ship with Android N, is a way for people with severe motor impairment to control every aspect of their phones using their voices. But once you see it in action, the broader impact of Voice Access is immediately obvious.

When Voice Access is installed, you can enable it with Android's "Okay Google" command by just saying: "Okay Google, turn on Voice Access." Once it's on, it's always listening—and you don't have to use the Okay Google command anymore. Best of all? Any app should work with Voice Access, as long as it's already following Google's accessibility guidelines. For the 20% of Americans who have severe to moderate motor impairment, including Parkinson's, essential tremor, arthritis, and more, the benefits of Voice Access are obvious. These users can finally have high-level control of their Android devices without ever needing to use their hands. There are the people who are permanently disabled, and then there are those who are "situationally disabled." But according to Google's accessibility user experience (UX) researcher Astrid Weber, there are two kinds of disability. There are the people who are permanently disabled, and then there are those who are "situationally disabled." Situational disability can be as serious as a broken arm or as temporary as having your hands full with shopping bags. The point is that all users are situationally disabled on a regular basis, which means that accessibility features like Voice Access are for everyone—or they will be, eventually.