How This Beta Accessibility Mode on iPhone Could Make Using It Easier

iOS 16.2 hides a rather radical new feature that makes iPhones work like the old, big Nokias of the 90s.

Discover new custom accessibility modes In 9to5Mac’s iOS 16.2 beta– Removed most of the iPhone’s UI, eliminating clutter and making icons huge. As the name suggests, this is an accessibility feature, currently only in beta, hidden in beta versions of iOS. But it already looks like something many of us might want to use, especially when we sometimes find our phones overwhelmed or distracting.

“It’s a UI that will make smartphones easier to use for a large group of people: anyone with vision problems. This is especially important for older users,” Troy Portillothe director of operations at online learning platform Studypool told Lifewire via email.

clean and tidy

At first, the standard iOS UI looks very clean and minimal, but its complexity becomes a hindrance once you start trying to do anything. I call this school of design “carpet minimalism”. To present a clean and uncluttered face, iOS hides everything behind menus, long presses and secret handshake multi-finger gestures.

It’s like a kitchen with nothing on the countertop and everything thrown into seemingly random drawers. In this metaphor, even the oven and cooktop are tucked away in the closet.

Custom Accessibility Mode doesn’t solve this problem, but it does make the basic iPhone UI easier to move around.For example, the home screen can be adjusted to only show apps in a 2×2 grid, kind of like Apple’s old Clip-on touchscreen iPod nano.

“One of the main benefits of Custom Accessibility Mode is that it reduces the number of buttons and icons on the screen. This makes the app easier for users with visual impairments, who may have difficulty seeing and recognizing the various buttons and icons,” technical writer James Calderon Tell Lifewire via email.

But it doesn’t stop there. Many people use screen reader software, which is built into iOS for VoiceOver. This tells you what’s on the screen and can even read the name or description of anything your finger passes over. Even if you can’t see the screen, you can use VoiceOver, which looks like the simplified UI of custom accessibility mode won’t help. But the opposite is true.

“This plus VoiceOver will be great for low-vision and blind people. The ability to remove unnecessary UI clutter makes screen readers more efficient,” iPhone user Marbles1 said on the MacRumors forum.

But, of course, it doesn’t stop there.

tidy

Many people might benefit from, or just prefer, a phone that doesn’t yell at them every time they pick up the phone. Yes, the number of notifications, icon badges, and other distractions on your phone can be reduced, and these reductions can even be customized based on the time of day or your location. But that’s still too complicated for anyone but a nerd.

Well, custom accessibility modes can be a great way to remove distracting clutter.

“If this were to happen, it would help immensely [older adults]” iPhone user Riverfreak Said in a MacRumors forum thread “iOS has become so refined and precious that it requires a lot of time and manual dexterity to do many simple and mundane things.”

According to 9to5Mac’s Philip Esposito, you can also use the new Custom Accessibility Mode to lock certain phone features and password-protect those changes. This could be a boon for those who spend too much time on their phones.

“Beyond the basic functional benefits, it’s also a way to simplify what your phone can do. For example, if you find yourself scrolling mindlessly on social media for hours, this can be a useful tool to help you reduce workload,” Portillo said.

Apple’s accessibility features are the best, allowing for deep customization. Meanwhile, regular user customization is almost non-existent, limited to a few widgets and wallpapers. There is definitely some space in between. Until then, it’s worth digging into the accessibility settings to find out what’s possible.