Along with its Android update for December, Google has launched a new app called Reading Mode today. It helps people with visual imparities and dyslexia read the content on the screen — especially articles.
The newly released app works on any device running Android 9.0 or above. Once you install it on your phone, you will have to turn on the toggle for the app under the Accessibility settings. This allows the app to have a floating button on the screen all the time, so you can turn any app or webpage into a more accessible version.
You will have to enable shortcut for the app from Settings to use the app Image Credits: Google
Reading Mode turns the content on the current screen into a simpler format. It features controls for adjusting contrast, font type, line space and size. What’s more, you can ask it to read out the content on the screen and control the playback speed. The app also allows you to quickly change the reading voice as well. Users can also turn on a toggle to have the app highlight current text being read by the voiceover feature.
Image Credits: Google
Google already offers a number of accessibility tools, including a screen reader with TalkBack and a built-in Braille keyboard. As the name suggests, Reading Mode has been specifically designed to read or listen to long text, such as online articles. It isn’t meant to read everything that is on the screen like buttons and their purposes.