4 ways Google is making Android more accessible to everyone

By Andy Boxall Published August 13, 2024

Updates to Android accessibility features as of August 2024. — Google

While most of the attention will inevitably be focused on the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro today, Google also made some interesting announcements around accessibility in Android at its Made by Google event. Also, likely to the surprise of nobody at all, they include some AI. Here are the four ways Google is improving accessibility in Android.

Magnifier

Google's Magnifier feature. — Google

Originally released in 2023, Magnifier is a very helpful app that only works on Pixel phones. It uses the camera to help people zoom in on the world around them to make reading signs, menus, and other visual guides easier. By integrating AI into Magnifier, it now has a visual search using keywords so you can find relevant terms quickly. Plus, a picture-in-picture view gives you both an overview of what you’re looking at, along with any zoomed-in area.

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Magnifier also lets you switch between different cameras on your phone, so you can use the wide-angle or a dedicated macro view It also works with the front camera. Magnifier operates on all Pixel phones starting with the Pixel 5, including the Pixel Fold series, and is available through the Google Play Store.

Guided Frame

Guided Frame feature from Google. — Google

Guided Frame, another feature already available in Android, has now left the confines of the TalkBack screen reader mode and arrived in the camera app. It verbally provides instructions for positioning the camera and where to stand when taking a photo, helping people with vision problems get the best photos and selfies. The update boasts improved focus and object recognition and introduces face filtering for group photos. Existing features include letting you know if there isn’t enough light for the image.

Live Transcribe

Google's Live Transcribe feature. — Google

Google has updated its Live Transcribe feature with a dual-screen mode specific to the Pixel Fold and Pixel 9 Pro Fold. With the phone held in an open position, transcriptions appear on both the inner and outer screens, ensuring everyone has a quick, clear view of the conversation. Google isn’t the only company using folding phones to aid viewing and reading transcriptions and translations. Samsung’s Interpreter mode, which is part of its Galaxy AI suite, does the same thing on the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 .

Live Caption

Google's Live Caption feature. — Google

Finally, Live Caption — which adds captions to any source with sound on your phone — has several new language options: Korean, Russian, Portuguese, Polish, Turkish, Vietnamese, and Chinese. What’s more, these languages will all be available on the device, making offline captioning possible.

Google has not provided an exact release date for these features, but we expect them to arrive via Pixel Feature Drops in the near future.

Former Senior Mobile Writer

Andy has written about mobile technology for almost a decade. From 2G to 5G and smartphone to smartwatch, Andy knows tech.

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