Answering calls if you are blind? Can Siri help?

If you enable VoiceOver in Settings>General>Accessibility>VoiceOver, double-tapping the screen with two fingers answers an incoming call. Doble-tapping again hangs it up. You can enable tripple-clicking the home button to turn VoiceOver on and off by going to Settings>Ganeral>Accessibility>Accessibility Shortcut and setting it to VoiceOver.

You're welcome. I tested it myself. It does work.

Maybe a Bluetooth device that has this capability? I have a BlueAnt headset that when it announces a call gives you a short window to answer the call by simply saying "Answer" or "Ignore". I know they also have desktop or car visor type devices, but I'm unsure if they perform the same way. I would guess this to be a question to ask Blue Ant. It also downloads the entire phone book, so if someone calls that is in the phonebook, it would announce, "Call from "Name" and they announce the Answer or Ignore prompts. I also remember some of the older non-smartphones I used had a setting to auto-answer a call after a certain number of rings. I am not aware of any smartphones that perform in that manner though. It may be difficult given his sight disability and the loss of motor coordination to find anything else that might work. Good luck.

This is a less-than-ideal answer, but if the only problem he's having so far is answering calls, getting a bluetooth device of some kind that can answer for him might be worth considering?

I have a Pebble Smartwatch that will vibrate when I receive calls, and one of the buttons will essentially push the green button so that when I get the phone to my ear, the call has been answered already.

I know shelling out $150 (possibly less on Amazon) for the Pebble is probably overkill, especially since its main purpose is to show notifications on your arm, but something like that might be worth looking into? Perhaps a bluetooth headset would be worth investing in, as some of them have a button that can be used to answer the phone. I think you could still redirect the call to have the audio on the iPhone itself.

~Lyssa

I know that you replied to Lyssa, but as far as the BlueAnt that I discussed, once paired, it will stay that way, and if you have issues, you can actually give the device a voice command to pair. The ones designed for the car visor also have a button to answer the phone as well. When you connect the BlueAnt it will give you voice confirmation that the device is paired to the phone.

I can't speak for other devices, but the Pebble has been very solid for me.

If you help him set it up initially, all you'll need to do is pick a watchface that incorporates a new feature that has the Pebble vibrate if it loses connection with the phone. 9 times out of 10, restarting the phone fixes that.

Occasionally the Pebble needs a reboot. The Pebble is vibrations only & doesn't do anything with audio.

My iPhone has been pretty reliable about automatically connecting to bluetooth devices whenever they power on, and most speakers/headsets do have an audio cue that tells you the phone has been successfully connected.

~Lyssa

Doug,

I'd be interested in hearing what you've finally come up with. My mother's 91 and almost blind. On top of that she has pretty severe memory limitations. Ideally what she needs is a setup that would allow her to use her voice without having to see what's on the screen. She needs to be able just via voice commands to do the following:

1) Make a phone call either by accessing her address book and saying something as simple as "Call Edie", or by speaking the number to be dialled

2) Answering the phone by clicking one physical button (perhaps coupled with a voice command)

3) Hanging up the phone by clicking one physical button (perhaps coupled with a voice command)

4) Asking Siri whether she has any voice messages, and if so to play them.

5) Be able to delete any voice message, or repeat it via an easy voice command

In your research, have you come up with a solution or combination of solutions that would let someone handle the whole phone/voicemail process by voice command without having to be able to see the screen?

Thanks very much for sharing.

Regards,

Chris

Thanks, Doug. I appreciate it. Good luck with your friend.

You might try putting a piece of clear tape on the iPhone screen right where that green button appears to provide a tactile indicator of where to touch. Test this to make sure it doesn't interfere with normal phone operation. An alternative might be to use part of a self-adhesive screen protector in a similar manner.