The accessibility tool of Google Voice Access leaves the beta and improves the integration of Google Assistant

Although the smartphone market is relatively mature (some might even say stagnant), there has been a noticeable lack of progress in accessibility. The simple fact is that not everyone can easily handle the touch screen of a smartphone or tablet and that there are not many inexpensive ways or free to simplify it. That's without a doubt why, even in a discreet beta version, Google's voice-activated navigation application, Voice Access, has logged more than a million downloads on the Play Store during last two years. The application was also extremely popular on APK Mirror, where the original version was downloaded 1.5 million times. Now, the blockbuster accessibility tool has finally left the beta with its latest update to 3.0, which also adds improvements to its integration with Google Assistant.

Voice Access offers users a full range of voice command options: navigation, on-screen interaction and text editing / dictation. For example, you can say "Go to Gmail" and then ask the app to open an email by indicating one of the numbers pointed to the screen – the closest to the e-mail that you want to open, in general. In the screenshots presented above, it is 12. Then you can ask the tool to scroll forward and indicate which part from the screen you want to scroll (in this example, 8). Once you have finished reading the e-mail, you can say "Go home" or "Go home".

In the most recent version, users can say "OK Google" to launch Voice Access, which combines Google Assistant and Voice Access in an extremely intuitive way. In addition, users can use wizard voice commands such as "Set Timer" without being expelled from Voice Access. In addition to minor bugfixes, UI updates, and a larger set of commands, these changes provide a smooth, unobtrusive experience. In fact, I bet that many non-disabled people will also be interested in using this app; this makes the use of one hand an absolute breeze. This is usually the case of accessible technologies – not only is this a necessity for people with disabilities, but it improves things for all of us. There is literally no reason not to invest more. Hoping that Google continues its momentum.