A Visit at the Google Accessibility Discovery Center in London and thoughts about Android Accessibility for the Blind
Hello, dear friends! A few months ago, in June, Alina and I took a short vacation to London in order to visit the WB Studios, where all the Harry Potter movies have been filmed, but also to enjoy Hamilton, plus Harry Potter and the Cursed Child theatre plays.
As always, when we visit London, we try to combine pleasure with some accessibility work, so we also dropped by the futuristic Google Accessibility Discovery Center in Kings Cross, after Christopher Patnoe, their Lead for EMEA Accessibility and Disability Innovation kindly invited us for a visit. Sadly, we didn’t get to meet with Christopher, as he was out of the UK with work, but he left us in extremely capable hands.
According to Google, the Accessibility Discovery Center goes beyond a mere exhibition space. It’s a hub where innovation meets real impact, and technology intersects with human potential. It’s a place where visitors can collectively explore, learn, and celebrate the transformative power of accessible design.
As soon as we arrived for our meeting, we realized that Google has created one of the coolest workplaces and concepts possible. From the huge open spaces, to floating screens showing upcoming meetings, to their professionals wanting to make the world a better place for everyone, Google’s commitment and attention towards accessibility felt more like a way of being than just a tagline.
We were immediately treated by Hans Zimmermann, a super nice guy with tons of positive energy, who promptly wizzed us to one of the top floors, where our meeting with an accessibility expert was to take place. There, we were quickly introduced to Jyothi Reddy Gogireddy – Lead Accessibility Analyst – and after settling down, we started talking about Android on the Google Pixel phones and especially about how accessible these devices are for totally blind individuals, like me.
We booted up a Pixel 8A and started the onboarding process from the beginning. Along the way, I have given constructive feedback on how the initial experience can be improved and enhanced for us blind folks.
There is no secret that I’m someone who uses Apple products every day, at home, in public, and at work. These being said, I have to admit that aside from a few snags we encountered with the Android operating system, the experience was quite accessible and enjoyable. My main problem with TalkBack is that it doesn’t feel as responsive as VoiceOver, but even so, it is way better than I remember it since using a Google Nexus 7 tablet, long, long time ago.
I truly believe that the people at Google are doing their best and that with time, we will get to have screen reader parity between iPhone and Pixel. There are a few features that I think can be revolutionary on Pixel phones, especially for blind users, and these are Guided Frame and Describe Screen. These will allow someone to take a photo using spoken instructions that will tell you how to move the phone so that the subject is in frame, and the Pixel can also take the picture automatically. The other one will just do what it says; it will describe the screen using AI. In order to do this, you can tap the screen once with three fingers to bring up the TalkBack menu and then choose Describe Screen. You can also ask additional questions about the image. So, color me interested!
During this time, Mr. Hans took Alina on a tour through some of the most captivating areas of the center. Needless to say, she was utterly impressed. What even I have noticed is the positive energy of the people we met along the way.
When you have places like the Google Accessibility Discovery Center and people who want to change the world for the better, you just know that maybe there is hope for the future. We really enjoyed our time at Google. We appreciate the opportunity to learn about new technology and new features, and we will definitely return as we have been invited back whenever we want to.
The Pixel 8A remained with me, and currently, it is used as a resource for learning Android accessibility at my workplace. Since our visit, I have been using the Pixel from time to time, and I’m happy to see that Google pushed a lot of updates, including for TalkBack and Gemini.
Speaking of Gemini, I believe that with time, these AI models can become a blind person’s best tool. If we ever get to the point when AI will be 100% accurate, then we will be able to trust everything that it says. That could be the holy grail for people with visual impairments. The live capabilities of the AI models are impressive, and when paired with wearables, these can be used hands-free. Put them on glasses, and we get a much better point of view from which the AI model gets the same view as us, which in turn will allow it to describe everything much more precisely.
Google is doing a lot of great stuff for accessibility. Just last week, I observed that the YouTube app on my Apple TV plays audio descriptions tracks automatically, which is something that I was asking for since Apple introduced this option many years ago.
Progress is being made, and that’s all we can ask and hope for.
The Google Accessibility Discovery Center is something that Google can be proud of, and the people working there are crucial to advancements in assistive technology. I understand that some new Google Glasses will be released soon, and if they are as good as the Rey-Ban Meta, then things could be even more exciting for visually impaired folks.
Just when I thought that I was done with this editorial, Google released another TalkBack update which allows us to reduce the feedback time for writing, reading and other actions. I have tried it out and the TalkBack feels much smoother, although there is still room for improving even more so that there is no lag when using the phone with the screen reader.
Alina and I want to say thank you to everyone at the Google Accessibility Discovery Center for being so nice, professional, and friendly! We will be visiting again soon, so keep innovating, and I will keep writing about it!
Victor Dima
