Determining the Accessibility of Mobile Screen Readers for Blind Users

As mobile interfaces are often designed with sighted users in mind, difficulties can be experienced by individuals who are blind, when using a mobile screen reader to access content. In this paper, we describe a data gathering study to determine the day-to-day challenges experienced when performing tasks using mobile screen readers. Challenges can be faced when gaining an overview of specific document types, processing multiple streams of audio, when performing complex web-based tasks, and instances where the device is accessed while the user is in motion. The findings provide an insight into the needs of diverse users, which can help to inform the design of inclusive mobile applications.