Amazon’s Echo Show is a smart speaker designed around Amazon’s virtual assistant, Alexa. There’s also a smart display with a high-definition screen and stereo sound. The second-generation Echo Show 8 offers a higher-resolution camera than the previous model. It is equipped with a 13MP (megapixel) camera with auto-framing — which is a jump from the first Echo Show 8’s 1MP sensor. It can also digitally pan and zoom.
And now, the Echo Show 8 is extending Alexa’s power to help more people with disabilities. It can help people with mobility challenges. The newest version can also assist people with low vision and those who are deaf and hard of hearing.
Echo Show for Visually Impaired
People who are visually impaired can use the Echo Show’s VoiceView screen reader. All the information on the screen will be read out loud to you. In addition, you can use gestures like swipe left, swipe right and double tap to interact with Alexa.
For those who are used to screen readers, there is flexibility to adjust the reading speed or punctuation levels. And for those who aren’t as comfortable, there is a tutorial to help get you up to speed.
Additionally, the Echo Show has a screen magnifier with color inversion feature. The screen magnifier allows the user to zoom in and out. The color inversion feature lets you exchange color values. This is meant for people who are sensitive to brightness, those with low vision and those who are color blind. The color correction feature also modifies the screen to assist with color blindness.
Show for Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Alexa Captioning is a feature that show subtitles for everything Alexa says. This could surely be a game changer for a person who is deaf or hard of hearing.
You can also adjust Alexa’s speaking rate. She can speak faster or slower, depending on your preference. This is a feature that could help the elderly or someone who is hard of hearing.
Finally, the HD video calling is a great feature for someone who is deaf and would like to talk to a friend or family member using sign language. It’s possible to do on your phone, of course, but having the larger screen on the Echo Show 8 makes the video call an added advantage.
Show for Speech Impaired
Since Alexa is powered mainly by voice, is a person without speech still able to use Alexa? Yes! Now you can interact with Alexa by touch. You can view contacts, read transcripts of messages, make calls and send messages by just tapping the screen. You can enable “Calling & Messaging Without Speech” by selecting “Settings” and then “Accessibility.” From here on, just swipe left on the Echo Show’s touchscreen for quick access to all “Communications” features.
To explore more of the Echo Show’s accessibility features, watch this video: