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Unable to set dialect of Chinese of AVSpeechSynthesisVoice in iOS 18
The AVSpeechSynthesizer on some iOS 18 device has a bug that it will read always read Chinese of: AVSpeechUtterance(string: "中文") // Any Chinese Content in the dialect specified by: Settings > Accessibility > Spoken Content > Voices > Chinese > Spoken Language instead of the dialect that I specified in AVSpeechUtterance.voice: AVSpeechSynthesisVoice(language: "zh-HK") // Cantonese AVSpeechSynthesisVoice(language: "zh-TW") // Mandarin However, setting Chinese dialect of AVSpeechSynthesisVoice by "zh-HK" or "zh-TW" has been working on iOS 17 and below. My app has a feature that requires reading sentences in Mandarin followed by Cantonese, i.e., both dialects is needed every time. Therefore, setting the dialect in Spoken Language of Settings is not a workaround to make my app to function correctly in iOS 18. Further to the above, I've also discovered that, if iOS 18 (in my case, 18.5 is tested) is freshly installed (not upgrading from iOS 17 or below, nor restoring backup after fresh installation of iOS 18), the bug above will not happen. However, if it was an upgrade from iOS 17 or below, or backup is restored (in my case, I freshly installed iOS 18.5 on a new iPhone and then restored a backup from another iPhone on iOS 16.2), the bug above happens. This bug puzzled me because I need both dialect of Chinese to be read aloud one by one, but as reported by many users, on most iOS 18 devices (since a fresh installation of latest iOS without upgrading or restoring is uncommon nowadays), my app will read Cantonese two times or Mandarin two times (depending on Spoken Language in Settings). It is the iOS 18 bug which made my app unable to perform the expected behavior. Would Apple developers look into this and advise if there are any possible workaround within the code of app to overcome this bug, or please fix this bug with an iOS 18 update. Thank you.
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113
Jun ’25
FocusState Issue in iOS 18 with Keyboard Navigation
I have implemented a SwiftUI view containing a grid of TextField elements, where focus moves automatically to the next field upon input. This behavior works well on iOS 16 and 17, maintaining proper focus highlighting when keyboard full access is enabled. However, in iOS 18 and above, the keyboard full access focus behaves differently. It always stays behind the actual focus state, causing a mismatch between the visually highlighted field and the active text input. This leads to usability issues, especially for users navigating with an external keyboard. Below is the SwiftUI code for reference: struct AutoFocusGridTextFieldsView: View { private let fieldCount: Int private let columns: Int @State private var textFields: [String] @FocusState private var focusedField: Int? init(fieldCount: Int = 17, columns: Int = 5) { self.fieldCount = fieldCount self.columns = columns _textFields = State(initialValue: Array(repeating: "", count: fieldCount)) } var body: some View { let rows = (fieldCount / columns) + (fieldCount % columns == 0 ? 0 : 1) VStack(spacing: 10) { ForEach(0..<rows, id: \.self) { row in HStack(spacing: 10) { ForEach(0..<columns, id: \.self) { col in let index = row * columns + col if index < fieldCount { TextField("", text: $textFields[index]) .frame(width: 40, height: 40) .multilineTextAlignment(.center) .textFieldStyle(RoundedBorderTextFieldStyle()) .focused($focusedField, equals: index) .onChange(of: textFields[index]) { newValue in if newValue.count > 1 { textFields[index] = String(newValue.prefix(1)) } if !textFields[index].isEmpty { moveToNextField(from: index) } } } } } } } .padding() .onAppear { focusedField = 0 } } private func moveToNextField(from index: Int) { if index + 1 < fieldCount { focusedField = index + 1 } } } struct AutoFocusGridTextFieldsView_Previews: PreviewProvider { static var previews: some View { AutoFocusGridTextFieldsView(fieldCount: 10, columns: 5) } } Has anyone else encountered this issue with FocusState in iOS 18? I really do believe that this is a bug strictly connected to keyboard navigation since I experienced similar problem also on UIKit equivalent of the view. Any insights or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
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601
Mar ’25
Voice Over Sound
Hello, When I listen to title in my app with VoiceOver, it makes a strange sound. This characters make with Korean+number+Alphabet. Is this combination makes some strange sound with voice over? I would like to ask if Apple can fix this issue. Thank you.
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206
Mar ’25
Unable to Add Accessibility Trait to UISegmentedControl
I’m trying to add the .header accessibility trait to a UISegmentedControl so that VoiceOver recognizes it accordingly. However, setting the trait using the following code doesn’t seem to have any effect: segmentControl.accessibilityTraits = segmentControl.accessibilityTraits.union(.header) Even after applying this, VoiceOver doesn’t announce it as a header. Is there any workaround or recommended approach to achieve this?
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Mar ’25
Feature Idea: Autonomous, Motion-Powered Clock Display on iPhone.
Hey everyone, I've been thinking about a truly innovative way to enhance iPhone battery life and user convenience, drawing inspiration from kinetic energy harvesting. What if we could have a clock display on the main iPhone screen that's powered purely by user motion, and activates only when you look at it, without touching your main battery? The Core Idea Imagine this: Kinetic Energy Harvesting: Your iPhone would have a tiny, integrated kinetic energy generator. This generator would capture the energy from your everyday movements – walking, picking up the phone, putting it in your pocket. Independent Power Source: This harvested energy would be stored in a small, dedicated capacitor or micro-battery, completely separate from your iPhone's main battery. Acelerometer-Activated Display: Instead of relying on power-hungry facial recognition, the phone's accelerometer (a very low-power sensor) would detect specific "raise to wake" or "tap to look" gestures. On-Demand, Ultra-Low Power Clock: Only when the accelerometer detects one of these specific gestures would the stored kinetic energy be used to illuminate just the necessary pixels on the main OLED/AMOLED screen to display the time. The rest of the screen stays completely black (consuming no power on OLED). Automatic Shut-Off: As soon as the gesture ends or the phone is put down, the clock display would turn off, conserving the limited harvested energy. Why This Matters This isn't just a cool gimmick; it offers significant benefits: True Battery Independence: Get the time at a glance, anytime, without touching your main battery or even the power button. This means more main battery life for apps, calls, and everything else. Ultimate Convenience: A "magical" interaction – just pick up your phone, and the time instantly appears. No taps, no button presses. Sustainable & Innovative: Showcases practical "energy harvesting" in a consumer device, pushing boundaries for self-sufficient tech. Extreme Energy Efficiency: By using a low-power accelerometer as the trigger and only lighting a few pixels on demand, the system is designed for minimal power draw, making kinetic power a viable source. This concept combines existing low-power sensing (accelerometer), efficient display technology (OLED/AMOLED's true blacks), and cutting-edge energy harvesting, creating a genuinely innovative user experience.
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121
Jun ’25
The brightness of the iPad Pro screen is gone after new ios26
After 26 IOS update, the colors on my new iPad Pro M4 have become extremely dull almost like those on a very old device. The screen brightness is significantly reduced, and it's now difficult to see UI elements clearly. This is very disappointing considering the device’s high display quality before the update. Please advise if this is a known issue or if there's a fix.
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101
Jun ’25
Accessibility Issue - Date Picker Colour Contrast
In SwiftUI, the date picker component is breaking in colour contrast accessibility. Below code has been use to create date picker: struct ContentView: View { @State private var date = Date() @State private var selectedDate: Date = .init() var body: some View { let min = Calendar.current.date(byAdding: .day, value: 14, to: Date()) ?? Date() let max = Calendar.current.date(byAdding: .year, value: 4, to: Date()) ?? Date() DatePicker( "Start Date", selection: $date, in: min ... max, displayedComponents: [.date] ) .datePickerStyle(.graphical) .frame(alignment: .topLeading) .onAppear { selectedDate = Calendar.current.date(byAdding: .day, value: 14, to: Date()) ?? Date() } } } #Preview { ContentView() } attaching the screenshot of failure accessibility.
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163
Mar ’25
accessibilityRespondsToUserInteraction return true on Simulator but false on device
I am seeing a strange issue where NSObject accessibilityRespondsToUserInteraction returns true on Simulator but false on device. Checking the same object on simulator with Accessibility inspector I see the object traits as image so why would it return true in that case? Are there any other way to check the the item might be accessibilityRespondsToUserInteraction OR Clickable beside that property and traits? (Or is it just another bug)
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Jun ’25
Accessible Speech Practice App - R Helper Launch
Hi Community, I'm excited to share R Helper, a speech practice app I built with accessibility as the core focus from day one. App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/speak-r-clearly/id6751442522 WHY I BUILT THIS I personally struggled with R sound pronunciation growing up. It affected my confidence in school and job interviews. That experience taught me how important accessible practice tools are. R Helper helps children and adults practice R sounds with full accessibility support. ACCESSIBILITY FEATURES IMPLEMENTED VoiceOver - complete navigation and feedback Voice Control - hands-free operation Dynamic Type - scales to large accessibility sizes Reduce Motion - respects user preference Dark Mode - user controllable High Contrast compatibility Differentiate Without Color THE CHALLENGE Most speech practice apps ignore accessibility. I wanted to change that and prove that specialized educational apps can be fully accessible. KEY FEATURES Works 100% offline, no internet needed Zero data collection, privacy first Generous free tier with all accessibility features included 10 story missions with gamification 7 languages supported including RTL for Arabic LESSONS LEARNED Accessibility is not hard when you prioritize it from the start. VoiceOver labels and hints make a huge difference. Testing with accessibility features enabled is essential. Standard SwiftUI components handle most accessibility automatically. Reducing motion significantly helps users with vestibular issues. TECHNICAL DETAILS Built with SwiftUI, targets iOS 17 and up. Universal app for iPhone and iPad. Fully offline using CoreData and local storage. No third party analytics, privacy focused. QUESTIONS FOR THE COMMUNITY What accessibility features do you find users request most? How do you test accessibility features efficiently? WHATS NEXT I'm currently working on expanding the word library, adding more story content, improving haptic feedback Thanks for reading. Nour
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The virtual home button is not displayed in Developer Mode.
I have a question about Developer Mode on iPhone. Currently, the home button on my iPhone SE (2nd generation) is broken, so I use AssistiveTouch to display a virtual home button. However, in Developer Mode, the virtual home button does not appear, making it impossible to enable Developer Mode. Is there any way to enable Developer Mode in this situation?
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Feb ’25
AXSpeech Thread Crash SEGV_ACCERR
Hi everyone, I've encountered a rare and strange crash in my app that I can't consistently reproduce. The crash seems to occur deep within Apple's internal frameworks, and I can't pinpoint which line of my own code is causing it. Here's the crash stack trace: #44 AXSpeech SIGSEGV SEGV_ACCERR 0 CoreFoundation ___CFCheckCFInfoPACSignature + 4 1 CoreFoundation _CFRunLoopSourceSignal + 28 2 Foundation _performQueueDequeue + 492 3 Foundation ___NSThreadPerformPerform + 88 4 CoreFoundation ___CFRUNLOOP_IS_CALLING_OUT_TO_A_SOURCE0_PERFORM_FUNCTION__ + 28 5 CoreFoundation ___CFRunLoopDoSource0 + 176 6 CoreFoundation ___CFRunLoopDoSources0 + 340 7 CoreFoundation ___CFRunLoopRun + 828 8 CoreFoundation _CFRunLoopRunSpecific + 608 9 Foundation -[NSRunLoop(NSRunLoop) runMode:beforeDate:] + 212 10 TextToSpeech _TTSCFAttributedStringCreateStringByBracketingAttributeWithString + 776 11 Foundation ___NSThread__start__ + 732 12 libsystem_pthread.dylib __pthread_start + 136 Sometimes, instead of line 10 referencing _TTSCFAttributedStringCreateStringByBracketingAttributeWithString, it shows: 10 TextToSpeech LogWarning(char const*, ...) + 7288 Has anyone experienced a similar issue or know what might be triggering this crash? Any guidance on how to investigate or resolve this would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
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154
Jun ’25
Please consider having Name Recognition in a shortcut automation
Request: Name Recognition → Shortcut for SOS Flashlight + Vibration Right now, iOS Name Recognition works, but all I can do is flash the tiny notification light. It would be much more useful if Name Recognition could trigger a Shortcut. That way, I could set it to flash the flashlight in an SOS pattern and vibrate, making the alert impossible to miss. I tried using Custom Alarm, but it won’t let me record my spoken name, so it doesn’t really solve the problem. If Apple allowed Name Recognition to trigger Shortcuts — or expanded “Custom” to support names/words — this would open up far more practical, real-world alerts.
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601
Sep ’25
How to force VoiceOver to read decimal point even when there are 6 or more decimal digits?
When VoiceOver reads decimal numbers with six or more digits after the decimal, it stops announcing the decimal separator and also adds pauses between each digit. Text("0.12345") // VoiceOver: "zero **point** one two three four five" Text("0.123456") // VoiceOver: "zero one, two, three, four, five, six" How can I force VoiceOver to announce the decimal separator ("point") and not insert pauses regardless of the number of decimal digits?
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294
Jun ’25