Android tablet: Accessibility settings

This short guide is a reference tool to help refresh your knowledge or practise what you have learned in the Android tablet: Accessibility settings online course, including:

make text easier to read
convert what you say into text
use the camera’s flash to alert you to messages and notifications.

Before you begin

The Android tablet used in the demonstrations in this course may not be the same as yours, but the menus and steps should be similar.

How to make the text larger

You can control your tablet’s Accessibility features from the Settings app:

In the Settings app, tap Display in the left menu to open the options on the right.
Scroll down until you see Font size and style and tap this to open a new screen.
On this screen, use the Font size slider by moving it right to make the text larger, and left to make it smaller again.
The text size will be set automatically when you take your finger off the slider.

There are lots of accessibility options, and this course focuses on just a few of them. It’s worth exploring the rest yourself to see if they can help make your tablet easier or more comfortable to use.

How to use the camera flash for notifications

You can use the bright LED flash of the tablet’s main camera to help you keep on top of incoming messages and notifications:

In the Settings app, tap Accessibility in the left menu to open the Accessibility options screen.
Tap the Advanced settings option to see more items.
Now tap Flash notification to see a screen with options for this feature.
Look for the Camera flash notification switch and tap it so it moves to the right and turns blue.
When you receive a notification about a text message or some other kind of alert such as the tablet telling you a software update is ready, the light from your tablet’s camera will flash.

How to use the camera as a magnifier

You can use the camera’s zoom feature to magnify small objects or read the fine print on bills. You access it by tapping the Camera app icon, which is usually on the Home screen by default. The screen shows a live view of whatever the camera sees, and you can pinch your fingers apart to zoom in, and pinch together to zoom out.

How to use Dictation

Dictation turns your spoken words into text, which you can then send as a message, or save in a document. It lets you create messages and notes without needing to type on the keyboard.

Dictation works in any app where you can see the microphone button on the keyboard. You can use it for writing emails, messages or notes, creating reminders or calendar appointments, and searching the internet. For the best dictation results, speak slowly and clearly.