Mobile Accessibility: Building and Testing Accessible Mobile Sites and Native Apps with Gian Wild

Unfortunately, when developing WCAG2, the Working Group did not envision the current world where mobile is almost ubiquitous. For example, on a mobile device, there is no continual access to a keyboard (unless someone is using it as an add-on to the device – or using a Blackberry Classic.) WCAG2 requires that all content be accessible to the keyboard interface, but it does not require that all content be accessible to a mouse or to a touchscreen user, which is essential on a mobile device. WCAG2.1 does include some mobile accessibility requirements but doesn’t go far enough.

Gian Wild chaired the Mobile Site Sub-Committee to develop a set of Mobile Site Testing Guidelines available under Creative Commons. These guidelines are meant to be used with WCAG2 (and WCAG2.1) to ensure that sites are accessible to people with disabilities using mobile and tablet devices.

Accessibility is important to all – not everyone using your mobile app, device, or wearable will be fully functioning, either because they have a disability or they are engaged elsewhere. Gian talks about the things that are essential to avoid when designing mobile apps, devices, and wearables to ensure that everyone can use them. She talks about specific mobile accessibility features: pinch zoom, native screen readers, haptic keyboard, etc., and system accessibility settings: font size, screen rotation, high contrast, etc.