Opportunity lost with Nokia Maps audio direction

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Tuesday, 20 March 2012 17:13pm

The new audio direction available on the mobile version of Nokia Maps has potential for people who are blind or vision impaired, but an inaccessible website stops them from using this feature.

The mobile version of Nokia Maps allows smartphone users with iPhone, iPad or an Android device to use the service with their web browser. A new feature announced last week allows users to request walking directions in audio form for their journey. An audio file is delivered to the user, providing turn-by-turn instructions based on your geographic location.

The Nokia Maps audio navigation feature would be particularly useful for people who are blind or vision impaired. The service, which works only for journeys on foot, could provide audio instructions that tell you when to turn left or right, making the journey that much easier.

However, this feature is unavailable to people who are blind or vision impaired using a screen reader because the mobile version of the Nokia Maps website is inaccessible. Users can put in an address but cannot access the button which sends the request for audio navigation.

It is extremely unfortunate that a feature which has so much potential is unavailable to the people who could benefit from it most.


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