A vision loss diagnosis often brings big questions about how to manage daily life. Your smartphone can be a powerful tool from the start.
These five free apps are easy to try and can make a difference right away.
This app connects you to sighted volunteers by live video that uses your phone’s camera. Volunteers are happy to help with quick tasks like reading a label, checking colors, sorting laundry, or confirming a street sign or airport gate. Be My AI, the virtual feature, can describe any photo for you.
Best for: Quick questions, labels, sorting items.
2. Aira—Trained Agents for Complex Tasks
Aira pairs you with trained agents who can verbally guide, describe your environment, and give directions. This is a paid service, but you get one free five-minute session daily, as well as unlimited access at certain places like Target, Walmart, and airports. This service is ideal when confidentiality and accurate verbal description really matter.
Best for: Filling out forms, getting around a location, important/confidential visual tasks.
3. Seeing AI—Your Phone Describes for You
This free app from Microsoft turns your camera into a talking assistant that reads text, describes faces, identifies money, and more. It reads short text instantly and can scan full documents too. There is an app for iPhones and one for Android devices.
Best for: Menus, mail, and product info.
4. Camera App—Handy Magnifier
Your phone’s camera can double as a magnifier. Zoom in to see small print or dials. If it helps, take a picture first and then zoom in. You can use the selfie feature to check your appearance.
Best for: Quick magnification of labels, thermostat, oven dials, and so on.
5. BARD Mobile—Read Without Print
BARD gives you free access to thousands of books and magazines from the National Library Service. You can listen to titles right from your phone. This Hadley blog post will help you get started with BARD—or call us at 800-323-4238.
Best for: Reading books, magazines, and more.
More practical help with vision loss
Curious about Be My Eyes? Listen to CEO Mike Buckley on the Hadley Presents episode Be My Eyes: A Free Smart Phone App for Vision Loss.
Interested in Aira? We cover it in The Aira App: On Demand, Expert Assistance.
Want to learn to use Seeing AI? Hadley offers free workshops for iPhone and Android devices.
Still have questions? Call us at 800-323-4238. Hadley’s help is free.
Coping with vision loss
Hadley member Pam Harris says, “I have learned to use my smart devices. . . . All of this technology that’s available today has made a huge difference.” Hear more in the Insights & Sound Bites podcast episode “I have my bad days and my better days.”
Hadley’s podcasts are also available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, as well as by phone: 847-558-1317.
If you’re struggling to cope with vision loss, call Hadley’s Donahoe Center for Support at 800-323-4238. We’re here for you.
What other phone apps or features help you live with vision loss?