The South Korea electronics company Samsung today announced that its 2020 TVs have received “Tried and Tested” rating from RNIB. The company has received the rating for meeting the accessibility criteria for its TV for visually impaired people in UK. Now this is the first time the agency has accredited a product in the TV industry. RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind) is the UK’s largest community of blind and partially sighted people. It awards a “Tried and Tested” accreditation to various products, services, apps, or websites that meet the RNIB criteria for accessibility for visually impaired consumers.
According to Samsung, the company is working with RNIB since 2013, ensuring that its products, including Smart TV contain proper accessibility features and are accessible for every consumer. The electronics manufacturer is working on enhancing accessibility features for visually impaired people since 2014. It has already provided features like ‘Voice Guide’ to read aloud the program information on its TV. The company also received an ‘Inclusive Society Award’ from RNIB in 2016 for recognition of these features.
Accessibility Features in Samsung TV
Samsung has come a long way since then and has expanded the features on TVs for deaf and blind people. Here are a few accessibility features that Samsung TVs have for deaf and visually impaired people.
1.. Upgraded Voice Guide: Samsung’s new 2020 TVs come with an upgraded Voice Guide feature. With the upgraded feature, users can listen to key information on programs, adjust the pitch and speed of the Voice Guide, instructions for the remote control, and other accessibility features.
2.. Digital Magnifier: It magnifies and enhances the text and images from a Galaxy smartphone to a large screen TV.
3.. Focus Enlarge Feature: It enlarges specific fonts on the TV, like those related to the menus, volume control, and TV control.
4. Sign Enlargement for Hearing Impaired: This feature automatically recognizes and enlarges the sign language area for consumers who are hearing impaired and helps them to adjust the subtitle positions.
The Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business of Samsung Electronics, Kangwook Chun said, “With a growing variety of content and features, people are now having more fun with their smart TVs.”
