I have always been impressed with Apple's concern for accessibility but the latest iOS 8 is a massive improvement.
Since Apple went flat in version 7 I have struggled with reading on the device and had to think a lot more about what I wanted to do (Caps lock anyone?) and where I needed to go. The animations were a distraction and although they were cute and lovely, they offered me nothing.
Luckily iBooks comes with its own unique settings so I was able to continue reading books no matter the overall design but getting around apps and using the device became bothersome.
I opted for increasing text size, bolding text but I still struggled with contrast and no matter how high I set the brightness, the problem persisted. I started to look at other opertaing systems.
The latest update has seen me playing with the contrast to the point I have found the exact solution that suits my needs.
The vision settings are impressive and although I have no trouble with my hearing, these settings are a huge improvement also.
Zoom is amazing for reading but reduce motion is my favourite.
What makes me so happy about these settings is that many accessibility concerns have been addressed and the old myth that accessibility means blind people has been discarded.
The only grumble I have is the fact that the accessibility menu is hidden under general and doesn't have its own prominent place. We can set a shortcut to a favourite feature though.
Obviously a lot of testing went into this update and I would love Apple to produce their findings. This type of research doesn't happen often with designers so the information would be most valuable.
Whilst everyone else is having a good moan about this OS and just a moan in general, I am most grateful for the little details that went into this update.
I was at the point where I was looking around at other phone software to see if they met my needs. This update has saved me the time and the trouble. I feel like I have a brand new phone.