Digital devices, including smart TVs, are continuing to improve accessibility settings for people with disabilities. The 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA) passed in 2010 updated accessibility requirements, such as closed captioning, for TV programming and includes provisions for audio descriptions (which indicate visual information like settings, gestures, and facial expressions), hearing aid compatibility, on-screen text menus, and remote control activation.
Recently proposed legislation—the Communications, Video, and Technology Accessibility Act (CVTA)—would extend accessibility regulations even further to include almost all TV programming and streaming content. Currently, streaming platforms and online creators can choose to incorporate accessibility features but are not mandated to do so.
That said, many smart TVs have settings that can be enabled (generally not on by default) to make device features and streaming content more accessible to users who are low vision or hard of hearing. These tools vary by manufacturer, so it’s best to check out what’s available on your specific device (such as Samsung TV, Fire TV, or Apple TV).
Audio descriptions
As mentioned above, audio descriptions (also called video descriptions) provide narration of what’s happening onscreen. Many devices, including Apple TV and Fire TV, offer audio descriptions as part of their accessibility suite, though not all content is compatible. For example, only select Prime Video movies and shows will have audio descriptions as a menu option.
Similarly, screen readers help users with low vision navigate menus and program guides by reading onscreen text aloud and generally allow you to adjust the volume, speed, and tone. This feature is called TalkBack on Google TV, VoiceView on Fire TV, VoiceGuide on Samsung, and VoiceOver on Apple TV.
Closed captions
Rather than describing what’s happening visually, closed captions display dialogue. Closed captioning is available on all broadcast and cable programming and is supported on a lot of streaming content. Depending on your device, you may be able to select where captions are displayed on your screen as well as adjust the font, size, and color.
For Samsung users who are deaf or hard of hearing, the Sign Language Guide feature will interpret menu options to American Sign Language using an onscreen avatar (available on some 2022 models).
Color and contrast settings
Other accessibility settings that adjust contrast and color help users with low vision identify or read onscreen images and text, including closed captions. High Contrast Text on Fire TV, for example, changes the onscreen text to black or white bordered by the opposite color, similar to High Contrast or Color Inversion for menus and settings on TVs made by LG, Samsung, and Sony. Other device settings allow you to bold text or increase contrast, brightness, and color.
New Samsung TVs have SeeColors mode, which lets users switch between nine color settings, and Grayscale, which converts to black and white to increase definition (also available on LG devices).
Some devices have settings to zoom in on part of the screen or enlarge menu text: Zoom Menu and Text on Samsung TV, Text Magnification on Sony Google TV, Screen Magnifier on Fire TV, and Zoom or Hover Text on Apple TV.
Digital assistant integration
If your smart TV has Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri built in, you can use voice commands for menus, content searches, and device functions (such as power and volume), bypassing onscreen navigation entirely. Finally, some TVs offer pairing with Bluetooth hearing aids and listening devices.