Either stepping from object to object or by jumping between different types of components, like headings, forms, links or landmarks. On a desktop, users will usually navigate using their keyboard. But below is a summary of how desktop and mobile screen readers are used. On smaller devices I’ll rely more on the screen reader and on larger devices more on screen magnification.Ī great resource to understand screen reader users better is the Screen Reader User Survey by WebAIM, which over a thousand people respond to about once every other year. The survey goes through things like:Īnd much more! So head on over to that site and learn all you need to know. Then I’ll turn on the screen reader when reading longer texts. For instance, I’ll sometimes rely on my sight for general navigation using a screen magnifier. So we often use a screen reader in combination with sight. One thing that most people I meet haven’t thought about is that many screen reader users, like myself, have some remaining vision. Software development at 450 words per minute How are screen readers used? You should check out Tuukkas own article on this topic, where you’ll also find a longer audio clip of the screen reader speaking at lightning speed: Pretty awesome huh! For reference, most sighted people read at about 150 words per minute, so he’s able to read at 3 times that speed. Here’s a 5 second audio clip of what that sounds like: The Finnish developer Tuukka Ojala has his set at 450 words per minute. The first thing most people comment on when meeting a screen reader user is the speed at which the synthetic voice speaks. So scroll down and check them out if you’d like! Fasten your seatbelt – they are quick! At the end of this article, we’ve added a few more videos with screen reader users, showcasing different screen readers on different devices.

Transifex accessibility screen reader