Sample accessibility audit report

This sample is an audit of my own app. eSpeak NG Text-to-Speech is made by RedZoc, my apps brand, and many blind people use it as TalkBack’s voice. I’m publishing it to show what a report looks like, and to hold my own work to the same standard. The fixes will go into a coming update of the app.

Summary

• Scope: 10 screens of the Android app: home, Settings, Reader, Pronunciation Dictionary, Forum, Ask a question, Discussion, Search, Remove Ads, and About with Contact. Also the voice-data installer and the ads.
• Method: for this sample, a review of the app’s code against WCAG 2.2 Level AA, with the main finding confirmed with TalkBack on a phone. A client audit tests every finding with TalkBack or VoiceOver on real devices.
• Result: no critical problems: every key task can be completed with TalkBack. 7 serious, 18 moderate and 15 minor findings.
• Fix first: the sliders that announce the wrong value or no name, the volume that can silence the phone, the full-screen ads that interrupt TalkBack users, and the voice-data installer’s missing progress.
• Works well: the Pronunciation Dictionary is a model of accessible design, and text sizes and body contrast are good throughout.

How to read the findings

• Critical: blocks a key task.
• Serious: a key task is very hard, or risky.
• Moderate: a real barrier, with a workaround.
• Minor: friction or polish.

Code examples are for Android (Java and XML layouts).

Serious findings

// When the dialog opens
seekBar.setContentDescription(getTitle());

// In onProgressChanged, instead of setContentDescription(text)
ViewCompat.setStateDescription(seekBar, text);

seekBar.setContentDescription(getString(titleRes));
ViewCompat.setStateDescription(seekBar, valueView.getText());

pref.setMin(Math.max(parameter.getMinValue(), 20));

AccessibilityManager am = getSystemService(AccessibilityManager.class);
if (am != null && am.isTouchExplorationEnabled()) return;

if (!(activity instanceof MainActivity
      || activity instanceof ReaderActivity)) return;

progress.progress += bytesRead;   // was: progress.total += bytesRead

getWindow().getDecorView().announceForAccessibility(
    getString(ok ? R.string.voice_data_installed
                 : R.string.voice_data_failed));

rest.hideProgress();
new AlertDialog.Builder(this)
    .setMessage(R.string.dialog_contact_failure_message)
    .setPositiveButton(android.R.string.ok, null)
    .show();

Moderate findings

<color name="colorPrimary">#D90303</color>

<TextView android:id="@+id/reader_status"
    android:accessibilityLiveRegion="polite" ... />

status.setText(speaking ? R.string.reader_playing
                        : R.string.reader_paused);

<TextView android:labelFor="@+id/category"
    android:text="@string/category" ... />

android:focusable="false"
android:focusableInTouchMode="false"

<TextView android:text="@string/label_advertisement" ... />
<FrameLayout android:id="@+id/inline_ad_container" ... />

holder.content.setContentDescription(
    name + ", " + time + ". " + reply);
ViewCompat.setScreenReaderFocusable(holder.content, true);

Other moderate findings:

• Forum and discussion lists don’t announce loading, empty results or a changed filter (4.1.3).
• “Ask a question” field is announced as “Type here”, not linked to its visible label (1.3.1, 3.3.2).
• Contact fields are labelled only by placeholders (“star Name”), and errors appear only as short pop-up messages (3.3.2, 3.3.1).
• Text fields have no visible edge: white boxes on a white screen (1.4.11).
• Placeholder text contrast is too low in the Reader (3.5:1) and the punctuation field (1.4.3).
• Fixed heights cut off text at large font sizes in Contact, Reply and two Settings dialogs (1.4.4).
• Remove Ads: the price arriving and “You are a Pro user” aren’t announced, and the Buy button disappears under focus (4.1.3, 2.4.3).
• Donate: no loading, empty or error state, and the button text is always in English (4.1.3).
• Import dictionary: an unlabelled, usually empty dropdown, with no success or failure message (4.1.3, 3.3.1).
• Reader notification buttons have no icons, and headset buttons don’t control reading (1.1.1).
• Ads come before the content on the home and Settings screens, and a fixed ad leaves little room at large font sizes (2.4.3, 1.4.10).
• Every screen is locked to portrait (1.3.4).

Minor findings

• A setting at its minimum (for example Word gap at 0) opens with no value shown.
• Empty-field errors in Ask and Reply are short pop-up messages, not attached to the field.
• The best answer reads the author’s name straight after the answer, with nothing in between.
• Forum list items read four pieces of information before the question itself.
• No headings on the home, Remove Ads and About screens.
• “App Logo” labels add nothing; About reads the version before the app name.
• About’s social icons aren’t announced as buttons, and fail silently without a browser.
• Some confirmation dialogs have no title; “Please wait” can’t be cancelled.
• Saving audio shows progress that can’t be cancelled and isn’t announced.
• Reader menu items silently do nothing if the speech engine isn’t ready.
• Reader voice names end with a code that is spelled out letter by letter.
• Dictionary search doesn’t say how many words match.
• Home screen rows aren’t announced as buttons; profile photos aren’t explicitly hidden.

What works well

• The Pronunciation Dictionary is a model screen: real labels, errors announced on the field, edit and delete reachable with a single tap (nothing hidden behind long-press), delete confirmed, and an empty state that TalkBack reads.
• Home screen rows each read as one item, and dividers are hidden from TalkBack.
• All text sizes scale with the system font size, and body text contrast is 15:1.
• The forum has headings, a labelled language filter, and named “More options” buttons on each reply; search announces how many results it found.
• Times are read naturally (“5 minutes ago”), and Settings examples are written in words because TalkBack reads them through eSpeak itself.
• Ads are never shown to Pro users, need consent, and the ad on return is limited to once every four hours.

Want one for your product?

See what an audit includes and what it costs, or email hello@rameesmuhammed.com.