Does anyone have any experience regarding the accessibility and VoiceOver compatibility of the new iDevices thermostat, especially the iDevices Connected app used to program and control the product?
Since there was no type of demo mode available in the app I inquired with iDevices customer support regarding VoiceOver compatibility before purchasing the thermostat and was told that once the thermostat was installed and set up it could be fully operated and configured using VoiceOver. Unfortunately this is not correct. The app has a number of major accessibility issues that prevent using important functions such as setting the desired temperature, setting the operating mode for heat, cool, automatic, etc. and others.
I again contacted iDevices customer support to explain the problems and initially was advised to just use Siri to operate the thermostat. While that does work well for basic things like setting the temperature many other important functions can not be done using only Siri and must be done using the app. I demonstrated the problems and offered suggestons on how the accessibility issues could easily be resolved. Unfortunately I was not given any commitment that the issues would be resolved and had the impression that my report was being considered more of a suggestion for an optional "nice to have" heature rather than a critical issue that prevents some customers from being able to fully use the product.
Hopefully iDevices will correct the accessibility issues in an app update in the near future so I will not have to return what appears to otherwise be an excellent product. Anyone interested in contacting iDevices to encourage them to fix the accessibility issues with their iOS app can do so using the following contact information:
iDevices Inc.
Phone: 888-313-7019
Email: support@idevicesinc.com
Twitter: @idevices
Thank you for posting back. I am in the market for an accessible app and thermostat and appreciate being able to cross idevices off my list. Does anyone know if any apps allow voice over to read back room temperature? Have downloaded ecobee, Honeywell, and nest apps. Testing is inconclusive. Frankly, I'm not even sure if Apple HomeKit will read anything back....either with ecobee or idevices. Lulu2229
Comments
Major accessibility issues in the app
Since there was no type of demo mode available in the app I inquired with iDevices customer support regarding VoiceOver compatibility before purchasing the thermostat and was told that once the thermostat was installed and set up it could be fully operated and configured using VoiceOver. Unfortunately this is not correct. The app has a number of major accessibility issues that prevent using important functions such as setting the desired temperature, setting the operating mode for heat, cool, automatic, etc. and others.
I again contacted iDevices customer support to explain the problems and initially was advised to just use Siri to operate the thermostat. While that does work well for basic things like setting the temperature many other important functions can not be done using only Siri and must be done using the app. I demonstrated the problems and offered suggestons on how the accessibility issues could easily be resolved. Unfortunately I was not given any commitment that the issues would be resolved and had the impression that my report was being considered more of a suggestion for an optional "nice to have" heature rather than a critical issue that prevents some customers from being able to fully use the product.
Hopefully iDevices will correct the accessibility issues in an app update in the near future so I will not have to return what appears to otherwise be an excellent product. Anyone interested in contacting iDevices to encourage them to fix the accessibility issues with their iOS app can do so using the following contact information:
iDevices Inc.
Phone: 888-313-7019
Email: support@idevicesinc.com
Twitter: @idevices
Thankyou
Matthew,
Thank you for posting back. I am in the market for an accessible app and thermostat and appreciate being able to cross idevices off my list. Does anyone know if any apps allow voice over to read back room temperature? Have downloaded ecobee, Honeywell, and nest apps. Testing is inconclusive. Frankly, I'm not even sure if Apple HomeKit will read anything back....either with ecobee or idevices. Lulu2229