Study Shows That iPads Help People With Vision Loss Read Faster, More Comfortably
A study was presented at the 116th annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology yesterday that shows the benefit of backlit tablet computers like the iPad help patients with vision loss due to eye diseases read at a comfortable level again.
The study looked at all backlit tablets, scoring the iPad highest in terms of helping readers with low vision due to conditions like macular degeneration or diabetic retinopathy read at their previously higher and more comfortable reading level.
Users with moderate vision loss were shown to have increased their reading speed by an average of 15 words per minute using an iPad over time. Those with a higher degree of vision loss of 20/40 or worse in both eyes show the most improvement using iPad style tablets as compared to using print to read. iPad users were shown to improve their reading speed by a minimum of 42 words per minute over using print materials, when font size was equalized to an 18 point font.
