WCAG reviews on screens are Velocity’s most popular review, but starting today, we are trialling personas to simulate the effects of visual impairment upon entire user journeys. In the short time we’ve been testing with personas that simulate limited vision, it’s been fascinating to see interfaces from a different perspective.  

Consider this loading screen. A loading indicator and written reinforcement set a clear expectation for users to wait some time before proceeding. So why then when testing with a limited vision persona are they so intent on clicking on the area below the loading? The activity starts to make sense when we can see the effect of a visual impairment: the area being clicked could be a button to proceed. 

Challenge limited vision personas on your Figma prototypes 🔗
The accessible persona is currently in beta and selectable only after running a default simulation. Select the accessible persona in the header.

Next steps with accessible personas

Thanks to our friends at Hassell inclusion, for highlighting how many enterprises are adopting accessibility conformance reports (ACR) and, within them, VPATs and templates that translate a world of standards (e.g., Section 508 and other legal frameworks) into actionable testing criteria for products and services. Within the VPATs, we are particularly interested in simulating:

• Limited vision
• Without perception of colour
• Limited cognition, language or learning

We’d love to hear your feedback through all the usual channels.