Which iPod models support "Spoken Menus" for greater accessibility? How do I turn on "Spoken Menus"?

"Spoken Menus" are an accessibility option introduced with the iPod nano 4th Gen and supported by the iPod nano 5th Gen as well. The 32 GB and 64 GB configurations of the "Late 2009" iPod touch 3rd Gen, iPod touch 4th Gen, iPod touch "4.5" Gen and the iPod nano 6th Gen support an even more advanced "VoiceOver" screen reader -- "the world’s first gesture-based screen reader" -- a very worthy addition for the visually impaired.

Apple explains that the iPod nano 4th Gen and 5th Gen provide four accessibility options not provided by earlier models:

• Spoken menus allow listeners to hear many of the names of menus, song titles, and artists without viewing the screen.
• An alternative large font can make menus easier to read.
• A high-resolution LCD display with adjustable contrast and backlight settings makes it easier to read in low light.
• Captions in video are displayed when they are present using a legible, high-contrast white-on-black font.

Each of these are wonderful additions for the blind and those with vision impairments, but the spoken menus feature in particular makes the iPod available to customers who were unable to use the device in the past.

To turn on "Spoken Menus", An Apple Support Document explains that this must be done through iTunes 8 (or higher), rather than on the iPod itself:

1. Open iTunes 8 and connect iPod nano (4th [or 5th] generation).
2. Select iPod nano under Devices on the left side of the iTunes window.
3. Click the Summary tab and then select the checkbox to Enable spoken menus for accessibility.
4. Click Apply in the lower right corner of iTunes.

iTunes 8 and later are "screen-reader friendly" as well with support for VoiceOver on the Mac and GW-Micro Window-Eyes 7.0 on Windows.

For more details regarding accessibility on iPod models, iTunes, and MacOS X, you may also wish to consult iPod & iTunes Vision, a section of the general Apple Accessibility site.

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