For those with vision loss, your iPhone or iPad screen may sometimes seem too bright, with faint black letters on an overwhelming white background. An Apple iPhone has some great accessibility features, but sometimes they are hard to find.
You have already turned down the brightness without success, but have you tried “Dark Mode”?
Here is how to turn on/off Dark Mode
Tap “Settings- Display & Brightness- Dark”
Or say: “Hey Siri, turn on Dark Mode”
To revert- say, “Hey Siri, turn on Light Mode”
If you haven’t enabled Siri:
Tap “Settings- Siri & Search”- (enable the methods you want)
While the iPhone Dark Mode setting offers white letters on a black background, it’s unavailable in all apps… even some Apple apps! For example, it works in; Phone, Messages, Contacts, and Email… BUT it does NOT WORK in Safari! Some third-party apps have a separate setting within the app to enable Dark Mode.
Here is the solution
However, there is a neat Accessibility feature called “Smart Invert Colors” that even works in Safari. My 96-year-old aunt says it works great.
Tap “Settings- Accessibility- Display & Text Size- Smart Invert”
Or say, “Hey Siri, turn on Invert Colors”
To revert- say, “Hey Siri, turn off Invert Colors”
Please note: I haven’t tested all the apps to see if any are not supported.
Optional- advanced solution for those needing a little help
If you are implementing this solution for someone who needs a more accessible way to invoke the Siri commands shown above, click on these two iOS Shortcut links that will allow them to say “Hey Siri, darker” and “Hey Siri, lighter” while using their iPhone or iPad to create these Shortcuts.
https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/4e33faf4ddd44295b7107a7de9725574
^^^^^ Click here for Darker Shortcut ^^^
https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/416d20f6e4bd407a9a6931f5e1ed6a69
^^^ Click here for Lighter Shortcut ^^^
Please note that these shortcuts can also be added as “widgets” to the home screen if they have difficulty saying any commands to Siri.
Adding Widgets
On your iPhone home screen, keep swiping right until you get the left-most screen (Today Screen)
· Hold your finger in a blank area until it starts “wiggling”
Tap the “+”
Scroll down and Tap “Shortcuts”
Tap “Add Widget”
Repeat for the second widget
Hold your finger on one of the duplicate widgets
Tap “Edit Widget” to choose the second shortcut
If you are reading an web-based online newspaper, the "Smart Invert Colors" accessibility feature works well.
It's easy to turn on/off if you implement the suggested "Darker & Lighter" Apple Shortcuts