Applevis Podcast

In this short AppleVis episode, host Scott Davert walks through how to bind a custom braille display command that instantly announces and brailles the current date and time on an iPhone. The motivation is simple: while the lock screen shows the time, that isn’t always convenient; a dedicated braille command lets you check the time anywhere without leaving what you’re doing.The conversation centers on VoiceOver’s braille command customization inside iOS. Scott explains that, as of this recording, iOS does not offer an equivalent mapping for a connected QWERTY keyboard or a native touchscreen gesture; he hopes Apple adds those options later. He also points out a brief “silent” behavior in one of the command menus where speech may stop speaking; there’s a quick recovery keystroke for that. Finally, he clarifies that longer braille displays can show the entire date and time on one line, while shorter displays (like 20-cell units) may require a single pan forward to reveal all details.Step-by-step: Assign a braill