Google has announced a new accessibility feature that can help you read articles on websites much better. It relieves unnecessary pop-ups, auto-play videos, ads, and other distractions. This feature is not on by default, so you must download Reading Mode and enable it.
Many people face the common issue of website content being leaked by ads and distracting elements, which makes it difficult to focus on the article. Instead of getting irritated, you can use Google’s Reading Mode, available for Android phones. So, let’s see how to use Google Reading Mode. Without further ado, let’s take a closer look at this feature.
How to use Google Reading Mode on Android
This is quite an easy and straightforward feature, and using it is even easier. It can be enabled with a simple two-finger swipe. This feature is required to have Android 9 or newer, and it supports English, French, Spanish, or Italian.
The company announced it last year, but now it is generally available.
- First, install Google Reading Mode from the Google Play Store on your Android phone.
- Then, go to Settings and enable the Reading Mode Shortcut under Accessibility.
- After enabling it, it will ask you to grant permission to view what’s on the device’s screen.
- By default, a virtual button will appear all the time, but you can switch from the virtual button to a two-finger swipe-up gesture by pressing the button to Read More to get the Select More options link to appear under the option to switch.
- To use it, simply go to the website whose article you want to read, then perform a two-finger swipe at the bottom of the screen to switch to a reading mode for that article.
After enabling, it will first go through all the highlights, and there will be a cogwheel in the bottom-left corner for customization options for text and audio. The middle play button is to play audio for the article, and the TT is for adjusting the font size. In the settings, you can change the color, font size, bold, line space, voice, and reading speed.
To use Reading mode, go to the article you want to read and swipe up from the bottom using two fingers. Once enabled, you get several customization features, such as adjusting the typeface, font size, color, and spacing. In addition, Google Reading Mode also offers a text-to-speech option, which means you can listen to the article, adjust the speed, and switch between different voices.
Unlike other browser-built features, this feature is not available in all browsers but is supported by Chrome and some other browsers. This accessibility feature is helpful for users as it eliminates distractions such as images, links, ads, pop-ups, videos, and other unnecessary elements. It is better to use an extension for a better experience with customization.
While using Reading Mode, it is important to note that notifications will be disabled when this mode is active. Additionally, a handy feature called “Read Later” allows you to read the article later.
If you enjoy reading news on websites, you should definitely give Artefact a try. Although it doesn’t have this feature, it does offer AI-powered features such as article summarization and a Read Article feature, which is quite useful. This feature works in any browser and should be built into Android devices.
If you have trouble using Reading Mode, ensure you have the latest version of Google’s Speech Service and update it through Google Play. If you have already turned on Voice and Switch Access before Reading Mode, this small addition can improve your quality of life.
We hope this article has helped enable Reading Mode on your device. Thank you for being with us. Please feel free to share your concerns in the comments below. Stay tuned for future updates!
