[Electronics-Talk] Accessible cable TV

Mon May 18 20:27:01 UTC 2026

Yes, audio description is available, but you need to enable it on a per channel basis, there's no universal audio description toggle unfortunately.

Jonathan Mosen
Executive Director for Accessibility Excellence
National Federation of the Blind 
410-659-9314 ex 2233   
jmosen at nfb.org

Reminder: Attend National Convention, July 3-8, 2026, in Austin, Texas.
“It’s the time of year where blind people are the majority.”

-----Original Message-----
From: Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Lori Motis via Electronics-Talk
Sent: Monday, May 18, 2026 1:22 PM
To: electronics-talk at nfbnet.org
Cc: Lori Motis <ljm2561 at gmail.com>; electronics-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Accessible cable TV

those that have YouTube TV can you get audio description on any of your channels?
Thanks for any info,

> On May 18, 2026, at 9:03 AM, Christopher Chaltain via Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> I switched to YouTube TV myself, and one of the reasons was accessibility. Another was price, but that’s not as true as it used to be. YouTube TV is also accessible on multiple platforms, so for example, I can watch something on my iPhone or use my iPhone to make sure something is recorded so I can watch it at home later. Obviously, streaming and cutting the cord isn’t for everyone.
> 
> —
> Christopher (AKA CJ) Chaltain
> chaltain at Outlook
> 
> On May 18, 2026, at 9:54 AM, Mosen, Jonathan via Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hello everyone, YouTube TV could be a viable option here. On several platforms I've tested it, it is accessible, gives you full channel navigation and a DVR.
> 
> Jonathan Mosen
> Executive Director for Accessibility Excellence National Federation of 
> the Blind
> 410-659-9314 ex 2233
> jmosen at nfb.org
> 
> Reminder: Attend National Convention, July 3-8, 2026, in Austin, Texas.
> “It’s the time of year where blind people are the majority.”
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf 
> Of Gerald Levy via Electronics-Talk
> Sent: Monday, May 18, 2026 7:26 AM
> To: Tracy Carcione via Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Gerald Levy <bwaylimited at verizon.net>
> Subject: Re: [Electronics-Talk] Accessible cable TV
> 
> 
> No, a smart TV won't solve your problem because the voice guide feature that announces channel number and program name and DVR commands is controlled by your cable box.  If you want to use the built-in voice guide feature of a smart TV (most Samsung models have this feature), you would have to give up Optimum Cable so that you could bypass the box and either receive TV channels over the air using an antenna or else sign up with one or more streaming services, which could actually wind up costing more over the long term than Optimum's cable service.  And unless you have another cable operator in your area, you are stuck with Optimum, which may be an absolute monopoly where you live.
> 
> 
> Gerald
> 
> 
> 
> On 5/18/2026 9:16 AM, Tracy Carcione via Electronics-Talk wrote:
> For a long time, we had software on our Optimum cable box that would 
> announce the channel and what was playing, and I could also use it to 
> access the DVR.
> 
> Optimum doesn't support it anymore, and their new cable box doesn't 
> have any accessibility at all.
> 
> They think that maybe a smart TV would have it, but I don't know.
> 
> If I buy a smart TV, and turn on Talkback or whatever it has, will it 
> tell me what's playing on a channel and have ways to access the DVR?
> 
> For instance, I was able to move through the shows on a channel until 
> I found the one I wanted to record, then hit record.  Later, I could 
> go into the DVR, scroll through the recordings, find the one I wanted, 
> watch it, then go through the menu to either keep it or delete it.
> Imagine that.  Can I get those same features on a smart TV?
> 
> I have 0 interest in using Alexa.
> 
> 
> 
> It's extremely annoying that Optimum had accessibility, and then just 
> ditched it completely.
> 
> Tracy
> 
> 
> 
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