Eye-Related Apps
On this page we list apps for Android devices, as well as for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. Some apps are free, while others cost a small amount. We haven't tried them all, so we recommend that you read the user reviews before you download.
We'll be adding more from time to time, so please visit again!
Vision Aids & Tests
EyeXam. The free EyeXam app for iPhone or iPod Touch lets you test your vision against the 20/20 benchmark and also includes tests for color perception, astigmatism and eye dominance.
EyeXam for Android EyeXam for Apple devices
Amsler Grid App. This app can help you test and monitor vision changes related to macular degeneration or other distortion in your vision field resulting from damage to the macula.
Big Clock HD. Need a really big clock? This app displays the time on your iPhone or iPad. It also displays the date in the region format and language that your device is set to.
Big Clock HD for Apple devices
Bigger Clock. This is similar to Big Clock HD, but it also has a programmable timer-based alarm.
Bigger Clock for Apple devices
EyeCBest. This web browser extension increases the readability of websites and is fully customizable. The user can change the font, size and boldness of any website text with just one click.
EyeCBest for Mac EyeCBest for PC
Giant Clock. The display is customizable, so you can change the text and background colors as desired.
Magnifying Glass. Just launch the program and point your phone to the object you are viewing, and this will magnify it. The application has a light as well, which activates only if your phone or tablet has a flash. It can also freeze-frame what you're viewing, so you don't have to keep holding the device steady while you read.
Magnifying Glass With Light. Much like the Magnifying Glass app for Android phones, this one for Apple devices is very handy. Great for magnifying small font on menus, medicine bottles, receipts and more, the app also has an adjustable flashlight option and image capture.
Magnifying Glass With Light for Apple devices
Visual Impairment & Blindness
Be My Eyes. Assist blind people with important, everyday tasks like reading labels, receipts and those really-hard-to-see product expiration dates. You can be a helper or sign up to be assisted if you are vision impaired. If you're a helper, you'll receive live audio-video requests from people who need assistance. Don't worry if you can't take a request — the app will move on to another available helper in the network.
Braille Tutor. The developer says this is a fun way to learn both contracted and uncontracted Unified English Braille (grades 1 and 2). You can even compete in time trials against your friends.
Braille Writer. This app translates your text into Braille and is a great tool for learning or teaching.
Braille Writer for Apple devices
NantMobile Money Reader. For the blind or visually impaired, this app uses the iPhone's camera to recognize currency, telling you the denomination in real time, without the need for an Internet connection. It helps make sure you're paying the proper amount at the register and can also check that you receive the right amount of change. Last time we checked, the app supported 21 currencies. English, Spanish, Mandarin, French, Italian, German, Russian, Japanese and several other languages are available for the voice-over feature.
NantMobile Money Reader for Apple devices
Pocket Braille. You can learn Braille with this, including the alphabet, numbers, contractions and one- and two-cell word signs.
Pocket Braille for Apple devices
Pricing & Reminder Apps
Contact Lens Tracker. This is a contact lens replacement app that helps you keep track of expiration and replacement dates for contact lenses. It seems simple and straightforward, and the main screen has a very large font, which can help with readability if you haven't put your new lenses in yet.
Contact Lens Tracker for Apple devices
MyTherapy Medication Reminder & Pill Tracker. This handy reminder for recurrent events can help you keep on top of your glaucoma medication doses, prescription eye drops for dry eyes and other medications you take throughout the day. You can also print health reports to discuss at your next doctor's appointment.
MyTherapy Medication Reminder for Android MyTherapy Medication Reminder for Apple devices
Pill Reminder by MediSafe. This is another medication reminder that works for eye drops, glaucoma drug doses and other medicines you're taking. It also educates you on your medication(s) and condition(s). Take the time to read the full description of this app, to avoid conflicts with other alarms you may have set on your smartphone.
MediSafe Pill Reminder for Android MediSafe Pill Reminder for Apple devices
Polaroid UV. During bright days, UV light can reflect off sand, water or snow and cause serious damage to your eyes. This app from Polaroid Eyewear alerts you of the UV index in your current area — reminding you to make sure you and your family members are wearing sunglasses.
WeRx. At WeRx.com you can compare prices charged at local pharmacies for your prescribed medications, so you'll never be stuck with paying the highest price again. This app is the mobile version, so you can check prices from anywhere — your doctor's office, while traveling or shopping, etc. You just enter your medication and your city or zip code. The app also offers instant savings on your mobile device.
Optical Illusions & Fun
iTint. This app measures how much visible light can pass through a transparent object. This is useful for sunglass shopping, because it helps you figure out whether a tint is too dark or too light for you. You can also make sure the tinted windows of your vehicle are legal in the state where you're located. The app includes U.S. state tint laws for automotive glass, for your reference.
Optical Illusions. This is a collection of 98 different optical illusions, with a description of each one. You can also email them to friends and share them on Facebook.
Optical Illusions 100+. These illustrations use hidden images, apparent movement and other fun tricks. Each has a description so you can figure out how the image is fooling your eyes. You can also share the images on Facebook and Twitter.
Optical Illusions 100+ for Apple devices
Color Vision Deficiency
Color Blind Pal. Touch a point in a picture, and the app will display the color name of that point. It also simulates color blindness so people with normal vision can see what it's like to be color blind. Not only does it tell you what the color names are, but this app has a Color Inspector that describes the color to help those who are color blind.
Color Blind Pal for Apple devices
ColorBlind Helper. This app identifies colors for people with color deficiencies. You take a photo of an object or scene, then touch a point in the picture, and the app will display the color name, RGB composition or hexadecimal code of the point you touched. The database had about 1,500 color names when we last checked.
ColorDeBlind. This app is for people who are color deficient, as well as those who would like to see how color deficient people see the world. It uses the graphics processor within your device to run advanced color manipulation algorithms, to help people distinguish colors better.
ColorDeBlind for Apple devices
Visolve. This app is helpful for color deficiencies. It makes certain colors in a photo taken by the camera (or saved in the photo album) brighter or darker, based on your criteria. For example, if you have trouble distinguishing between red and green, Visolve can make the redder colors brighter. Or it will darken all colors except the color you specify. Other options include drawing different hatch patterns on certain colors and increasing saturation of all the colors in the image.
Cosmetic & Try-On Apps
Air Optix Colors - Color Studio. This application from Alcon allows you to virtually try on various Air Optix color contact lenses. You can upload your own photo or use a model photo to see the different colors. You can also apply makeup to eyes, lips and face.
Air Optix Colors - Color Studio for Apple devices
Eye Color Booth. This photography app lets you change the eye color in a photo, to create fun, crazy or artistic effects. You can even change the eye color to rainbow or just see what you'd look like with a new eye color. One of the fun features is the ability to color the eyes, then render the rest of the photo in black and white.
Eye Color Studio. If you're thinking about getting colored contacts, or even theatrical contact lenses, this is a great app to try. You upload your photo, then click on different eye colors and effects to "try them on."
Eye Color Studio for Android Eye Color Studio for Apple devices
MakeUp. This app provides a virtual makeover. The Android version lets you various shades of eye makeup, as well as foundation, blush and lipstick, to your photograph. The before-and-after photo feature is fun, too. The updated version for Apple devices is different — it applies filters to your live video, which you can save as a video or as a still photo.
Quit-Smoking Apps
QuitNow! This app provides great motivation for quitting smoking. It keeps track of when the last time was that you smoked, how many cigarettes you have avoided and how much money you have saved by quitting.
Quit Smoking Now with Max Kirsten. Smoking is a risk factor for age-related macular degeneration, which can destroy your vision. And if you have dry eyes, then smoking will just irritate them more. Consider this app that adapts Max Kirsten's well-known smoking cessation program for Apple devices. There are many methods for quitting smoking, so read the description before you buy and decide if this one could help you.
Quit Smoking Now with Max Kirsten for Apple devices
Vision Development
BeeLine Reader. This app may help you increase your reading speed on the iPhone and iPad. It uses color gradients to tint the fonts in a book, article or other text to help draw your eye forward and reduce the chance of skipping lines or repeat-reading. The developers say that it could even help people with ADD, dyslexia or vision impairments, and they offer a reading challenge on their website so you can see if your reading speed really does increase. A desktop browser extension and PDF reader are also available.
BeeLine Reader for Apple devices
Page published on Saturday, April 6, 2019
