Android Apps for Complex Communication Support Needs

The iPad is well established as a communication tool, but Android tablets (and smartphones) are being used more often, especially in the home situation, therefore useful to consider:

• Android tablets are generally less expensive than iPads
• The Android Operating System is less tightly controlled than the Apple iOS, so some apps, eg. text-to-speech voices, can work across most apps in an Android device, unlike the iPad where voices have to be downloaded separately for each app.
• There are many more AAC apps available for the iPad.
• There is a wide variation of Android tablet types, some with individualised Android Operating Systems and some with their own bespoke App store. Therefore, there is no guarantee that every AAC app for Android will work on all tablets/Operating Systems.
• Some Android devices cannot be upgraded to the latest version of the Operating System, so some apps won't work on them.

An accessible breakdown of this PDF poster is available further down the page.