Google Voice Access lets you tap and scroll through apps, fingers deemed unnecessary

Google Voice gets better with every update, but one thing it can’t do is control your phone outside of search and some basic app commands. That why Google’s now released Voice Access, which allows you to tap and scroll your way through your phone without ever touching it, at last freeing you from those dastardly fingers.

The basic concept behind it is simple: Voice Access places a series of numbers around items on your screen, and you can tell the phone to tap a certain number to allow an interaction to happen.

It’s meant for users with disabilities such as hand tremors or paralysis, but it’s not hard to see how it could come in handy if your hands are occupied while cooking, or even if you just have a temporary injury.

I’ve only been to play around with it for a few minutes, but it works really well so far. It’s even smart enough to let you do things like scroll, long-press, click next, open apps or return to the homescreen – it’s pretty much like giving instructions to someone on what to do with your phone while you’re driving.

The app is currently only available as a beta, so you’ll have to sign up as a tester. So far though, it’s surprisingly robust, and it’s worth giving a go if you’re someone who’d seriously benefit from the accessibility features or just find coordinating ten appendages at once too exhausting.