Accessibility

Everyone should be able to ask "ashlonk?"

Last reviewed: 30 September 2026

We want Ashlonk to work for people who cannot see the screen, cannot hear a voice note, use one hand, or simply need bigger text. This page says where we are today, honestly, and how to tell us when we fall short.

01Our standard

We aim to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at level AA for this website and the equivalent platform guidance for the mobile app (Android accessibility guidelines and Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines). Right-to-left Arabic is a first-class layout, not a mirrored afterthought.

02What the app does

  • Screen readers. Every control has an Arabic and English label for TalkBack and VoiceOver, including the record button, message status ticks and call controls.
  • Text size. The app follows your system font size, up to 200%, without clipping.
  • Contrast. The palette is tuned to at least 4.5:1 for body text in both light and dark themes.
  • Voice notes. Automatic transcription of received voice notes (on-device, so end-to-end encryption is preserved) is in testing and will ship as an opt-in feature.
  • Motion. Animations respect the system "reduce motion" setting.
  • One-handed use. Primary actions sit within thumb reach; recording supports tap-to-lock so you do not have to hold the button.
  • Colour is never the only signal. Read receipts use shape and count as well as colour.

03What this website does

  • Semantic HTML with landmarks, one H1 per page and a logical heading order.
  • A "Skip to content" link as the first stop for keyboard and screen-reader users on every page.
  • All images carry descriptive alt text; decorative graphics are hidden from assistive technology.
  • Visible focus outlines and full keyboard operability — there is no JavaScript to break it. The sticky navigation never covers the element in focus.
  • Text meets the WCAG contrast minimums: at least 4.5:1 for body text and 3:1 for large headings.
  • Text scales with browser zoom to 400% without horizontal scrolling.
  • prefers-reduced-motion turns off every animation, including the animated logos, which then rest as the complete mark. The home page and the animation gallery in the press kit have a pause button that stops their looping animations for everyone else; animations that start on their own anywhere else finish within five seconds.
  • Proper lang and dir attributes so screen readers switch voices correctly between Arabic and English.

04Known gaps

  • Voice-note transcription is not yet available (see above).
  • Live captions on video calls are not supported yet.
  • Some third-party emoji and sticker packs lack descriptions.
  • The FAQ accordion on the Support page relies on the browser’s native <details> element; very old browsers show it expanded.

We will update this list as items are fixed.

05Tell us about a barrier

If something in Ashlonk is hard or impossible for you to use, please email support@ashlonk.com with the device, the assistive technology you use and what happened. Accessibility reports go to the front of the queue and we reply within 2 business days.