Optimizing Mobile Reading Experience: Adaptive Font Size Adjustment in a Context-Aware Application

Abstract

The reading experience on a mobile device can be influenced by many external elements that affect the viewing conditions. The user holding position, operating style, and the light conditions of the surroundings can all play a crucial factor in the legibility of the text. Furthermore, the user’s eye conditions may be an extra factor to consider when determining how to improve the reading experience. This study presents a context-aware application that adjusts the text font size based on the distance between the user and the device. The users select their preferred font size at certain distances in the calibration phase, accounting for individual preferences or their eye conditions, and the application uses the device’s front camera to calculate the distance in real time and adjust the font size accordingly. We present implementation details and challenges faced during development and how they were addressed. A two-part experiment ([Formula: see text] = 34) revealed that the application scored an excellent usability score while no differences were found between users with and without eye conditions, showing that both user groups find it equally usable. Additionally, initial results suggest that the visual landmarks used showed a promising start at addressing issues related to our approach.