New Microsoft app Color Binoculars helps the color blind distinguish difficult colors

One of the many innovative uses for smartphones is helping the color-blind better distinguish difficult color combinations. There are other apps like it, but this hasn't stopped Microsoft from launching Color Binoculars, its own take on the concept.

Available for iOS, it's designed to help color-blind individuals distinguish a broader color spectrum. It's supposed to work for anyone suffering from the three most common forms of color blindness (protanomaly, deuteranomaly, and tritanomaly). Color Binoculars has been developed by two Microsoft software engineers, one of which is color-blind himself.

The app uses the smartphone's camera to adjust colors in real-time, making them easier for the color-blind to recognize. As the corrected image shows up on the smartphone's screen, it can be used for help with choosing a matching outfit, a present, a pair of flowers, and other activities which require on proper color-picking.

Color Binoculars is currently available on iOS. It's not known whether the app will be ported to Android and Windows.

Download Color Binoculars on iOS