ONEPLUS
How to use Select to Speak and text-to-speech on a OnePlus (OxygenOS 16)
In short
Go to Settings, Accessibility, Vision. Select to Speak reads selected text aloud once you turn on its shortcut. Text-to-speech settings sets the voice engine, speech rate and pitch, with Play sample.
5 of 5 steps show a real screenshot from our Nord 5. Each step was checked against the maker's own instructions, linked at the end.
Steps
- 1
Open Select to Speak
Open Settings, Accessibility, the Vision tab and tap Select to Speak.
- 2
Turn on its shortcut
Shortcut was Off on ours. Turn it on to add a button; tap it, then tap text to hear it.
- 3
Open Text-to-speech settings
Go back to Vision.
- 4
Set speed and pitch
Ours used Speech Recognition and Synthesis from Google; Language said Use system language.
- 5
Tap Play sample
Hear the voice.
If you do not see this option
- OxygenOS 14 (OnePlus manual)? The manual has Settings, Additional settings, Accessibility, Vision. Ours has Accessibility straight in Settings. Source: OxygenOS 14.0 User Manual
- Read the whole screen? TalkBack reads everything.
- Select to Speak not in the list? Google's help says to update Android Accessibility Suite from Google Play, then look again. Source: Use Select to Speak
If this does not work
- No voice? Check media volume.
- Starts by itself? The Select to Speak page says an app with accessibility on can launch automatically, regardless of auto-launch settings.
- Shortcut does nothing? Google's help lists a two-finger swipe up as one shortcut, or three fingers when TalkBack is on. If you chose the Accessibility button, look for it on screen and tap that instead.
- Will not read a web page? Google notes that Select to Speak may not work with every mobile web browser. Try the same page in another browser.
- Stops when you scroll or switch apps? Turn on Read in background in Select to Speak's own Settings. It then keeps reading while you move around.
- Wrong accent or language? Language was set to Use system language on ours. Pick a specific language under Language in Text-to-speech settings. Our page had no Install voice data row.
Good to know
Use the accessibility button on a OnePlus.
Once the shortcut is on, Select to Speak waits until you start it, then reads only what you tap or drag across. Tap Play to hear everything on the screen; the player lets you pause, skip and change speed. Changes to speed, pitch and voice in Text-to-speech settings are used by apps that rely on the phone's text-to-speech engine, which can include navigation or e-book apps. To stop using it, turn the shortcut off again on the Select to Speak page.
If you like starting it with a button, see how to set up the accessibility button and shortcuts.
About this guide
- Device
- Android
- Shown on
- OnePlus Nord 5 (CPH2709), OxygenOS 16.0.5.1201, Android 16
- App
- Settings
- Path
- Settings › Accessibility › Vision
- Real screenshots
- 5 of 5 steps
- Checked
- October 2026
- Sources
- 3 official, linked below
Sources
Links checked October 2026. Menus and features can change with updates.Spotted a mistake? Menus change with updates, and we want every step to match your screen. Email us about this page or use the contact form. We read every report, and fixes are listed on What changed.
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