One of my favorite quotes from the chapter Design Meets Disability by Graham Pullin, is "it is technology as a means to an end, not an end in itself ". "Design depends largely on constraints." - Charles Eames's disability inspired design also catalyzed a wider design culture. Constraints arise from both user needs and desires and from technical feasibility and business viability. A good design indicates a healthy balance between problem solving by recognizing the constraints and exploring freedoms by challenging the constraints. There are a lot of tensions between design for fashion and design for disabilities. The positive image of disability is achieved without discretion(invisibility) in the field of eyewear while design of hearing aids indicates priority of invisibility, and its functionality is in conflict with its miniaturization. Other wearable devices for disability such as prosthetics could support more positive image of disability, through emulating the approach of eyewear.
Social contexts need to be considered depending on how things are worn/where on the body they are worn. They are used not just for correction/improvement but also as wearable which presents a person's look. Wearer's choices reflects their individual identities.Therefore, there should be more designers who bring their fashion cultures with them to design something for disabilities. There is always new perspectives that challenge the generally accepted approach, and designers should be constantly pushing those boundaries
There is also a trade-off between simplicity and universality. It is simplicity that allows a design to communicate its purpose and use of the product. The result is highly accessible but not necessarily universal. And consumers choose reductions in feature over complex designs.