[iandanforth]

Senses are defined by what they sense, not how they are sensed. A person can have their sight partially restored through implants that bypass rod/cone activation. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6934168/

[meindnoch]

That's still signaling through the optic nerve.

If they would restore vision by using e.g. the cochlear nerve, that would be something.