The iPad Mini

Apple last week just announced the newest lineup of iPads, one of which is a smaller, thinner, and lighter iPad called the iPad Mini. The iPad mini is the newest in the line of iOS tablets, and comes with the same features as the iPad 2, and starts at $329.00.

Why would the iPad Mini be good for blind users?

While the iPad (4th generation) is a great device, it still costs as much as any of the previous iPads, and really does not add anything new for blind users at this point. The iPad Mini is a smaller device that runs the same apps as the larger iPad, and is $170 cheaper than the bigger variant. The Mini also allows for a user to find things on the screen easier since there is not as big of an area so the user does not have to search everywhere to find something small.

Why the iPad Mini instead of the iPad 2?

Apple is still selling the iPad 2, but it still has the same screen size as the 4th generation iPad without the same features. The iPad 2 also does not have Siri, which does run on the iPad Mini. This makes the Mini a great device for users wanting SIRI without paying the extra for the 4th generation iPad.

Conclusion

The iPad Mini allows blind user the ability to afford an iPad without paying the full amount that users have had to pay with previous iPads. The device still runs VoiceOver, and also has Siri built in. This device starts at $329.00, and will give the user the flexibility of the iPad 2 and iPad 3rd generation.

 

Fleksy – Does Fleksy change the way the blind uses the iPhone?

So now that Fleksy has been released for a few weeks now, I would like to look at the app, and see if it measures up to the hype that surrounded it at #NFB12?

How does Fleksy work?

Fleksy is a new keyboarding app for iOS that allows blind or visually impaired users to type on any iPhone or iPod touch. Once the user loads the app, Fleksy loads the speech engine and then brings up a text box and the on scren keyboard. Once loaded, a user can then tap on the screen where they think the character they need would be, and then the the user swipes right to complete the word they just typed. Once the user swipes right the app tries to guess what word they typed and puts it on the screen. swiping down will go to the next suggestion, and swiping left will delete the word. swiping right again will add punctuation.

thoughts

So how well does it work? Fleksy has proven to be a very accurate app. I believe it has up to 90% accuracy The speech is good, and it is very responsive. Several users have said they do not like the price of the app, but for the licensing and technology needed to build this app I can see why this is needed. There are still some things I do not like though. First, I think we should have an iPad version of this. This app will work on the iPad, but the app will still need to be doubled to be used in full screen on the iPad, which lowers accuracy. I urge the makers of Fleksy to please make an iPad app. I would also like to see some saving abilities. Local and iCloud saving would be an excellent thing to add. I would love to see the load times fixed to be a bit quicker, but I do understand why this happens.

Conclusion

Fleksy is a great new app to help the blind and visually impaired type quickly. Even though this is the best audience, I do think that this app could be used in other applications. I think that if the makers wanted a more broad audience, then they would market this app as a fully eyes-free capable app for sighted users who need to keep their eyes on the road or who need to watch where they are going while walking. Even though the app has a lot of new features and is very useful, I think it would be very worth the price if it has some of the features mentioned above. Despite the price, I recommend everyone get this app and support these guys. I also would recomend any iOS developers check out their APIs for their own apps.

#NFB2012 – Welcome!

If you have heard abut this site from this year’s NFB convention in Dallas, I strongly urge you to subscribe to this site, so you can receive updates on new products, reviews and general iOS news. I hope everyone enjoys the site, and their time at the convention. It only comes around once a year! I hope to see everyone again around the Anatole.

Fleksy – A new way of using a keyboard on mobile devices!

Yesterday, I was able to get a look at the new keyboarding technology from Fleksy. Fleksy is going to be a new app for iOS that lets the user type text without having to use exact placement fingers on the screen. All you have to do is tap where you think letters should be and type a full word, and the app will predict which word you are trying to type. After trying this system, I believe that this app/technology is at least 90% accurate.

How does it work?

Fleksy is a simple and intuitive new technology that lets you type without having to find keyboard keys. To start, you start trying to type a word. Once you are done, swipe right and the app will predict what you typed. If that word is not correct, swipe down or up to get more suggestions. The swipe right also puts a space, and there is also commands to add punctuation as well. Swipe left will also delete the word you just typed.

Conclusion

Fleksy is an incredible new technology that will be making its way to the iOS app store very shortly. The developers have also said they would like to create APIs for other developers to use their technology in other apps. I plan to add Fleksy technology to all future app releases I come out with, and would love to see other developers do the same. If you are here at the 2012 National Federation of the Blind convention, try and find one of their representatives and they will give you a demonstration.

NFB Convention 2012

If you are at the National Federation of the Blind convention this year in Dallas, you can find me around the hotel this week with information on the best Braille apps for your iOS device. If you would also like help with getting used to your device, try and find me. My name is Michael Doise, and I will be around the Hilton Anatole this week. You can also pick up information from the NFB of Texas suite or from the convention information table.

 

I hope to see you this week, and I hope everyone enjoys the convention!

Diet Coda

I have always felt that the iPad would be a perfect device for Web Design, but I have not yet found the perfect web editor to accomplish this. I have tried Markup, Gusto and others to accomplish this but none of these completely made a great experience as some editors on the Mac or PC could. On Mac OS X, Panic Software wrote a wonderful piece of software called Coda that has been around for many years. Now, Panic has brought Coda to the iPad and has called it Diet Coda. Diet Coda lets a web developer write code and upload that code directly to a web server. This app also lets a user login to their web server through SSH for server administration needs. So how well does this app work for VoiceOver users?

Diet Coda as good as it is, does not allow for much VoiceOver support. The app is very graphical in nature, but Panic Software did not label all of its buttons to work well with VoiceOver. This is very obvious from the beginning. Once a user sets up a site, It is impossible for a user to pick which site they want to work with, because Diet Coda does not have text labels or accessibility hints to help the user figure out which site they are selecting.

Other than that the app is lacking a few features I think would make this app Stellar. One of these include the ability to have offline site storage like Coda for Mac OS X. I also think that iCloud or Dropbox support would also go a long way to make users happy.

Conclusion

While Diet Coda is a great app, I cannot recommend it for very low vision or blind users, because of the lack of VoiceOver support. Otherwise, this is a very good app except for the essential need for Internet support. If your iPad does not have internet, then this app will be useless to you. This is why I feel this app needs to have offline support. Otherwise the feature set provided by Diet Coda is a great benefit to any on the go web developer.

Brookstone iConvert Scanner for iPad 2 and the new iPad

With the iPad 2 and the New iPad, many hardware and gadget vendors have decided to build all new accessories to enhance the use of our favorite tablet. One device that I have recently purchased is the new iConvert Scanner from Brookstone. This device lets a user connect their iPad to a document feed scanner device available only at Brookstone. With this device, a user may scan documents and photos straight to the iPad.

How does it work?

The iConvert scanner is a device that plugs in to AC/DC power with an included power cord. Once the device is plugged in, the user places the iPad in the stand on top of the device, and then holds down the scanner’s power button for 3 seconds. Once this is complete, the scanner is primed and ready to accept documents. To use this device, go to the iTunes App Store from your iPad, and look up the iConvert app from Brookstone, which is free of charge. Download this app and then start it from your home screen. Once you have started the app, look around the screen using VoiceOver. There are several settings in here but the main thing we want to find is the scanner status and the scan button. The scanner status will tell us if the scanner is connected and working, and the scan button will let the user scan a document. Before you double or split tap the scan button take your document, and set the margins on the scanner to fit the size of your paper. Then, take your paper, and gently start feeding it in to the scanner. If the scanner is on, the feeder will grab your paper and move it in to the scanner proper alignment. Now, we can press the scan button on the iPad. While this process is going, sit back and wait. This should not take longer than 3 to 5 seconds, Once done, find the save button on the screen. This button will be in the same place as the scan button. Once you tap the save button, your scanned document will be saved to the camera roll for further use. The saved image is at 300dpi, so you will have a clean and crisp version of your document.

Conclusion

Even with a price tag of $140.00 the iPad scanner is a great and crisp scanning solution for mobile devices. Eventually, I would love to see Brookstone come out with a bluetooth version of this that will work for the iPhone and iPad, but this is pretty nice as it is. In my next post, I will really give the argument why this is really handy for the blind, and yet, it does have to do with OCR.

ATSource now on Twitter.

If you would like to keep up with how the ATSource project is going, then keep checking back here, but you can now follow @ATSourceApp on Twitter for the most up to date information. I will have at atsource.info up soon as well, and then the iOS and Android versions will follow.

Netflix is back for the blind!

Netflix just updated their app yesterday with two neat things. First is pretty obvious. Netflix now works with the retina display on the new iPad, but the second thing is the best for those who are blind. Netflix adds on their change screen for their update that they have added better support for VoiceOver users. I am not sure what that means, but it sounds like they have made netflix work with VoiceOver again on iDevices. I would love to hear readers thoughts on this or if they have seen it work better now.

Next Project

Now that the first version of Blind Bargains for iOS is complete, I think the next project on the table for me will be a project I have wanted to make for a while, which is ATSource. ATSource will be a resource that lets blind, visually impaired, and sighted users find resources online for accessibility for mobile devices such as the iPhone, iPod, iPad, and all variants of Android based devices. I will be asking many organizations content they would like to provide or contribute to this app, so if you are a provider of assistive technology, or are someone in the area of helping blind users work with their mobile device, then I m looking for you.

What will this app provide?

1) First, we will provide app links to many different assistive technology resource apps on these devices.

2) We will provide rss feeds to other resources on the net that will bring you the latest in blindness and assistive technology news.

3) We will give you links to organizations that sell products for the blind and visually impaired.

4) We will provide links to social outlets of these companies so you may connect with them to learn more and to contact someone for more information.

I hope everyone enjoys this new app when it is complete. I will have a better description up at the new home of ATSource at http://www.atsource.info