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.

Favorite Apps of 2010

Hey Everyone.

I figured I would share with everyone which apps I used the most in 2010, and would like to hear what apps you have used this year.

1. ZumoCast

ZumoCast has proven an invaluable app for my daily use. I can access all of my files from home, and listen to media while on the go. I usually use this app on the iPad instead of the iPhone though.

2. The Weather Channel.

I use this app every day to find out how the weather will be as I head off to work. I really like the organization of this app, except  I do not like some of the VoiceOver labels.

3. Unibus (iBus-Mobile)

Even though this app went down for a while, it is still the best app for finding out the next bus times for a particular stop.

4. AOL Radio

AOL Radio is an awesome streaming music app from CBS. It may not be the most stable app, but the channels are good and it is free. They even have channels that you can’t find anywhere else, like the video game sound track channel.

5. VLC Media Player

VLC Media Player is one of my favorite media players for the PC and Mac. Now it is for iOS. VLC for iOS allows you to play just as many video formats as you can on your own computer. This is a good app for iPad users, and is also good in conjunction with ZumoCast.

6. Audible

The Audible app is a good way to download your Audible books straight to your iDevice. You can even get achievements for listening to books!

7. iWork for iOS

iWork for iPad is a fully featured Office Suite. It is still good for on the go use, but can do any desktop based work if a bluetooth keyboard is present.

8. IM+ for iOS

IM+ is the best instant message app for VoiceOver users. with IM+ you can chat with people from almost any network. You also only have to have one app instead of a special VoiceOver only app like Fring.

9. Facebook for iOS

Facebook for iOS is an awesome app for social networking. the sections are well designed, and in a design similar to the iOS home screen.

10. Prizmo for iOS

Prizmo has to be one of my favorite apps for iOS. With Prizmo, a user may scan documents by taking pictures of each document, and then convert that document to text, business cards and more. I am also waiting to see how DocuScan for iOS will do from Serotek Corporation when it is released on the App Store.

Conclusion

So those are several of the apps that I like, and use every day. I would love to know what apps everyone else is using on a daily basis, so please leave comments with your favorite choices.

Guide: Use Prizmo OCR Scanning with iPad

Last week, I wrote a review on this blog about Prizmo, one of the best OCR applications for iOS. Prizmo however, has one major issue, and that is that it can’t be used on a device without a camera. Well, hang on a minute, maube it can. Prizmo offers several scanning abilities, which usually involve camers, but it also will allow for other methods as well.

What you will need.

• An iPad
• iPad Camera Connection Kit
• iPhone, or any digital camera
• Text Document

Step 1: obtaining the document

You will first need to use your iPhone or camera to take a picture of your text document. Higher resolution cameras will give you better quality in Prizmo. Try and get the best and straightest image as possible.

Step 2: importing the Document

You will now need to use the iPad Camera Connection Kit to get your document’s image on to your iPad. Plug in your camera’s SD card to the SD card reader, or use the usb connector to connect your camera to the iPad. Once you do this, the Photos app will be opened, and the choice to import will be available. Import any or all pictures to the iPad, and disconnect the camera or SD card.

Step 3: Document Conversion

Now, you can open Prizmo. Once Prizmo is open, select Text, Business card, or Bill depending on which item you have scanned. You will then be presented with the option to use an image from the photo albums. Select this option, and then find your document in the latest import folder. Once you have selected your document, tap the “use” button. You now can change the perspective, dimensions and angle of the document for better scanning conditions. Once you are satisfied, click next, and Prizmo will attempt to scan your document.

Conclusion

It seems like a lot of work to have OCR on the iPad, but if you don’t have an iPhone, you really have no alternative at this point. This method can also be useful if you have an iPhone or iPad, but would like to use a better digital camera for better scanning quality.

Prizmo – One more step towards Accessible iPhone OCR.

Lately, we have been seeing a few Assistive Technology applications reach the iPhone via the App Store, Some of these include Digit-Eyes, SayText, and etcetera. Now we have Prizmo.

Prizmo is a well established OCR (Optical Character Recognition) application for the Macintosh. Prizmo for the Mac was designed to take in images through a scanner, and return editable text to the user. This week, we now see the release of Prizmo for the iPhone

How does it work?

When launched, Prizmo asks what kind of text is to be scanned. This can be plain text, a business card, a bill, a whiteboard, or to bring up the text reader. You may also view your saved documents from this screen. Each choice allows for better scanning clarity for that particular item. When you select an item, a few more choices will be presented. Prizmo will then ask where the image should be gathered from. Your options here are camera, photo album, or pase the image from the clipboard. After inserting the picture, you will be given many changeable options to increase the quality of the image. Once scanned, the program will take a short time to convert your image to text, which can then be read by voiceover.

Below are the summeries of the main menu options.

1. Text – Text mode will let you scan a printed page and read it with VoiceOver, or with the Reader option.
2. Business Card - Scanning a business card will take all found text, and create a new contact in your phone based on what is on the business card.
3. Bill – Scanning a bill will add multiple text entries for easy review of billed items.
4. Whiteboard – This option will allow a user to scan a whiteboard in an office, or school. It then will convert all information to text.
5. Reader – The reader section will allow you to read saved text documents with one of the 35 voices that can be purchased through Prizmo. These are standard Vocalizer voices, and are not half bad.
6. Documents – The Documents section will allow you to view, and maintain your saved documents.

VoiceOver Compatibility

All sections of this software work with VoiceOver. All buttons have proper labels, and all areas are spoken clearly.

Possible Issues

The only possible problem may be that the app does not have any way to tell a visually impaired user how to center their camera for the clearest picture.

Price

Prizmo costs $9.99 in the App Store which is vastly more expensive then the competition of SayText.

Final observations and conclusions

Prizmo, already being an established OCR application, does not fall short of expectations. The scanning quality is excellent as far as I can tell, and the programs functionality comes very close to the kind of functionality found on other established phones for a lot less cost.