all categories Deals, Sales, and News

As one of its daily deals, Amazon offers the Unlocked Asus ZenFone 2 Deluxe 128GB 4G LTE Android Smartphone for $269 with free shipping. That's the lowest total price we could find by $106. This GSM phone features a 5.5 inch 1920x1080 IPS touchscreen, Intel Atom Z3580 2.3GHz quad-core processor, 128GB internal memory, 4GB RAM, 13-megapixel rear- and 5-megapixel front-facing cameras, 802.11ac wireless, Bluetooth 4.0, microSD card slot, and Android 5.0 (Lollipop) OS. Deal ends today.

Walmart discounts a selection of outdoor clearance items. (Prices are as marked.) Shipping adds $4.97, but orders of $50 or more qualify for free shipping. (Select items may be available for in-store pickup.) Click the provided link to navigate directly to this sale.

redscorpion_pro via eBay has a 10 pack of Red Scorpion Mini 31 Million Volt Stun Guns for $59.99 with free shipping. Each unit is packaged individually for perfect gift giving. Two sets of four prongs means maximum stun power. Built-in charging means you never have to look for the charging cable. For those with some vision, a flashlight is also built-in. Safety switch prevents accidental discharging. Fits perfect in purse or can be worn on a belt with the included holster. Keep yourself and those you love safe while traveling.

Eone Time continues to release variations on the Bradley, the tactile watch which uses magnetized ball bearings to allow a blind person to identify the current time. The new bradley Element features a 3-dimentional surface at a premium price. According to the description, "The topography of the watch face contours toward each marker in alternating raised and lowered impressions. The redesigned case body is engineered from highly durable, scratch-resistant ceramic and is coated with a PVD plating, adding an extra level of durability." It also features an adjustable, stainless steel mesh strap and an all-black matte finish. The Element will ship in early June for $395. Follow the source link to learn more or to place an order. Thanks to Ka for the tip.

Let's Play videos are a popular trend where gamers will post videos of titles they're playing so others can watch and follow along. Now, a YouTube poster who calls himself Matt has started a new series of Let's Play videos which do the same thing, but with audio descriptions of the action. The Games for Everybody YouTube channel currently features several walkthroughs of his first title, Undertail, a role-playing video game nominated for several awards. Matt both describes the scenes that play out during the game and also reads text that appears.

Another device announced at the CSUN conference is now available, and this one won't break the bank. National Braille Press is now shipping their $18 Tactile Caliper, a 12-inch ruler that can be used to accurately measure within 1/16 of an inch.
Here's a short description direct from NBP. "The winner of our 2013 Touch of Genius Prize for Innovation, this mechanical instrument looks like a traditional Vernier Caliper. Whole inches are embossed in braille across the top of the ruler, while fractions are dynamically displayed in braille on a sliding jaw – as you move the jaw, the braille refreshes to the nearest 16th of an inch."
We discussed the Tactile Caliper near the end of this CSUN podcast with CEO Brian McDonald.

You may have read our original post announcing the BrailleNote Touch. Many of you listened to our interview with Greg Stilson about the BrailleNote Touch at CSUN 2016. Perhaps you listened to the free audio tutorial on the BrailleNote Touch.
Now you can order the BrailleNote Touch which is now shipping. As expected, it's available now for $5,495, the same price as the BrailleNote Apex. For now, the Touch is available in a single configuration with 32 braille cells and a braille keyboard. One could use a USB or Bluetooth keyboard if typing in braille was not their thing.

As part of our CSUN coverage, J.J. did an interview with Peter Korn from Amazon. part of that interview featured Amazon's new screen reader called VoiceView for Fire Tablets. Amazon has now launched a preview of VoiceView for Amazon Fire TV.

For Amazon Prime members, buy five select items through Prime Pantry and bag free shipping via coupon code PANTRYAPR. That's a savings of $6. Choose from groceries, beauty, cleaning supplies, nutrition and wellness, healthcare, and other items. Deal ends today.

Amazon offers its Prime members one early release Kindle eBook per month for free as part of its Kindle First Program. That's $5 under the list prices of these books, which are otherwise only available as preorders. Each month, you can choose from one of six new Kindle eBooks that are selected by Amazon's editors in advance of the books' official release dates; this month's titles include The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison, A House for Happy Mothers by Amulya Malladi, and We're All Damaged by Matthew Norman. Deal ends today.

MobileCityOnline via Amazon offers the RevJams Active Pro Bluetooth Wireless Sport Earbuds in Black, model no. REV400, for $32.99. Coupon code UEDVVTGM cuts it to $22.99. Plus, Prime members bag free shipping. (Non-members can spend $49 or more to qualify for free shipping; otherwise, shipping costs $6.10.) That's the lowest total price we could find by $6. These IPX water- and sweat-resistant earbuds feature Bluetooth 4.1 with a 33-foot range, an inline remote and microphone, and a built-in lithium rechargeable battery with up to six hours of play-time per charge. Deal ends today.

Google continues to seek people with disabilities for paid research studies over phone phone, in person, or online.
Here's a portion of a recent Email they sent out to CSUN attendees:
"As part of our efforts to make Google products more accessible, we conduct paid research sessions with users with all types of disabilities.  We conduct studies both in-person at our offices in SF and NYC, as well as remotely via video or phone.  Users who are selected for and complete our study sessions are generally compensated at $125 an hour, paid out in gift cards that are redeemable at a wide variety of retailers around the country."
Follow the link on this post to fill out the form to express your interest. This does not guarantee you a spot in any study, but will put your name in a pool for future research.

A common question we receive pertains to how to use the Square credit card reader while VoiceOver is enabled. When the traditional swipe reader is plugged in, speech is muted since the iDevice thinks there's a pair of headphones plugged in. To get around this limitation, you need a specific headphone splitter. Extrasensory Devices via Amazon.com has the Wiretap Headphone/Microphone Splitter for $14.95. There are a lot of headphone splitters out there, but this is one of the few that works with the Square card reader.

FTD.com offers 20 percent off their Hallmark Collection. Several items to choose from, click on the provided link to start shopping this sale. Deal ends May 30.

As I reported as part of our CSUN coverage, Humanware has created a new product called the BrailleNote Touch. While Blind Bargains was able to give you a written overview of what it brings to the table, along with an interview, there is now a free and in-depth resource to give you an audio tour of the BrailleNote Touch.

The next version of NVDA is about to be officially released, and as is customary, you can test new features now with a release candidate. NVDA 2016.2 focuses its improvements on the Microsoft Office suite and also will alert you to incorrectly spelled words as you type by playing a short buzzer sound. This feature can be turned off from NVDA’s Keyboard Preferences. Gramatical errors can also now be indicated while you type, along with some additional formatting features in Microsoft Excel. Follow this link for the complete blog post, and check out the full list of changes below.

Deque Systems,, makers of many accessibility testing tools and designers of a set of courses to teach web accessibility, have announced that they are offering 1 year of free access to all of their training materials for people with disabilities. The blog post announcing the offercited the reasons behind this effort were to help combat the unemployment rate among people with disabilities. While this unemployment rate is high, the demand for professionals who can provide accessibility testing is also very high. The application process for this scholarship asks for a few details.

Amazon offers its Prime members one early release Kindle eBook per month for free as part of its Kindle First Program. That's $5 under the list prices of these books, which are otherwise only available as preorders. Each month, you can choose from one of six new Kindle eBooks that are selected by Amazon's editors in advance of the books' official release dates; this month's titles include The Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison, A House for Happy Mothers by Amulya Malladi, and We're All Damaged by Matthew Norman. Deal ends May 31.

Google appears to have posted just about every session from Google IO to their YouTube channel including 3 which focus on accessibility. The developer event, which we discussed in detail on Blind Bargains Qast 62, was recently held in San Francisco.

pre-registration is now open for the ACB convention to be held July 1 through 9 in Minneapolis. There is a $15 administrative fee for registration on top of any sort of events that are paid that you may wish to attend. This year, ACB has moved to a new system for registration, so if you have created an account in previous years, that info will no longer be valid. Find out more details by following the source link. Pre-registration runs through June 22. as reported earlier, that pre-registration for the NFB Convention being held in Orlando will close on May 31.