Blind Bargains: Page 2 - Deals & News for the Blind & Visually Impaired

With all of the talk of the new DM series of digital recorders from Olympus, we thought we'd post an in-depth review of the DM-2 and DM-4. Listen in as Pat Ferguson compares and contrasts the two models and talks about what is and is not included with the initial release. Via Blind Cool Tech

A buried provision the Higher Education Opportunity Act may help blind and visually impaired students obtain accessible copies of textbooks on time. That's because the law requires colleges and universities to list the required textbooks for a class at the time of registration. The provision went into effect earlier this year, and may save students from scurrying around at the last minute in order to find a copy of a book, much less an accessible version. If you have access to a college registration system, let us know how or if your school is complying with the law in the comments. Via USA Today

Family Board Games via Amazon.com has the classic game of Shut-The-Box for $19.99. Shipping is free on $25 or more. This is the classic dice game and is playable by blind and sighted people alike, as the tiles are just numbers from 1 through 9 in a row.

VideoDirect.com has the Olympus DM-4 Digital Voice Recorder for $269.99. With free shipping, it's $40 off our last mention and the lowest price we've seen for this new item. The Dm-4 features a 2.2-inch color LCD display, 8GB of built-in storage, the ability to play and record in MP3, WMA and Wav formats, 29 hours of battery life, and support for Daisy, audible and other books. The DM-4 also features voice guidance, which speaks the device's menus and settings, as well as Nuance Vocalizer text-to-speech for reading TXT and Daisy books. To this point, no NLS support has been included in the unit.

The NFB's Assistive Technology Team has posted audio from two of its sessions during the recent convention in Dallas. During the Apple session, participants gained hands-on experience with several products including iPods and Macbooks. Later, eBay described some of the improvements they are making to increase accessibility to their website and services. Check the link to download either or both of these recordings.

Roughly half of bestselling books available for Amazon's Kindle book reader have text-to-speech functionality disabled, according to an informal survey performed by Blind Bargains. Amazon lists whether TTS is enabled or disabled on the book page for Kindle titles. 6 out of the top 10 titles in Amazon's own bestseller list had speech enabled while a survey of the New York Times' top-selling fiction books gave less favorable results. In addition, Amazon's Kindle 2 has the ability to remotely kill TTS functionality, an option which has already been performed on titles by Random House and other publishers in 2009. Some larger publishing houses including Harper Collins appear to have left that TTS feature intact, however.

HandyTech is planning to release a new 40-cell braille display based on Active Tactile Controls (ATC). named the Active Braille, the new display employs patented technology which responds to the users touch and position on the display, allowing for gesture-based commands and automatic scrolling. No further information is available, but the new display will be demonstrated at the ATIA Chicago conference at the end of October.

Amazon has announced the pending release of the Kindle 3, a model they are calling more refined and for serious book readers. To be released in August, the new edition includes a battery that will last for up to a month depending on use, and some of the much-wished-for accessibility improvements. These include voice-guided menus and other text-to-speech improvements. A version with wi-fi capabilities will be available for $139, while $189 will get the version with 3G data capabilities. Despite these improvements and a lower price, many in the accessibility field still question Amazon's commitment to full accessibility. Read more

We recently received the new Thermoworks Instant Read Talking Thermometer, and it's time to put it to the test. Listen in as Matt and J.J. describe the unit as well as testing it in boiling water. If you wish to purchase one, Blind Mice Mart has them for $35.95 plus shipping.

Buy.com has OmniPage 17 standard for $62.99. With free shipping, this is the best deal we could find on this program by about $30. Don't let the standard version fool you. It still includes the same highly-accurate OCR engine as its much more expensive pro cousin with 99.9 percent text recognition accuracy.

Without fanfare, Cambium Learning Group has raised the cost of Kurzweil 1000 licenses for 10 users to $7,950. This drastic change has occured due to the elimination of the 10-seat site license, formerly available for $2,895 for up to 10 computers in a single location. Now, those needing multiple licenses must pay $795 per license (minimum of 5) or $995 per license for quantities under 5. We reached out to Cambium's Director of Product Management Roger Steinberg who states the reason for the change was twofold. First, some users were abusing the old system and license terms. In addition, Steinberg said many dealers were requesting a change in pricing structure. In addition to the $5,055 price increase for 10 licenses, it positions the product at nearly $2,000 over a similar license for Freedom Scientific's openBook software. Customers under the old Kurzweil 1000 site license can upgrade to version 12 for $375, but will need to pay per license to upgrade to future versions. Was the old license too cheap, or is this price increase way out of line? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

TheNerds.net has the Nokia 6700 slide Smartphone for $192.99 plus about $10 for shipping. This phone is one of the latest to be compatible with the KNFB Reader Mobile, making it the cheapest option available for users looking for a compatible phone model. This phone includes a numeric slide-out keypad, 5 megapixel camera, and a Micro SD high-capacity memory card slot. In addition to the KNFB Reader Mobile, it's compatible with Talks and Mobile Speak.

KNFB Reading Technology has released a free update to the KNFB Reader Mobile. Version 6.4.1 supports two new Nokia handsets, both of which are cheaper than most of the existing models. Both the Nokia C5 and Nokia 6700 Slide include a numeric keypad, though the Slide includes a better 5 megapixel camera compared with the 3.2 megapixel camera on the Nokia C5.

Since the last time we mentioned Groupon, they have added dozens of new cities including many mid-sized areas such as Toledo, Little Rock, and Grand Rapids. Now serving over 80 cities and growing, Groupon offers one deal each day, usually at half off or greater. Deals are available for everything from restaurants to baseball games,. Plus, the site is refreshingly accessible. Read more

Handy Tech North America has the Olympus DM-4 Digital Voice Recorder for $299. With about $10 for shipping, we weren't able to find a better deal on this item. The Dm-4 features a 2.2-inch color LCD display, 8GB of built-in storage, the ability to play and record in MP3, WMA and Wav formats, 29 hours of battery life, and support for Daisy, audible and other books. The DM-4 also features voice guidance, which speaks the device's menus and settings, as well as Nuance Vocalizer text-to-speech for reading TXT and Daisy books. To this point, no NLS support has been included in the unit.

Not everyone needs a massive hard drive. If that's you, Walmart.com has the Western Digital Elements 120GB Portable Hard Drive for $27.54. It's shipped free to your local store, or pay a buck to send it to your house. This drive is USB-powered and includes a USB cable for connectivity.

As part of an ongoing process, Librarian of Congress James H. Billington has issued a ruling which puts into play new exceptions for the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, clarifying many gray areas of the law and making certain practices legal. While the mainstream media will be talking mostly about the legal ability to jailbreak the iPhone, Blind Bargains readers may also be interested in the very last rule which allows for circumventing of restrictions on eBooks. Essentially, screen readers can enable the reading aloud of electronic books without facing copyright restrictions, at least in cases where the publisher does not offer an accessible alternative. Here's the exact wording: Literary works distributed in ebook format when all existing ebook editions of the work (including digital text editions made available by authorized entities) contain access controls that prevent the enabling either of the book's read-aloud function or of screen readers that render the text into a specialized format. This is certainly a big step forward for book readers, though it does not require or compel companies like Amazon to enable this feature for all titles. Via Kotaku

The wait is over for those looking for new maps for the Trekker and Trekker Breeze. New version 3.2 maps are available free to current customers. New points of interest categories and updated street and other information from Navtek is included. Users can download the new maps now or order them on DVD or SD card for a small cost.

We've used RetailMeNot for a long time to find coupons for online stores. But did you know they also offer 90,000 printable coupons for stores across the country and beyond? It's not just national chains, either. They have a two-for-one coupon for specialty espresso drinks at the local coffee shop where I'm typing this message right now. If you're looking to try something new or traveling soon, it's certainly worth keeping this site in your bookmarks.

There has been some talk of the iBlue GPS receiver going away, but it's still available from our favorite source, at least for now. Semsons & Co. via Amazon.com still has the IBlue 737A+ bluetooth GPS receiver for $59.99. Plus, shipping is free. This is one of the most sensitive GPS receivers available today. It has a tactile on-off switch and charges via USB or the included car adapter. It could also charge via a wall adapter, sold separately. It's compatible with most phones, the BrailleNote, other GPS devices, and now the Trekker. When comparing models, notice the A Plus at the end of 737, as it is a superior receiver. The item we've listed here is that model. We just ordered another one of these yesterday and it was shipped today.

We got a chance to see a tactile screen protector from Solona, and were happy with its no nonsense design and affordable price. The screen protectors add tactile markings to various Apple products including the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad and are available in more than a dozen configurations to suit the needs of many types of users. Perhaps more impressive is the price, only $6 for the iPhone and iPod protectors and $25 for the much larger iPad models. With shipping starting at $3, it's a very inexpensive way to add even more value and accessibility to an Apple product.

You may have seen some pocket-sized chargers for cell phones, iPods, and the like, but what if you need to charge something a bit larger? This solar-powered charger from Thinkgeek.com for $199.99 plus about $10 for shipping will charge everything from laptops to game systems. Use coupon GEEKPUZZLER to knock $10 off your order. It includes 29 charging tips to fit into just about anything you may own and will also charge itself using AC or a car adapter if there isn't much sun available for you at the moment. But with 20,000 mAh of power, you won't need to do this often. Consider the average cell phone battery holds 900 to 1200 mAh of capacity, and even a high-capacity laptop battery holds around 8,000 mAh. A carrying case is also included.

Amazon.com is giving a year of it's prime membership service to students. Prime gives free two-day shipping on millions of items sold by Amazon directly, as well as overnight-shipping for $3.99 per item. Amazon Student will also offer exclusive email deals and promotions. This is a $79 value, available for free to any student with a valid .edu email address.

There's been a fair amount of talk surrounding blind driving recently, so this news article has some interesting timing. Researchers at Yale have developed a new car seat which will alert drivers of nearby vehicles by vibrations. As a driver passes to the left, for example, a vibration would increase in intensity as they moved closer. Many similar technologies are being explored by researchers as a part of the Blind Driver Challenge, a separate initiative. Via Coolest Gadgets

The National Federation of the Blind Convention in Dallas was the highlight for nearly 2,500 attendees this past week. And while we could only do and see so much, there were certainly some things we learned from this year's conference. Here's our list for 2010. Read more

Perkins Products has introduced two more Seika braille displays stateside. The Seika 4 includes Bluetooth capabilities in a 40-cell design. It's compatible with all major screen readers plus the iPhone and iPod Touch and available for $2,995. Of note, the bluetooth battery sits outside of the display, making it a bit less compact. Meanwhile, the most affordable 80-cell braille display was introduced. Available for $3,900, the Seika 80 dramatically undercuts others in this arena with a display suitable for call centers and programmers. At this price, that's less than $50 per cell and around $6 per dot. While still not within everyone's budget, it's certainly a trend which we hope continues. Both models are available now.

We're catching up from the NFB convention and reporting some of what we heard and saw. Freedom Scientific started off the week by announcing support for grade 2 braille input in its forthcoming version of JAWS 12. The new version will also do away with the Configuration Manager for a new approach. Expect public betas to land some time in August.

Each week, a bigger prize. Each week, another chance to win. It's your opportunity to win your share of nearly $2,000 in prizes, including some of the hottest products of the year. It's the A T Guys Summer of Prizes. This summer, A T Guys will be giving away a mountain of cool merchandise including gift cards, talking products, useful gadgets, and much more. Each week, the prize will get bigger, and you will have another chance to win. It all leads up to the grand prize, an HTC S743 with a copy of Mobile Speak Adventure and an iBlue GPS receiver, sponsored by A T Guys and Code Factory. Please check the link on this post for more information and to enter the drawing for week 1.

Freedom Scientific is planning to start talking about Jaws version 12 at the summer conferences, and it all starts this Saturday with an announcement concerning a new braille feature which is being touted as a "significant new feature for Windows Screen Reading." According to the message, the feature has never before been seen on a PC. Feel free to speculate in the comments.

It's a big day of releases at GW Micro, as new updates to both the Sense notetakers and SenseNav have been released. Version 5.5 of the firmware for the notetakers includes support for Microsoft Word 2007 documents, synchronization with Microsoft Outlook 2007, support for cookies in the web browser, an equalizer in the media player, more DAISY support in the book player, and many other enhancements. It's a free upgrade for current users. Meanwhile, a $99 update to SenseNav includes many of the features found in other Sendero products including 2010 maps, a history feature, more ways to search points of interest, and better address look-ups.

Just in time for convention season, Code Factory has released new versions of Mobile Speak for both the Symbian and Windows Mobile platforms. Version 4.5 includes two new touch-screen modes, one simulating a numeric keypad and another which simulates a joystick. Support for the Focus 40 Blue braille display from Freedom Scientific is also included as well as other minor enhancements. It's a free upgrade for users of version 4.

According to inside sources, Humanware will be announcing the VoiceNote Apex on Friday, the product refered to in its latest series of teasers. Measuring in at less than an inch thick and weighing a bit over a pound, the new notetaker now rounds out the Apex line, which also includes 32 and 18-cell versions. No pricing information is available yet, but the VoiceNote Apex will ship in September.

We received a second teaser from Humanware regarding a product to be released on July 2. While they did a slightly better job at describing the picture, we still wanted more detail. So again, we used Solona's RAIVE service to help us out. RAIVE stands for Remotely Analyzing and Interpreting Visual Elements and is a free service where people will describe images and screen shots sent to them. Perhaps the biggest feature pointed out in our response is the inclusion of the symbol for Wi-Fi capabilities. The previous image resembled a BrailleNote without the keyboard, according to our response. After the jump, the complete description from RAIVE. Read more

The Independent Living Aids online store has a Man's Synchronized Gold Tone Talking Watch for $44.99 plus about $8 for shipping. This new item is called a synchronized watch because the hands are in sync with the audible announcement. Two alarm sounds are included and it comes with your choice of band.

Amazon.com has the Olympus DM-420 Digital Voice Recorder for $101.38. With free shipping, that's $10 off our last mention and the lowest price we could find. This is the lower-end version of the Olympus DM-520 Digital Voice Recorder we've mentioned before. It includes 2GB of built-in memory compared with 4GB on the DM-520, though it still offers a MicroSDHC slot which allows for a lot of expansion. It also does not record direct to .WAV format, instead offering high-quality .MP3 and .WMA as recording options. Voice prompts are included, like in other Olympus models. If you're a heavy user, we highly recommend the 3-year SquareTrade warranty, available for $16.99.

Walmart.com has the 64GB accessible iPod Touch for $341.54. It's available with free shipping to your local store. It's the lowest price we could currently find for this model. This version comes with VoiceOver, adding speech to most functions of the device. Unlike the Nano which is primarily a music and video player, the Touch acts much more like a PDA including web browsing and Email support, among many other applications.

Sendero has released their new Maps product for the PC. It includes many of the virtual navigational features found in their other GPS products, and is intended for those who wish to explore their environment before traveling. One can create virtual routes, record audio and other content, or emboss a route to a braille printer, among other features. It's free for those who purchase Sendero GPS after April 1, 2010 and ranges in price from $88 to $398 for others, depending on whether or not you own any Sendero GPS product.

We posted earlier about Sendero's plans to release a PC map navigation program, and it looks like this package will be available some time next week. While no pricing has been announced, indications point to it coming for free to those who have purchased some of the Sendero GPS products. For those who may remember Atlas Speaks, this program appears to be a bit of a throwback, offering virtual navigation and map exploration for desktops, laptops, and netbooks. We'll post more as we learn about it.

Humanware Emailed us another of their now-infamous visual teasers for an upcoming product to be released on July 2. So considering the picture was pretty useless to many of us, we used Solona's RAIVE service to help us out. RAIVE stands for Remotely Analyzing and Interpreting Visual Elements and is a free service where people will describe images and screen shots sent to them. Read more

This month, the Independent Living Aids online store introduces the Milestone 312 which is selling for $449.00 with free shipping. This highly anticipated unit provides another option to consider in the search for a digital talking book player. The Milestone 312 is about the size of a credit card. Features include a voice recorder, an mp3 player, a daisy audio book player, text-to-speech, an FM tuner, a USB 2.0 connection, 16-20 hour battery life, and a clock with alarm. Additional add-ons and software extras, which can enhance the player, can be acquired from ILA. According to ILA's webpage, future add-ons and software extras such as a barcode reader and a color reader are also in development. Internal memory is 1 gigabyte and SD cards up to 32 gigabytes are supported. The player supports up to six voices and languages, English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Swedish, and Dutch. The player also supports a variety of file types including NLS downloadable books, mp3, audible, bookshare, and RFB&D content. Click this link to find out more about the Milestone 312.

Bones has released a new firmware update for the Milestone 312, a popular book reader and household aid internationally which is just starting to make its way into the U.S. The new version includes improved shuffle capabilities, support for NLS downloadable books, the ability to store radio station names to be spoken when tuned, and the ability to use the radio with the loud speaker. Check the release notes for the complete list or to download the update.

Apple has released iOS4, the fourth major version of the operating system for the iPhone, IPod touch and iPad. iOS4 features multitasking, the ability for apps to be placed in to folders, bluetooth keyboard and braille display support and more. iOS4 is a free update for all compatible devices, including the iPhone 3gs, and iPod touch 3g.

The Media Access Group at WGBH, home to the Descriptive Video Service, now offers two new online resources for fans of described movies. The list of DVD's with accessible descriptions is updated often as new titles become available. Some DVD’s include fully-accessible menus, while many others include at least a descriptive narration track. Note that some described movies might only be available on blue-ray disk. WGBH also provides a click through option to Amazon.com which directs you to the page of the accessible DVD. These DVD’s can be purchased at any store or online but the Amazon link on the WGBH website provides a small percentage of the sales revenue. WGBH also includes a page of every movie described for television, cable, DVS Home Video and DVS Theatrical (for movie theaters). Click this link to access the new website.

Nearly three out of four people are unable to use Google’s audio CAPTCHA service, according to research conducted by Blind Bargains. The audio CAPTCHA is intended for use by persons who are blind or visually impaired and is a requirement for accessing several areas of Google’s website, including creating accounts on the Gmail service and resetting account passwords. Read more

USB and typewriter are two words we never thought we'd use in the same sentence. But alas, someone has managed to merge the two for those who prefer the feel of a classic typewriter but still would like to have the modern conveniences of a computer. This page details how you can purchase a USB typewriter for yourself or the kit to modify your own relic of the past. The kit is around $150 or you can pay more for one already set up and ready to go.

If you've watched any portion of the FIFA World Cup, you've no doubt heard the vuvuzela. It's the African horn which fans have been blowing relentlessly at matches, and now you can celebrate or annoy your neighbors as well. Big City Closeouts via Amazon.com has the Vuvuzela South African Horn for $7.99. Add about $6 for shipping. Buy several and give them to all of your friends. Then you can roam around town and sound like a swarm of bees.

Starbucks has announced the availability of free WI-Fi access in all company-owned stores by July 1. They are joining a growing number of merchants who have ditched their paid hot spots in favor of free services. In addition, Starbucks customers will be able to access paid sites such as the Wall Street Journal through a new partnership starting this fall. It will allow customers to access paid content on these services, which also opens up some potential access to new materials for free, as long as you're willing to suck down a latte while doing it. Of note, the new York Times has also been contemplating charging for its news content, but is a listed partner on this new Starbucks service as well.

Regardless of your operating system, there's probably an accessible Twitter client available for you. This handy list compiles many of them on one page and includes both desktop and mobile clients.

Did you know the U.S. has a Bureau of Transportation Statistics? It certainly does, and one of the types of statistics it tracks is flight delays. So before you book your next plane ticket, you can search any major airline and flight number and find out if your flight is historically late. One flight from Miami to Charlotte was late every single day in April, for example. It's yet another tool you can use to help you get the most of your travel.

Amazon.com has the Belkin 12-Outlet Home/Office Surge Protector with Phone/Ethernet/Coaxial Protection and Extended Cord for $19.99. Shipping is free on $25 or more. We like this particular surge protector for several reasons including the massive amount of outlets, 12 in total. It also comes with a 10-foot cord, longer than most. Ethernet and coaxial plugs round out the design, offering surge protection for your computer or television.