all categories Deals, Sales, and News

APH offers discounts on several items in their Fall Harvest sale. Of note, they seem to be clearing out a lot of Handi-Cassette II players and accessories, including half off on the rechargeable batteries, instruction tapes, and battery clips. They are also offering $10 off titles in the Verbal View series which teaches Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Internet techniques. Some braille books and cookbooks are also included. Sale ends December 31.

This is a great new website dealing with Bioptic Driving.Bioptic driving is a method which allows persons with soe usable vision to become licensed drivers. Candidates often have good peripheral vision but lack the ability to sometimes see street signs and other objects, according to the Bioptic Driving website. While much debate exists on the safety of this or other driving systems for those with some useful vision, this site may serve as a useful jumping off point. It is sponsored by the Low Vision Centers of Indiana,.

Braille Works offers the Index Basic D braille embosser for $2,900. With about $50 for shipping, that's roughly $800 off and the lowest price we could find. This embosser prints interpoint braille on tractor-fed paper. Deal ends September 30.

New Designs Unlimited writes to inform us of the Speakeasy Media System, advertised as a computer for the blind. It offers a menu-driven interface to Email, radio stations, podcasts, scanning, and much more. Packages range from $495 (software only) to $1,995 with a laptop, iPOD, scanner, and two years of free upgrades.

An EBay seller and Blind Bargains reader has posted a copy of the PAC Mate Scan Talker bar code software with a starting bid of $1. No bar code scanner is included, though the Metrologic scanner at A T Guys is compatible, among many others. The software normally retails for close to $500. Auction ends August 31.

Our sister site, ATGuys.com, is now an authorized reseller of the KNFB Reader Mobile software and bundled packages. Purchase the software with a Nokia N82, your choice of Mobile Speak or Talks, and Wayfinder Access GPS software for $1,895 plus shipping. Or get the reader, phone, and screen reader for $1,595 plus shipping. Other bundles are also available.

Recently, J.J. Meddaugh made a presentation in the Accessible Devices chat room concerning the BCScan website and associated programs which allow users to scan and identify products using bar codes. The archive of this presentation is now available and linked from this post.

Several leaked hints appear to lead to the imminent release of version 6.0 for the KNFB Reader Mobile, the software-based mobile scanning solution for the Nokia N82 phone. First off, a new version of the reader for people with learning disabilities, the kReader, has been released as version 6.0.7. Here's a link to the release notes. These notes mention the ability to translate between different languages using a data or wireless Internet connection. It also appears from these notes that additional language support is licensed separately, though no exact cost is given. In addition, James Gashel, Vice President of Marketing for KNFB Reading Technologies, mentions a release around the first part of January in this message posted to the Reader-users mailing list. Other messages have also mentioned the possible support for the Nokia 6220 Classic as an additional phone model. Current users are promised a year of free upgrades, though we expect the language support to carry an additional charge. We'll post more information as it becomes available.
Update: Based on the user manual for version 5.6.3 of the KNFB Reader Mobile in Europe, the volume keys on the phone can now control the reader volume. Also, two voices: a message voice and a reading voice are selectable. We're unsure if these features will be available in the U.S. release.

Some assistive technology companies are also offering holiday weekend deals. Starting Friday, Serotek offers a $200 discount of orders of $399 or more. Use it to purchase System Access 3.0, System Access Mobile Network subscriptions, Neospeech, Document Scan, or the
MSI Wind Netbook computer with System Access pre-installed.
Follow the link on this post to go to their site, or call 866-202-0520. System Access 3.0 is the first mainstream screen reading product to offer support for newer 64-bit operating systems, sold on many newer desktops and laptops. Deal ends December 1.

An EBay seller and Blind Bargains reader has posted a working Pac Mate QX400 personal digital assistant with a starting bid of $100. Plus, shipping is free. This unit includes a QWERTY keyboard and is running the latest version of software available for this edition, version 4.1. It is also upgradable to a Pac Mate Omni for $695. Two 2GB memory cards are also included. Auction ends November 25.

JAWS 10, the latest screen reading version from Freedom Scientific, was released last week. We've linked to the list of new features for all the dirty details. The most talked-about feature, perhaps, is called Tandom and allows for remote training and support opportunities.

Ending today, an EBay seller has listed a Deluxe Braille Scrabble Game with a current bid of $28.99. Plus, add about $10 for shipping. These are truly hard to find. This is the older edition with a felt back for rotating the board, a complete set of 100 braille tiles, scoring pins, and more. They don't make 'em like this anymore. Auction ends later today.

An EBay seller has listed an I.D. Mate II portable bar code reader with an opening bid of one cent. Add about $12 for shipping. These retailed for over $1,200 when first released. This omnidirectional scanner can recognize more than a million items and also allows you to add your own personal descriptions. The item is being sold as working. Auction ends November 2.

An EBay seller has relisted a like-new KNFB Reader Classic, now for a starting bid of $1,100. This is the PDA model and comes with everything necessary to start reading printed material. By comparison, the KNFB Reader Mobile retails for roughly $2,200. Auction ends November 5.

An EBay seller has listed a used TSI Optacon, model R1D, with a BuyItNow price of $399.95 with about $20 for shipping. or, make an offer. The Optacon is still one of the most sought-after reading devices available, allowing the blind to feel raised print. The unit is being sold as is, and comes with rechargeable batteries.

Seedlings Braille Books for Children offers free articles from the World Book Encyclopedia in braille. They're available for students in grades 1-12, and will be shipped within five business days around the world. We've linked to the form you can use to request articles.

As a follow-up to our previous post, here's a list of the 42 changes and improvements for Sendero GPS version 5. The new version was released Monday.

The Sendero Group has released version 5 of its groundbreaking GPS software for the BrailleNote family of PDAs. This version includes expanded points of interest data with more than 3 gigabytes of new data for the United States alone. Among the most interesting new features is the ability to find a business in a particular direction from you. This would make it possible to find upcoming restaurants on a highway, for example. Borrowing from many of the mainstream GPS programs, a speed alert feature can tell you if you are going too fast on the highway. Enhancements to the replay capability, and simpler route creation are also included. The upgrade costs one SMA count or $149 and is available now.

An EBay seller has listed a like-new KNFB Reader Classic for a starting bid of $1,200. This is the PDA model and comes with everything necessary to start reading printed material. By comparison, the KNFB Reader Mobile retails for roughly $2,200. Auction ends October 25.

Code Factory has added another mailing list to their portfolio, this time for the Mobile Geo GPS software. This software was recently released for Windows Mobile smartphones and Pocket PC phones and offers accessible turn-by-turn directions and points of interest information. Follow the link on this post to go to the subscription page.