COOL BLIND TECH

YOUR SOURCE FOR THE BEST ASSISTIVE TECH NEWS, REVIEWS AND INTERVIEWS FROM TOP BLIND AND LOW VISION EXPERTS. AN ENTERTAINING AND TRUSTWORTHY DISCUSSION ON EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

Gadgets

Vaux Turns Your Echo Dot in to a Portable Battery Powered Device.

Introducing the Vaux portable battery powered speaker for the Amazon Echo Dot 2. Disconnect your Echo Dot and plug it into the Vaux to create a better sound experience that is also portable. Sense the Echo Dot needs to be connected to your Wi-Fi network, it is only portable throughout your home. There is no cellular connection. The Vaux speaker houses the Echo Dot, and can also be charged by the same power cord that is used for the Echo Dot.
Pre-orders begin shipping this week. read more

Spotlight with iMerciv: Creators of the BuzzClip

In this Spotlight Interview, James Oates sits down with Bin Liu and Arjun Mali, the founders of iMerciv and creators of the BuzzClip, which is a standalone wearable that helps people who are blind familiarize themselves with their surroundings and navigate unfamiliar areas both indoors and outdoors. read more

VIP: I Got a Feeling Somebody’s Watching Me

This week the Cool Blind Tech team discuss some major issues affecting your privacy while you are logged on to the internet. Joel, Jessica, and Hugo share their thoughts on Virtual Private Networks, how it affects you and why you should care. Plenty of important and fun topics are just waiting for you to press play on your favorite podcast player. read more

Audible Easter Eggs Make the Holiday Inclusive for Blind Children.

Easter is rapidly approaching, but not all children are ready for the hunt. An Easter egg hunt can feel like an exclusionary event for a blind child, but it doesn’t have to be that way.
There are battery powered plastic Easter eggs out there that can either beep when turned on, or talk to give hints of where they are located.
Head over to Amazon or MaxiAids to find beeping eggs that can be used year after year. You will only need to replace the batteries from time to time.
If you want something a little different than a simple beeping Easter egg, try JoJo & Friends Electronic Talking Hide ‘ and Find ‘Em Easter Egg Hunt. Not surprisingly, you will get a better deal on these Easter eggs if you buy in bulk.

Brailleboard: A Braille Keyboard for the Blind.

Luke Edward, competing in the MasseyHacks III competition, has come up with the Brailleboard which is a way of providing blind people with access to a braille keyboard. Luke has used 3D printing to produce key caps that are labelled in braille. These key caps will replace the existing key caps on a standard keyboard. This will be incredibly helpful for visually impaired children learning to type, those who have recently lost their vision, and those who are learning braille.
It will also be helpful for those who are not entirely familiar with every key on the keyboard. Let’s face it. We don’t always use every key on a regular basis. It will also eliminate the need to count the keys on the number row. Wouldn’t it be nice to have those numbers and function keys clearly labelled in braille?

VIP: Explosive Accessible Technology

This week the Cool Blind Tech Team discusses some of the important questions surrounding the headlines in the tech world. Join Joel, Jessica, and Nelson as they share their opinions on whether or not a companies reputation should influence their decision on what accessible technology to buy. These answers and more are just waiting for you to press play and listen. read more

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