A Pocket PC for the blind

A Pocket PC that allows full computing functionalities for vision-impaired users has been unveiled in the United States, giving the disabled better chances of becoming productive members of the workforce.

The handheld device called the PAC Mate, uses standard Microsoft Windows applications – Pocket Word, Pocket Outlook and Pocket IE – running on a Windows CE operating system and has a price tag of about $2,595.

With a Braille interface instead of the more common touchscreen, and a star-shaped "cursor cross," vision-impaired users can "navigate" the PDA’s screen and use any of the pre-installed Microsoft applications, according to Freedom Scientific, manufacturer of the device.

The US-based company said one of the keys for the usability of the PAC Mate is the JAWS screen reader, a technology developed by Freedom Scientific which converts screen objects and text to speech, allowing vision-impaired users to "hear" rather than "see" documents, images and Web content.

With dimensions of about 10 inches in width and six inches in height and weighing less than two pounds, the device may be a giant among current PDAs but is still a tad smaller and lighter than most laptops.

Its creators, however, claim that usability compensates for the size, as the Braille interface has function keys similar to a standard computer, in addition to the built-in "cursor cross" that allows users to move the cursor up, down, left and right.

The device also comes with infrared, serial and USB ports for peripheral devices.

Freedom Scientific also said the device supports a wide range of third-party applications and interoperability with most software applications. It has support for CompactFlash cards for unlimited storage and an optional 56K or Ethernet modem.

Freedom Scientific further claims that PAC Mate is the first handheld device for the vision-impaired that lets users download the same applications from a network as a sighted person and use these applications with little or no modifications.

The company said other third-party applications for the PAC Mate are in the pipeline, including a personal GPS (Global Positioning Satellite) system that will give blind users a verbal reading on where they are in relation to buildings or facilities that they are trying to locate. A bar-code scanner that allows users to ascertain the price, content and characteristics of canned goods and other products in grocery stores or in their own homes, is also being developed for the PAC Mate.

Despite running on a Pocket PC platform, the company claims that the device integrates easily with common desktop software and most hardware, including desktops, laptops and even Palm Pilots.

Further, the company expects the device to benefit vision-impaired but highly skilled people who, according to statistics, are mostly unemployed because of their disabilities.

Freedom Scientific said one in five Americans have some kind of disability and 50 percent of them are unemployed. For people with severe disabilities – from walking, seeing, hearing or performing basic life functions – the unemployment rate goes up to 70 percent.

The company cited US statistics that also showed that unemployed people with disabilities want to work and that they have the necessary skills to become productive members of the workforce. — Quadmedia News Agency