Entry tags:
New Kindle is accessible with talking menus
Kes: Funny how soon Amazon managed to make this happen after the Dept. of Justice issued a statement saying that if an ebook reader was not accessible, it would conflict with ADA laws for universities to use such ereaders for accessing textbooks. Thank you DOJ for reinforcing the ADA!
I would also like to thank Apple for providing the incentive of competition.
Of course, I haven't heard from any blind users on how accessible this Kindle actually is: do these voice menus work for all aspects of the book purchasing and downloading process? And will the Kindle for the PC be made accessible also?
Amazon debuts blind-accessible Kindle
By: Rachel Pryzgoda
http://mddailyrecord.com/maryland-business/2010/07/30/amazon-debuts-blind-accessible-kindle/
block quote start
The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) today commended Amazon on the unveiling of a new accessible Kindle.
NFB officials praised the release and its accessibility improvements — but perhaps not surprisingly, the ever-revolutionary Apple had won the Baltimore
organization’s heart years ago.
“Where we’ve had a lot of success is with Apple,” said Chris Danielsen, NFB’s director of public relations. “Their accessibility is constantly improving.”
He cited the accessibility of the iPad since its release this year, as well as iTunes, the iPod and the iPod Touch.
NFB had encouraged Amazon before the first Kindle came out in 2007 to make the product blind-accessible.
“A few years ago we said [to Amazon] this could be really revolutionary,” Danielsen said.
Three years and a lawsuit later, they’ve done it.
The lawsuit, which was resolved in January,
arose against Arizona State University because of its participation in a learning program that used the Kindle DX,
which blind students couldn’t use.
The NFB and the
American Council of the Blind
said this directly violated federal law. In the settlement, Amazon said it would make improvements to increase the Kindle’s accessibility.
So here we are. The new model, starting at $139,
comes equipped with a voice guide that reads all menu options aloud, which it did not offer before. The Kindle DX had offered technology that could read
texts aloud, but allowed no way to get there.
block quote end
Also see this article which describes more features, including the one month batter life
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38456511/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/
I would also like to thank Apple for providing the incentive of competition.
Of course, I haven't heard from any blind users on how accessible this Kindle actually is: do these voice menus work for all aspects of the book purchasing and downloading process? And will the Kindle for the PC be made accessible also?
Amazon debuts blind-accessible Kindle
By: Rachel Pryzgoda
http://mddailyrecord.com/maryland-business/2010/07/30/amazon-debuts-blind-accessible-kindle/
block quote start
The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) today commended Amazon on the unveiling of a new accessible Kindle.
NFB officials praised the release and its accessibility improvements — but perhaps not surprisingly, the ever-revolutionary Apple had won the Baltimore
organization’s heart years ago.
“Where we’ve had a lot of success is with Apple,” said Chris Danielsen, NFB’s director of public relations. “Their accessibility is constantly improving.”
He cited the accessibility of the iPad since its release this year, as well as iTunes, the iPod and the iPod Touch.
NFB had encouraged Amazon before the first Kindle came out in 2007 to make the product blind-accessible.
“A few years ago we said [to Amazon] this could be really revolutionary,” Danielsen said.
Three years and a lawsuit later, they’ve done it.
The lawsuit, which was resolved in January,
arose against Arizona State University because of its participation in a learning program that used the Kindle DX,
which blind students couldn’t use.
The NFB and the
American Council of the Blind
said this directly violated federal law. In the settlement, Amazon said it would make improvements to increase the Kindle’s accessibility.
So here we are. The new model, starting at $139,
comes equipped with a voice guide that reads all menu options aloud, which it did not offer before. The Kindle DX had offered technology that could read
texts aloud, but allowed no way to get there.
block quote end
Also see this article which describes more features, including the one month batter life
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38456511/ns/technology_and_science-tech_and_gadgets/