Reply #5: Nice! Did you see this article last week?

[emulatorloo]

http://blogs.forbes.com/booked/2010/04/12/apples-ipad-brings-easy-reading-to-the-blind/

Apple's iPad Brings Easy Reading to the Blind
April 12, 2010 - 3:14 pm

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Ask any PC-loving computer nerd why Apple products have become the de facto choice of the masses, and you’ll likely hear something like, “People buy Apple products because they’re pretty.” That may be true for many, but one group of consumers who care little for Apple’s prodigious aesthetics are the blind.

They care more about how Apple products actually work. And while the iPad may be Apple's most controversial launch in recent memory, the blind community is unanimous in its support. The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) even released a statement last January praising the device.

What are they so excited about?

<SNIP comparing the unfriendlyness of Kindle to the sight impaired, and iPad features that make it accessible >

NFB has commended Apple for producing a device that is usable right out of the box for both seeing and the visually impaired alike. The NFB statement even mentions that the touch-screen “need not be a barrier” to the blind.

Computer nerds, tech columnists and the general public may not know where the iPad fits into the existing media consumption landscape--but the blind and visually impaired see it as the only e-reader worth owning. Call it further proof that Apple is more than just a pretty face.


ON EDIT: This one is pretty interesting too


http://www.macdailynews.com/index.php/weblog/comments/24822/

Totally blind person reviews Apple iPad: 100% accessible straight out of the box; thanks, Apple!
Thursday, April 15, 2010 - 04:16 PM EDT


"The Apple iPad is one of the hottest pieces of technology on the market right now," Waldorf PC reports for Associated Content. "Just about everyone is talking about how hot the iPad looks and how they must have one."

" blind folks are no exception. Because Apple has done a spectacular job at integrating accessibility in all of their products in an effort to include the blind and other disabled individuals, blind people can enjoy being a part of these hot trends and feel cool like our sighted peers," Waldorf PC reports. "This enables us to have something to relate to when it comes to conversing with our sighted counterparts, which to me is huge because I do not enjoy the feeling that I'm so isolated and can only relate to a certain subculture. Thanks so much to Apple; we are not left out in the cold, being forced to wait a long period of time to have some cool gadgets in our hands long after the coolness has died out. And thanks so much to Apple caring enough about our inclusion; I'm able to provide a first person iPad review from a blindness perspective."

"The Apple iPad is one hundred percent accessible straight out of the box... Blind individuals can glide a finger over the screen, and as they glide their fingers, the options will be spoken aloud. When the users hear an option that they want to select, they can tap their fingers on that option twice, and the option will then be selected. There is no barrier to us blind folks using the Apple iPad's touch screen," Waldorf PC reports. "Of course, with me being totally blind, I'm going to give a lot of attention to detail in , as the sense of touch is very important to me. And if things feel nice, then I'm more inclined to pay better attention and be more interested. The iPad feels sleek, smooth, and thin, and I love that a lot.

Waldorf PC reports, "Apple has really changed the lives of many blind individuals by integrating accessibility in all things. I strongly feel that the rest of the electronic industry needs to follow in their footsteps, so blind individuals can continue to enjoy equal usability at an equal price. Because Apple has taken this major step in including us, I'm able to sit and chill out with all of my sighted peers, use my iPad right along with them, and join other blind techs in providing information to our fellow blind peers about the device. Best of all, I did not have to spend hundreds, or even thousands of dollars, to make the device accessible in order for me to use it."