[vicsireland] Re: Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by 38%
- From: Tony.G.Murray@xxxxxx
- To: vicsireland@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 4 Mar 2010 09:33:10 +0000
Hi Tim,
Thanks for passing this on. An interesting read.
I understand the arguments surrounding Assistive Technology which are
often put forward about a limited customer base, and the high cost of
manufacturing small numbers of very specific highly
technical/advanced/micro-engineered items... Ah we've chatted about it
over pints ourselves many times. The outcome of those chats was the ATAG,
which I still think is fairly unique (and who said going for pints doesn't
spawn anything but a hangover).
Anyway to be fair, it has to be said that the cost of Braille displays is
heading in the right direction. So, with that in mind, I do take
positives from the release from FS below.
On the other side of the coin (am I sounding like a football pundit?),
this stuff is still preventatively expensive for lots and lots of people.
I am not a Freedom Scientific basher. Jaws is as yet unbeaten as a Screen
Reader in my opinion.
It's very expensive, the past few full releases have been almost totally
reactive (catching up with Windows VISTA, Windows 7, and the 64-bit
versions of both), and we're all too familiar with it's fondness for
crashing and locking up PCs. I think their authorisation process is
clunky at best, and I am always frustrated by it's unreliability. Jaws
has given me nothing new as regards 'accessibility' since V6.2.
No! I'm not a Freedom Scientific basher, it is still the best screen
reader for PCs I know of. I can't see myself changing any time soon
(unless I buy a Mac), and that's probably how many of us feel. We put up
with it, because it is the best of a bad lot.
Anyway, to return to my point... FS are going to have to do a lot better
with their pricing before I read, without any cynicism, releases like the
below. You're right to wonder if the vendors on this side of the pond
will pass on the savings... dollar for dollar, pound for pound, Euro for
Euro. I wonder too, I wonder and wonder and wonder.
The line from the release which jumped out at me most was:
"The combination of JAWS® and a Braille display makes learning and using
Braille easy"
As long as you have about $5,000 to drop on a PC, copy of Jaws and a
Braille display... Then, yeah it's easy!
So, what's my point? I don't know, I feel very much like Eamon Dunphy must
feel when he's analysing football matches, my point is something I'm sort
of cranky about... I like Jaws, but I don't like it. I think FS are good
for giving me such wonderful access to PCs, but I hate that they are
charging so much for their software and hardware... Even though, I can
sort of understand why they can and do so.
Oh yeah, here's a positive point to finish this mail that has become
something of a rant... Albeit a not very well thought out one (but we're
all guilty of those now and then aren't we?)...
Thank Jasus for the VICS/NCBI ATAG scheme, which makes the acquisition of
these bits and pieces a little bit easier for us all. We are appreciative
of you guys on the Committee, doing your thing, fighting the good fight.
Now then, I'm off to play with my iPhone. Good old Apple, they're on the
right path. Good old Linux, I love Open Source. Good old Jaws, no hold
on, bad old Jaws... Ah Jaws... I better sign off before it crashes again.
Best wishes,
Tony Murray
Internet Solutions,
AIB Enterprise Systems & Technology,
Block B2,
AIB Bankcentre,
Ballsbridge,
Dublin 4.
T: +353 (0) 164 13801
E: tony.g.murray@xxxxxx
"Tim Culhane" <tim.culhane@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent by: vicsireland-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
04/03/2010 08:30
Please respond to vicsireland
To: <vicsireland@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
cc:
Subject: [vicsireland] Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of
Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by 38%
See below.
Would be interesting to see if the distributers like Sight and Sound pass
on this price reduction.
Tim
-----Original Message-----
From: @ Freedom Scientific News
[mailto:freedomscientificnews@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of @
Freedom Scientific News
Sent: 03 March 2010 21:24
To: tim.culhane@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display
by 38%
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Greetings!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact: Brad Davis
800-444-4443 or 727-803-8000
www.FreedomScientific.com
Sales: info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by 38%
to Support Drive for Braille Literacy
(St. Petersburg, Florida – March 3, 2010) - Freedom Scientific® today
announced that it has reduced the US list price of its Focus 40 Blue
Braille Display from $4,495 to $2,795, a $1,700 reduction, in a move to
support Braille literacy.
The National Federation of the Blind, in their report from the Jernigan
Institute, has declared that there is a "Braille Literacy Crisis in
America," citing such statistics as:
Fewer than 10 percent of the 1.3 million people who are legally blind in
the United States are Braille readers
Only 10 percent of blind children in the US are learning Braille
Over 70 percent of blind adults are unemployed, and as many as 50 percent
of blind high school students drop out of high school
The factors that contribute to a low Braille literacy rate in the US are
many, among them a shortage of qualified Braille teachers and an
increasing reliance on recorded audio and text-to-speech technologies.
"We believe that technology should be supporting Braille literacy, not
replacing it," states Dr. Lee Hamilton, President and CEO of Freedom
Scientific. "The combination of JAWS® and a Braille display makes learning
and using Braille easy. JAWS can translate almost any electronic document
or Web page into Braille and then display them on the Focus 40 Blue. JAWS
also has a built-in Braille tutor that works with the Focus 40 Blue to
provide immediate spoken help when the reader encounters an unfamiliar
Braille symbol. This makes independent Braille study easier as it can be
used with any document of interest to the student. With a computer and a
Braille display, a person who is Braille literate can carry hundreds of
books on a single memory card or USB thumb drive.
"Unfortunately, Braille displays have always been expensive, which has
meant that not everyone who wanted a Braille display could get one.
Freedom Scientific wants to open the world of Braille to as many blind
people as possible. We first drastically reduced the cost of Braille
displays in 2004, when we introduced models 40% below the average price of
currently available Braille displays. We are pleased that the
manufacturing efficiencies inherent in our latest product design make it
possible for us to reduce prices once again and hope this will make
Braille accessible to many more people."
The Focus 40 Blue is a compact portable Braille display that is the
perfect companion to a desktop, laptop, or netbook PC. It connects via USB
or Bluetooth® and has a Braille keyboard. The 40 Braille cells are
constructed without seams between characters, so the user experience is
like reading Braille on paper. The Focus 40 Blue works with Apple®
computers and cell phones as well as with JAWS for Windows®.
Freedom Scientific's Braille displays are the most reliable in the
industry and are backed by technical support and service teams based in
St. Petersburg, Florida.
The new US/Canada list price for the Focus 40 Blue is USD 2,795 and
includes a two-year manufacturer's warranty.
For more information, please visit the Freedom Scientific Web site or call
800-444-4443.
About Freedom Scientific
Freedom Scientific is the leading worldwide provider of assistive
technology products for those with vision impairments. The Company sells
its products worldwide and has offices in Florida and Switzerland. The
Company's products have been translated into 24 languages and are
available in 55 countries. Freedom also has a line of software products
for those with learning disabilities.
Freedom Scientific® and JAWS for Windows® are either trademarks or
registered trademarks in the United States and/or other countries. The
names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the
trademarks of their respective owners.
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