NLS has already stated they are planning on releasing an app for android.-----Original Message----- From: KB7UEN Gene
Sent: Friday, November 15, 2013 7:25 AM To: vi-kindle@xxxxxxxxxxxxxSubject: [vi-kindle] Re: Any resources available on accessibility of new Kindle units?
I would be very surprised if NLS released a talkingbook app for android. Sent from my iPhone
On Nov 15, 2013, at 8:31 AM, "Russ Kiehne" <russ94577@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:I wonder how long it will be before the Kindle app on android will be accessible?How long it will be before the nls app will come to android? -----Original Message----- From: KB7UEN Gene Sent: Thursday, November 14, 2013 10:59 AM To: vi-kindle@xxxxxxxxxxxxxSubject: [vi-kindle] Re: Any resources available on accessibility of new Kindle units?Well the new Nexus seven you know has stellar specs on it and everyone who's spent time with it raves about it. It's a device that is pure Android OS with skinning going on whatsoever, so if a blind person is going to invest in an android device, the first rule is avoid anything that's been skinned. And probably the easiest way to do this is to look for devices that have the name Google on them like the Nexus five or the Nexus seven.Sent from my iPhoneOn Nov 14, 2013, at 12:46 PM, Rick Alfaro <rick.alfaro@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:Agreed, I'd say you are probably right on the mark. I think I would be more apt to play around with a Nexus 7 just because of the geek in me but nothing compares to my iPhone and ipad mini in terms of accessibility.Best Regards, Rick alfaroOn 11/14/2013 1:26 PM, Kb7uengene wrote:The only benefit you really get with these devices is better audio quality out-of-the-box over the iPhone and iPod touch. I would be very surprised if the Silk browser or the Kindle store are accessible through TTS. I played with the Kindle Fire HD 7 inch in Best Buy a while back and found it rather cumbersome to work with and also not as responsive in the same way that the iOS devices are. It was very easy to get ahead of it and then I had to wait for the TTS to catch up with what was on the display. I suspect this is about how the accessibility features are implemented in the Android OS, but it more than likely also has something to do with the fact that Amazon Kindle Fire tablets are heavily skinned. At $139, I think the Kindle Fire HD 7 inch is worth playing with, but I certainly wouldn't put any more money into Amazon's tablets if I were totally blind because I don't think you're going to be ultimately satisfied with experience on the device after using iOS devices whichare designed from the ground up to work well because of the heavy integration between hardware and iOS.GeneOn Nov 14, 2013, at 11:50 AM, Rick Alfaro <rick.alfaro@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:That is exactly what I would like to know as well, how's the accessibility on other things. Email, web browsing and general use of their version of Android. I understand there is no access to the Google Play store so I would think that this in itself is a big disadvantage but I'd love to see a podcast on this dealing with general accessibility besides Kindle books.Best Regards, Rick alfaroOn 11/14/2013 12:36 PM, David Goldfield wrote: Margaret, Thanks for posting the link to RNIB's video. It was very informative and it demonstrated the KF's improved accessibility in navigatingthrough books. While I admit that there are significant improvements inthis area, what I really want to know is how the screen reader handlesthings other than books, such as the Silk browser, the app store and theapps themselves. These topics were not addressed in this video and I hope that RNIB demonstrates these capabilities in future videos, assuming they haven't done so already. If the new KF's screen readerworks in areas aside from books, I'd definitely purchase this device. Ifit's just a talking book player then it's a waste of my money. Margaret Thomas wrote:There was an item in today's top Tech Tidbits saying that "RNIB has posted new videos featuring Kindle Fire HD accessibility improvements:" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xNy0C26MLA Margaret
