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Netflix Watch Instantly's life after Starz includes Academy Award winners, more captions

Richard Lawler — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 23:23:00 EST

In a change of conversation that would make Don Draper proud, Netflix has picked up its blogging pen and accentuated the positive, even as hundreds of titles provided by Starz Play blinked away this week. The first bit of good news? Content that's coming instead of going includes several movies that scored trophies at last weekend's Academy Awards,including Best Picture winner The Artist, and Best Documentary winner Undefeated that will arrive "later this year, plus Best Animated Feature Rango that goes live on the service March 31st. That extends to movies in theaters too, as last weekend's top two, Act of Valor and Good Deeds, are pay-TV window exclusives for Netflix. The other positive note is that it achieved a goal of offering closed captioning on 80 percent of the hours streamed by the end of last year, and notes 90 percent of streaming is now done on devices that have been updated to support optional captions. The bad news there is that some embedded TV and Blu-ray player software might not be able to be updated for captions, and progress on adding captions for that last twenty percent of content may be slower since it's content that isn't viewed as often. So, is the red envelope company doing enough to keep you hanging around, or are you going to blow through the last few eps of Lillyhammer and pull the eject button?

Netflix Watch Instantly's life after Starz includes Academy Award winners, more captions originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Mar 2012 23:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google aids accessibility with ChromeVox reader, better YouTube captions and more

Sharif Sakr — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 04:43:00 EST

Engineers from Google have commandeered a booth at this year's CSUN accessibility conference and they're keen to talk up their latest efforts. For the visually impaired, there's now a beta version of a Chrome screen reader called ChromeVox (demo'd after the break), plus improved shortcuts and screen reader support in Google Docs, Sites and Calendar. Meanwhile, YouTube boasts expanded caption support for the hard of hearing, with automatic captions enabled for 135 million video clips -- a healthy tripling of last year's total. Check the source link for full details or, if you're anywhere near San Diego, go and hassle those engineers the old-fashioned way.

Continue reading Google aids accessibility with ChromeVox reader, better YouTube captions and more

Google aids accessibility with ChromeVox reader, better YouTube captions and more originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Feb 2012 04:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nintendo, NTT DoCoMo testing DS-powered speech translator

Daniel Cooper — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST

Nintendo and NTT DoCoMo are reportedly teaming up in order to create a voice-to-text system that'll help hearing-impaired children study. Using a modified DSi, speech is converted into text which is then archived in the cloud -- accessible afterward as a learning aid. That way, a teacher can have their words instantly typed up for reading by the students, who can also play interactive games to help them get along. Trials of the system are being held in Tottori and Okinawa Prefectures, with the overall aim of letting them use it as a universal translator outside the classroom. We're worried we'd be too tempted to swap out Tactical Assault during maths class.

Nintendo, NTT DoCoMo testing DS-powered speech translator originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Democratic Republic of Congo bans text messaging

Daniel Cooper — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 18:34:00 EST

After a controversial presidential election that saw Joseph Kabila retain the office amid fierce protests, the Democratic Republic of Congo has shut down the nation's text messaging services in order to restore public order. Civil liberties concerns aside, it's proving to be highly dangerous for the one point four million deaf residents who rely on text messaging. Normally they would receive safety signals when conflict broke out in their vicinity -- leading to people being caught unawares in crossfires who would otherwise have remained indoors. Human Rights organization ASADHO has said the crackdown could lead to further deaths, especially for people in remote areas and has joined numerous others in requesting the repeal of the ban.

Democratic Republic of Congo bans text messaging originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Dec 2011 18:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Trouble hearing? Advanced Bionics' waterproof implant is paddling your way

Sharif Sakr — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 14:58:00 EST

If you're one of the 200,000 deaf people who've received cochlear implants, then here's an upgrade worth considering: the Neptune from Advanced Bionics claims to be "the world's first and only swimmable, waterproof sound processor," and it's just received certification for the US and Canada. Read on for more details in the full press release and soon you could be bantering while you bathe.

Continue reading Trouble hearing? Advanced Bionics' waterproof implant is paddling your way

Trouble hearing? Advanced Bionics' waterproof implant is paddling your way originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 Dec 2011 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Netflix's day: Sony movies pulled, new bandwidth options, no more DVD API access and a lawsuit

Richard Lawler — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 23:29:00 EST

In an apparent ode to Rebecca Black, Ice Cube and any number of body switch movies, Netflix has had an incredibly active Friday, so sit back while we get you up to speed. Sony Pictures movies from Starz Play are no longer available (on any device, not just the Xbox 360 this time) due to a "temporary contract issue" according to the official blog. According to NewTeeVee, the problem is an "IP distribution cap" that was reached due to Netflix's explosive growth, but with no word on when the movies will be back, you'll be missing The Other Guys. Up next was the National Association of the Deaf, which has filed a lawsuit in Springfield, MA against Netflix, claiming that its failure to provide closed captions on all streaming content puts it in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Netflix last claimed 30 percent of titles were subbed with plans to reach 80 percent by the end of the year, but the press release (and captioned YouTube video) make the case that as a leader in streaming video, it should do better.

Netflix also quietly gave US subscribers access to the same bandwidth management options provided to Canadians a few months ago. The new Manage Video Quality settings (shown above) can be found in the Your Account section, and if you're trying to stay under bandwidth caps or just keep seeing buffering, they should help you out at the cost of a few pixels. As if that wasn't enough, the Netflix Tech Blog squeezed in news that it was ending access to "DVD-related features" for apps using its Open API later this year. The move is apparently preparation for expanded international streaming, so if you're trying to manage discs through a third party things may change soon.

Netflix's day: Sony movies pulled, new bandwidth options, no more DVD API access and a lawsuit originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 23:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NHK's automated, animated sign language translator adds gestures to subtitles (video)

Amar Toor — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 10:07:00 EST

We've seen quite a few devices designed to help hearing impaired users communicate via phone or computer, but Japan's NHK Science & Technology Research Laboratories has just announced a new animated translation system to help get important news to deaf viewers . While televised subtitles may work for those who understand the language, people who were born deaf and learned sign language from an early age can have significantly more difficulty. NHK's system, unveiled at Technology Open House 2011, bypasses this problem by automatically comparing Japanese text to sign language, converting equivalent words into animated onscreen gestures, and replacing differing words with appropriate synonyms. There are, however, a few kinks to work out. While comprehensible, the translations aren't exactly fluent and researchers have been forced to manually adjust some awkward transitions between words. The ultimate goal is to create a system that could be used during emergencies or natural disasters, allowing deaf citizens to receive urgent broadcasts as instantly as their hearing compatriots. You can see it in action, after the break.

Continue reading NHK's automated, animated sign language translator adds gestures to subtitles (video)

NHK's automated, animated sign language translator adds gestures to subtitles (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Jun 2011 10:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Telecommunications device for the deaf gets hitched to a rotary phone, hacked to run Zork

Dana Wollman — Fri, 27 May 2011 10:59:00 EST

In today's episode of "But will it run Zork?" a chap named Ulysses got the vintage game to run on a TDD (telecommunications device for the deaf) -- a project he built to show off at the Bay Area Maker Faire last weekend. In a move we truly respect, he hunted down a rotary phone lifted straight out of the era when Zork was conceived (that would be the late '70s / early '80s). Then, he modified a modem so that the acoustically coupled TDD could be interfaced -- transmitting at a slow 45.5 baud to make it easy for even ponderous readers to keep up, one line at a time on the TDD's narrow display. Once this was sorted, things weren't exactly smooth sailing when Ulysses started fitting the compressed Zork story file into the system. At first, he tried using an Arduino Pro and an Arduino Mega, but found that neither had enough memory to accommodate the compressed Zork story file. Ultimately, he took a different tack and settled on an embeddable FitPC. We'd love nothing more than to see this thing in action, but in lieu of a video we highly suggest carving out a few minutes and perusing Ulysses' photo blog at the source link.

Telecommunications device for the deaf gets hitched to a rotary phone, hacked to run Zork originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 May 2011 10:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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YouTube brings human-enabled closed captioning to live video for Google I/O

Christopher Trout — Wed, 11 May 2011 06:58:00 EST

If you were glued to your computer during the live broadcast of the Google I/O keynote yesterday morning, you might have noticed a new feature accompanying an otherwise recognizable YouTube video. The online video provider used this morning's conference kickoff as the springboard for its live captioning feature, which brings human input to the transcription process. According to Google's Naomi Black, a team of stenographers banged out translations during this morning's keynote. The resulting captions were then displayed on the conference floor and delivered by an "open source gadget" to the I/O YouTube channel. This new feature apparently prevents the inaccuracies experienced using Google's automatic captioning function, which, if you'll recall, provided us with at least a couple hearty chuckles when we took it for a spin. The code behind the new live captions will be available to YouTube's partners and competitors on Google Code. You can check out tomorrow's keynote to see how the humans fare.

YouTube brings human-enabled closed captioning to live video for Google I/O originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 May 2011 06:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acoustic Poetry concept turns ambient noise into verse

Brian Heater — Wed, 04 May 2011 16:25:00 EST

Modern society invests a lot of time and money attempting to drown out our surroundings, but the inability to hear ambient noise can rob one of a sense of place, which can be a very real concern amongst the deaf community. The Acoustic Poetry concept device from British designer Michail Vanis won't miraculously cure the deaf, but it does promise to keep them a bit more in touch. The wooden box is used to capture sound and transmit it to an interpreter, who listens and translates it into text, coming out like something of a free form haiku. It's a communication relay not entirely unlike ones we've seen from a number of other companies, and one that doesn't really necessitate its own stand-alone device. Still, it's nice to see text messaging that can actually keep people more in-touch with their surroundings, for a change -- we still don't recommend using it while driving, however. Video after the break.

[Thanks, Ro]

Continue reading Acoustic Poetry concept turns ambient noise into verse

Acoustic Poetry concept turns ambient noise into verse originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 May 2011 16:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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President Obama signs bill to give disabled better access to technology

Laura June — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 20:35:00 EST

Now this is something we can all get behind. Today, President Obama signed a bill pledging to see that the blind and deaf get better access to cellphones, the internet, and other technologies which are a necessity of life in the modern era. Joined by a group of lawmakers and Stevie Wonder, the president signed into law the bill which promises guaranteed access for 25 million blind or visually impaired and 38 million deaf or hearing impaired people living in the United States. New federal guidelines resulting from the bill include requiring improved user interfaces on smartphones, providing audible descriptions of television programming, captioning online programming, making telephone equipment compatible with hearing aids, and adding buttons to remote controls to provide quick access to closed captioning. The bill, S. 3304, should bring down the cost of these technologies for people who need them significantly.

President Obama signs bill to give disabled better access to technology originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Oct 2010 20:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ZVRS to support live sign language translation via iPhone 4's FaceTime for calls between deaf and hearing users

Paul Miller — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:18:00 EST

While SMS and mobile email are great, they still can't match the emotion, interaction, and intonation of a live conversation with someone -- that's why our phones still ship with microphones and speakers, apparently. Of course, this is much more difficult when one of the parties is deaf or hard of hearing, which is where video relay services come in. With the help of a videophone or your computer's webcam, you can make a call with a live translator, who speaks your signed ramblings out loud to the hearing person on the other end. Of course you're usually stuck at a desk when doing this, but now ZVRS is going to be supporting calls made from the iPhone 4 over FaceTime. It might not be quite as sexy as Apple's goosebump-raising iPhone 4 commercial, since the phone obviously makes two-way sign language calls possible, but if the person on the other end doesn't have an iPhone 4 or doesn't know sign language, ZVRS seems like the next best thing. The new service will launch on July 26th. Check out a video of it in action after the break, the actual call starts at 2:25.

Continue reading ZVRS to support live sign language translation via iPhone 4's FaceTime for calls between deaf and hearing users

ZVRS to support live sign language translation via iPhone 4's FaceTime for calls between deaf and hearing users originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Netflix Watch Instantly adds closed captioning support for the PC, Mac

Richard Lawler — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 02:33:00 EST

We'd like to welcome the hard of hearing to the internet delivered video party, now that Netflix has begun offering optional closed captioning on a limited number of Watch Instantly titles. Currently only available through the Silverlight player on Mac or PC, Chief Product Officer Neil Hunt promises it's in the works for other platforms and should arrive there around fall along with the long-awaited support for 5.1 surround sound. Of course we're also still waiting for HD streaming on the PC but we know this is a big deal for specific communities and situations. For now, you can test out the feature on seasons 1-4 of Lost, part of about 100 titles so far with others being filled in "over time." Now excuse us, we need to watch some old episodes with CC switched on and make sure our Lostpedia entries are correct before the finale.

Netflix Watch Instantly adds closed captioning support for the PC, Mac originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 16 Apr 2010 02:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bone-anchored hearing aids filter out noise, finally ready for human implantation

Darren Murph — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 08:03:00 EST

Think those noise-canceling earbuds are hot stuff? Imagine if said technology was applied to an advanced type of implantable hearing aid, and you'll have an idea of exactly what Earthlings with severe hearing loss now have to look forward to. For years now, we've watched as cochlear implants became more effective in lab tests, and up until recently, we've had strict medical testing procedures to thank for the inability to actually get one. Now, one Colin Hughes will soon be amongst the first Australians to enjoy a "new bone-anchored hearing aid designed to adjust to noisy environments, quiet conversations and the varying rhythms and pitch of music." Due to a birth defect that left him with atypically narrow eustachian tubes, Colin was never able to take advantage of traditional hearing aids for any length of time, but now these $12,000 (per pair) devices are promising a new life for the 70-year old bloke. Our favorite feature? MP3 players can be directly (and discretely) attached, enabling old geezers to tune out old hags without them ever noticing.

[Thanks, Mike]

Filed under: Wearables

Bone-anchored hearing aids filter out noise, finally ready for human implantation originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 Aug 2009 08:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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DeafBlind Communicator helps deaf / blind individuals communicate

Darren Murph — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:15:00 EST

Every so often, we stumble upon a new piece of technology designed to assist deaf and / or blind individuals, but we've yet to see a creation so complete as this. HumanWare, working in tandem with the Washington State Office of Deaf and Hard of Hearing, has concocted a DeafBlind Communicator to provide a trio of communication options to handicapped individuals: face-to-face-, TTY and SMS. The DBS system consists of two separate components -- the BrailleNote and a DB-Phone, the latter of which is a specially designed handset with a QWERTY keyboard and unique software that helps the deaf-blind community converse with bus drivers, waiters, friends, family, etc. The Braille menus enable those folks to easily strike up conversations and live life more easily, and it seems as if sales inquiries are being fielded as we speak.

[Thanks, Drew]

DeafBlind Communicator helps deaf / blind individuals communicate originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Solar-powered hearing aids improve life in developing nations

Darren Murph — Tue, 06 May 2008 18:08:00 EST

The SolarAid really isn't much different than your average hearing aid in function -- it enables hearing-impaired individuals to get a better listen at the world around them. The difference, however, comes from its source of energy. Through a series of tragic and fortunate events, Howard Weinstein wound up in Africa with a goal in mind: to concoct a hearing aid that even the poorest of citizens could afford. Through a series of grants and help from hordes of deaf individuals that had no qualms holding a soldering iron, some 20,000 folks in 30 countries are currently using the solar-powered devices. Best of all, the mastermind isn't slowing down, as he's looking to expand the nonprofit into the Middle East, China and India in the not-too-distant future.

[Via CrunchGear]

Filed under: Wearables

Solar-powered hearing aids improve life in developing nations originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 May 2008 18:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AT&T reveals iPhone Text Accessibility Plan for hearing impaired

Darren Murph — Fri, 02 May 2008 10:56:00 EST

Although AT&T has had a specialized plan for the deaf and hard of hearing for some time now, the iPhone has been unfortunately unable to take advantage. No longer will that be the case, as said carrier has just implemented the Text Accessibility Plan for iPhone, which provides unlimited texting, unlimited data usage, $0.40 per minute pay-per-use voice and Visual Voicemail. Granted, the iPhone TAP does cost $40 ($10 more than the vanilla TAP), but you are getting limitless texts (versus 5,000) and Visual Voicemail thrown in -- not that those inclusions really warrant the extra Hamilton. Nevertheless, those with adequate documentation can get their iPhone on the plan right now, just click the read link for details / instructions.

Filed under: Handsets, Messaging, ATT, GSM, EDGE, Apple, iPhone OS

AT&T reveals iPhone Text Accessibility Plan for hearing impaired originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 02 May 2008 10:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Study finds teens don't really care about their hearing

Joshua Topolsky — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:42:00 EST

Those darn kids -- they just don't listen! And soon, according to a report, they won't physically be able to listen. It seems that modern teens, with their cloaking jackets, space telephones, and telepathic headsets fail to obey the simplest tenet of leisure-time music enjoyment: keeping their iPod and Zune volumes at a semi-natural level. In focus-group discussions, researchers found that high school students in the Netherlands were aware of the potential hearing loss which can be caused by high volume listening, yet had no immediate plans to crank their jams at anything but 11. Typical of our misguided youth, the teens feel that they have a "low personal vulnerability" to hearing loss -- researchers also noted that they believed they were bulletproof, could fly, and would never, ever lose touch with people who signed their yearbook. The study's findings suggest that the answer to this problem may lie with manufacturers of hardware and solutions like volume caps or warning lights, rather than with the self-control of the end user.

Filed under: Portable Audio

Study finds teens don't really care about their hearing originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New Sprint service transcribes conversation to web in real time

Chris Ziegler — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 14:51:00 EST

Sprint is rolling out WebCapTel, an extension of its existing CapTel service that shows hard-of-hearing callers what the person on the other end is saying in real time -- but this time around, special equipment isn't needed. As its name implies, WebCapTel works through any web browser using any phone, turning the call into text quickly enough so that callers are able to respond naturally and with their own voice. Pretty darned cool; in fact, we think we're going to give it a try ourselves to see how it does. It's available now for calls within the US, and even better, it's free.

Filed under: Software, Sprint

New Sprint service transcribes conversation to web in real time originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Mar 2008 14:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IBM's SiSi virtually translates speech to sign language

Darren Murph — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 14:07:00 EST

We've seen a wide array of devices designed to help the deaf communicate and experience life more fully, and IBM is hoping to make yet another advancement in the field with its SiSi (Say It Sign It) system. Developed at an IBM research center in Hursley, England, the technology works "by using speech recognition to convert a conversation into text," after which SiSi "translates the text into the gestures used in sign language and animates a customizable avatar that carries them out." Currently, the system is still labeled a prototype and only works with British sign language, but there's already plans to commercialize the invention in due time. For a better look at exactly what SiSi can do, take a peek at the video demonstration waiting after the jump.

Continue reading IBM's SiSi virtually translates speech to sign language

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

IBM's SiSi virtually translates speech to sign language originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 Sep 2007 14:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Auditory nerve implant could drastically benefit deaf individuals

Darren Murph — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 07:35:00 EST

Early last year, gurus at the University of Michigan were devising a newfangled type of cochlear implant, but now it looks like the Wolverines are more interested in a fresh auditory nerve implant that is being dubbed "a superior alternative" to the (now) old fashioned option. The uber-thin electrode array would purportedly "transmit a wide range of sounds to the brain," and could give profoundly and severely deaf people the ability to "to hear low-pitched sounds common in speech, converse in a noisy room, identify high and low voices, and appreciate music." Researchers on the project are convinced that this technology trumps cochlear implants in every way, and while preliminary patents have already been filed, it'll still be nearly a decade at best before these things can invade human ears en masse.

[Via Physorg]

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Auditory nerve implant could drastically benefit deaf individuals originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 10 Jun 2007 07:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VeeSee TV brings programming to deaf via IPTV

Darren Murph — Sun, 20 May 2007 02:58:00 EST

After hearing that modern technology wasn't exactly doing the deaf any favors, quite a few attempts have sought to reverse the unfortunate trend. Most recently, a new web-based television service has launched in the UK that brings sign language content to IPTV viewers 'round the clock. Dubbed VeeSee TV, the BSL (British Sign Language) channel is currently available via the internet or a set-top-box, and also "includes an interactive forum and user-generated content." Moreover, the creator suggests that this venue will allow "deaf film-makers to show off their own work" while allowing deaf individuals to conveniently catch catered programming anytime during the day. Notably, the service is a part of the ViewTV portal of channels, and while basic content should be up and running right now, a host of new functionality (including webcam conferencing) is planned for the upcoming months.

Filed under: Internet, New content

VeeSee TV brings programming to deaf via IPTV originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2007 02:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Subtitle glasses could help deaf, foreigners at the movies

Nilay Patel — Thu, 19 Apr 2007 03:12:00 EST

Looking to expand the moviegoing experience as much as possible -- especially in this day and age of 103-inch plasmas -- a research team at the University Carlos III of Madrid has unveiled an upgrade for the problematic rear-window captioning system currently used by the deaf: a glasses-mounted subtitle screen. Featuring a three hour battery life and a 50 meter range, the little clippy-screen isn't as hard-core as some other enhanced vision devices we've seen, but there's something to be said for doing one job well. That range is pretty long though - no word yet on how the MPAA plans to deal with people sitting outside the the theater and reading the latest flicks for free.

[Via Xataka]

Filed under: Displays, Misc. Gadgets, Portable Video

Subtitle glasses could help deaf, foreigners at the movies originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Apr 2007 03:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Telecoms opening up for deaf callers

Darren Murph — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 22:45:00 EST

UK surveys suggesting that deaf / blind individuals weren't having their needs met by technology has evidently spurred the Royal National Institute for Deaf (RNID) and a Bedfordshire-based firm to create alternatives that assist the hard of hearing with communicating freely on phone / conference calls. While there are offerings that convert voicemail to SMS and give movie-goers textual representations of the script, these two outfits are looking to spruce up the generally poor telecommunication options available for the deaf. RNID is unveiling a ScreenPhone, which allows hearing impaired people to speak to another recipient, while a tuned-in translator converts his / her replies into text seen on the unit's monochrome LCD. This Typetalk service is presumably included gratis with the purchase of the £200 ($373) device, but disclosing those juicy date details with a third wheel on the line could cause a bit of embarrassment for all parties involved. Nevertheless, Teletec is offering up a similar service which doesn't require a special phone, but instead utilizes any internet-connected device to display text that an "online operator" channels to their screen. This convenience, however, will run you a whopping £1 ($1.89) per minute, so callers should probably keep those messages short and sweet should they opt for this. Both UK-based services will be launching "early next year," and will likely be huge upgrades from that lamentable lip-reading contraption currently available.

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Household

Telecoms opening up for deaf callers originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Oct 2006 22:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cellphones enable PA system for the deaf

Chris Ziegler — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 09:50:00 EST

Typically, when we think of cellphones improving one's quality of life, we're speaking in terms of broadband data, big honkin' autofocus cams, and gobs of flash memory. Researchers in IBM's British facilities are looking at it a little differently, though, looking into how mobile devices might be used to help alert the deaf to PA announcements near their location -- something hearing folk take for granted in airport terminals, train stations, and sports venues, just to name a small few. Their LAMA system (Location Aware Messaging for Accessability) was originally designed with the hard of hearing in mind, but they're pointing out that it could come in handy for pretty much anyone: voice-based services to read signage to the blind, directions to various nearby places for the navigationally challenged, and so on. Better yet, the system may not be that far off, with European trials in train stations possibly coming before the year's out. No word on whether new handsets are required to take advantage of the system, but then again, we're always looking for an excuse to upgrade.

[Via textually.org]

Filed under: Misc

Cellphones enable PA system for the deaf originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Oct 2006 09:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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