Technology advances ever onward, and one of the latest devices to be born from the imagination of the engineers at HIMS is the E-bot. The E-bot is a portable CCTV camera designed to be connected via HDMI to a television or monitor - so far so normal. What sets the E-bot apart is that it can also wirelessly connect to an iPad, using the iPad's screen as its monitor! In another twist, the most advanced version of the E-bot, the E-bot Pro, is fully motorized and allows...

"Literature is my Utopia. Here I am not disenfranchised. No barrier of the senses shuts me out from the sweet, gracious discourses of my book friends. They talk to me without embarrassment or awkwardness.?" Helen Keller, The Story of My Life One of the main areas in which people who are blind or have a visual impairment suffer, particularly if they have lost their vision at a later age, is the loss of their ability to read. Suddenly being unable to read mail,...

An interesting movement in the AT field over recent years has been the homogenization of different types of technology into one device. This has been seen with CCTV's that contain OCR technology, Read-Aloud devices that combine email capabilities, Smart Phones that can be used for numerous different tasks related to the low vision and blindness etc. This homogenization is a great trend as it means a user can carry less devices and make their lives a little easier. Following...

Low Vision International are no strangers to making great low vision devices. We were big fans of their portable camera system, the Magnilink S, a few months back and now have had the chance to review their portable desktop CCTV line, the Magnilink Zip. Suffice to say, once again we are impressed. The Magnilnik Zip comes in many varieties with optional 13 or 17 inch screen sizes, an optional X-Y table, an optional HD or Full HD camera and an optional rechargeable battery....

Here at The Chicago Lighthouse we are always excited to try out new technology, and that's why when Boni approached us with a desire to install navigation beacon technology here we jumped at the chance! Boni is a company from Turkey who have been working on a navigation system to aid those who are blind or have a visual impairment to navigate through unfamiliar spaces. The way they do this is by using small beacons installed in strategic places around buildings which...

Technology is a great asset to those who are blind or visually impaired, helping to give back independence where it may have seemed that there was no hope. The down side to this is that technology costs, and is unfortunately not covered by services such as Medicare and Medicaid.  To help with this The Chicago Lighthouse offers used or ex-demo equipment at highly discounted prices. All the equipment is tested by our Assistive Technology team to ensure it is working...

For the blind and visually impaired, navigation around unfamiliar areas can be a scary proposition. Talking GPS units can be a godsend in this situation, providing street by street navigation that can guide a blind or visually impaired pedestrian to their destination. The Trekker Breeze from Humanware was one of the best GPS systems on the market but was hampered by slow connection time to satellites and a problem losing it's signal in built up urban areas.  Humanware...

The American Foundation for the Blind is a fantastic organization striving to bring equality for those with a visual impairment and has been doing great work since 1921. That's why when we were recently alerted to their blog we had to check it out, and we were not disappointed. Featuring fantastic articles on topics ranging from getting to grips with the new iWatch from Apple, to anecdotes and stories about Helen Keller, the AFB Blog is a highly recommended resource...

We have finally had a chance to make a video demonstration of the Vario Ultra Braille display, and this little guy is definitely a good tool to have around for the modern girl or guy. Featuring a sleek aluminum body, ergonomic design, excellent feeling Braille cells (available as either a 20 or 40 cell setup) and the ability to connect to 5 devices simultaneously, this Braille display hits all the right buttons.  Check out our video review to find out for yourself...

The Orcam has been in pre-release in the USA for a few months and we have had the chance to try it out, and we are liking what we see. For those of you who haven't seen the promotional video (see it below) the Orcam is a wearable camera which attaches to the side of a pair of glasses and can perform OCR to read aloud whatever text the wearer is looking at. In addition the Orcam offers additional features such as facial recognition whereby, once you have stored...

Humanware's Trekker Breeze has long been a useful tool for people who are blind or visually impaired to confidently navigate when out and about, providing a simple to use interface that can be manipulated one handed leaving a hand free to hold a white cane or dog guide. The Trekker did have a few problems though, such as very slow starting time, not telling you what side of the street things were on and sometimes inaccurate location finding when not in street view.Step...

With the release of Microsoft's Surface 3 tablet/laptop hybrid we thought it was time to blog about the benefits of this great line of devices for people who are blind or visually impaired (read a review of the Surface 3 here http://www.engadget.com/2015/04/15/surface-3-review/) The Surface 3 is the first time that Microsoft have released a Surface outside of the Pro line that runs a full version of Windows 8.1 - what does this mean? It means you will get a fully...