A Review of Mobile Speak Smartphone

Over the years, I have written a dozen or so articles discussing the accessibility of various types of cell phones for AccessWorld. This is the first of a two-part series of articles on Smartphones, another category of cell phones that can provide access for people who are blind or have low vision. Access to Smartphones is provided not by their manufacturers, but by third-party vendors of screen-reader software. In this article, I examine the access to Smartphones provided by Code Factory’s Mobile Speak Smartphone screen reader, and in the September issue of AccessWorld, I will examine Dolphin’s Smart Hal screen reader. Regular readers of AccessWorld will be familiar with Code Factory’s Mobile Speak and Mobile Magnifier access products for Symbian cell phones from previous articles. Readers will also be familiar with Dolphin’s Hal screen reader and its Lunar screen magnifier and Supernova combination screen reader and screen magnifier, as well as the Lunar screen magnifier.

I was impressed with the access provided by Mobile Speak Smartphone on the Motorola Q. Certainly, many of the features and functions of Smartphones and Mobile Speak Smartphone are more for the savvy assistive technology user and the techie types who enjoy a challenge and enjoy learning how to work with all the features of a device and with other third-party software products. In fact, as I was learning to use some of the applications on my phone, I sometimes felt like a dumb guy trying to use a Smartphone. That being said, someone who is simply interested in the basics of a cell phone and who wants to be able to know the battery and signal status of their phone and who is calling and to have an accessible Contacts list, would also enjoy using these products.

I found some minor bugs and inconsistencies during testing. For example, in the phone settings window, the items are not spoken by Mobile Speak Smartphone, and I had to use the MSS cursor to read the controls, but I could not use this cursor to choose the items. Also, some of the key commands change, depending on the application you are in, so that is something you will have to get used to. I also had a few problems with the system crashing when I was surfing the Internet. That being said, Code Factory often posts updates to its software and always works out bugs that I report. Also, in the interim between my writing of this article and the posting of this issue of AccessWorld, Code Factory posted a new version with a long list of accessibility enhancements. When Code Factory releases a new version, it puts up a “What’s New” page with a link on the Mobile Speak Smartphone Downloads page at <www.codefactory.es/mobile_speak_Smartphone/MobileSpeak Smartphone_downloads.htm>.

What I particularly like about Smartphones and the available screen-reader programs is that they open up another category of accessible cell phones and are available for both CDMA and GSM service providers, so all U.S. service providers will be able to offer this access solution. This increase in our choices is certainly good news, and now we can only hope that all the service providers will become aware of these options and that the employees in local stores will learn more about the choices they have to offer their customers who are blind or have low vision. Perhaps even some of the manufacturers can learn that it is possible to make cell phones accessible to people who are blind or have low vision, and more of the manufacturers and service providers will do more to live up to their commitments under Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act.

Please stay tuned to AccessWorld for the next article in this series, which will focus on Dolphin’s Smart Hal on the Cingular 2125, a number pad-style phone. Although I have not had the chance to use Smart Hal, I witnessed an impressive demonstration of it at this year’s CSUN Technology and People with Disabilities conference, and I cannot wait to get some hands-on time with it in our lab.

COntinue to read article on AccessWorld