This is the first in a series of three articles that will cover some of the most popular braille displays on the market. Some of the devices that will be discussed have many other features beyond the ability to connect to iOS, those features will only be considered as they relate to connecting to iOS devices. This first article describes two braille displays and what sets each of them apart from others on the market. This series focuses on comparing models of braille displays, so step-by-step instructions on how to accomplish tasks that are clearly documented in other resources will not be included. In this article, I'll be discussing the Smart Beetle from HIMS and the Refreshabraille 18 from American Printing House for the Blind. In the second article, I will cover the Braille Pen 12 from Harpo and the Focus 14 from Freedom Scientific. In the third, I'll examine the VarioUltra 20 from Baum and the Actilino manufactured by Handy Tec.
iOS and Braille Displays: Leveling the Playing Field
Throughout my various professional and casual interactions with people who are blind and deaf-blind over the past few years, it seems the most common choice of a mobile solution for braille users is the iPhone with a braille display. This combination is an instance where mainstream and assistive technology combine to level the playing field for the braille user. The wide range of braille display options on the market means there are many things to consider when making a selection, including: price, number of cells, number and function of buttons beyond the standard Perkins-style keyboard, and other added features. It's worth noting that many iOS commands are standard to all displays with a Perkins-style keyboard. Apple has compiled a list of the commonly supported commands found on most models of braille displays. As we're talking about mobile and portable devices, braille displays of 20 cells or less will be discussed
The Smart Beetle
The Smart Beetle is a 14-cell braille display manufactured by HIMS, compatible with iOS devices running iOS 9 and later. It is roughly the size and shape of an iPhone 7, but a bit thicker and slightly wider. When you hold the Smart Beetle so the refreshable display is closest to you and the keys are furthest away, you will find one diamond-shaped button on each side of the display area. These buttons pan braille back and forth. At the top of the display area, you'll find 14 cursor-routing buttons. Continuing that direction on a slightly elevated surface you'll find the Spacebar and two rectangular-shaped buttons to either side. The two on the left of the Spacebar are F1 and F2, the two on the right are F3 and F4. Beyond this row, you will find the Perkins-style keyboard for inputting text in braille, followed by a small speaker for the audio alerts and a couple of lights for indicating the status of the battery and other information. On the backside of the Beetle, from left to right, you have a reset button and a Micro USB port. Both the left and front edges of the Beetle without features; the power button is located on the right edge. A quick press of the power button when the display is turned on will take you to the Beetle's menu; pressing it for three seconds will power the unit on and off. Battery life seems to be between 15 and 20 hours.
Connecting the Smart Beetle to an iOS Device
To connect to an iOS device, first press the power button briefly on the Smart Beetle to set the connection mode: Bluetooth Serial Port, USB port, or Bluetooth keyboard are the options. Press Enter on Bluetooth Serial Port to put the Smart Beetle into Discoverable Mode and then pair it under the VoiceOver braille settings. The Beetle does not require a PIN; simply confirm on your iOS device that you wish to pair with the Smart Beetle, and it should act accordingly
Unique Features of the Smart Beetle
Multiple Bluetooth Connections
Of the two braille displays covered in this first article, this is the only one that supports multiple Bluetooth connections, though we will take a look at a couple of others that have this capability later in the series. The Beetle can connect up to five different Bluetooth devices, and one USB device simultaneously. When connected with a Windows computer running JAWS, an iPhone, and Mac via Bluetooth, I found that switching from one connected device to another took less than one second. You can either jump among the list of devices by launching the list by pressing the power button and F4, or you can toggle among the paired braille devices with the power button and the right scroll button. If you wish to toggle among Bluetooth keyboard emulation options, which will be discussed further below, pressing the power button with the left scroll button will cycle you through Bluetooth keyboard connections. You can quickly jump to the device connected via USB by pressing the power button and F2. This process could be made faster and easier if each pairing were assigned a specific channel (the VarioUltra, which will be discussed later in this series of articles, uses this approach).
There are also two keys on each side of the Spacebar that perform some VoiceOver tasks. For example, pressing F4 will take you to the Home Screen. With iOS 11, these keys can be customized to do any number of specific actions, which makes them more powerful than in previous versions of iOS. Though iOS 11 does have some significant bugs, this is one advantage to upgrading.
Bluetooth Keyboard Emulation
I made mention of a Bluetooth keyboard connection option above. This function, unique to the Smart Beetle, allows you to emulate certain parts of a Bluetooth keyboard. Though this feature is a bit of a moot point with iOS 11, the argument could be made that iOS 11 is not yet up to snuff for braille users. You can also pair the Smart Beetle to your iOS device as a braille display and to emulate a Bluetooth keyboard as well. Pair the Smart Beetle to mimic a Bluetooth keyboard by pressing the Power button on the Smart Beetle quickly, then choose "Bluetooth keyboard" and press Enter. Then, on your iOS device, pair it the same way a conventional keyboard is paired. Note that a pairing code is also not required for this type of pairing. If you plan to use both the braille display pairing along with the keyboard emulation, it's important to pair as a braille display first, and then pair it as a Bluetooth keyboard. If you only pair as a Bluetooth keyboard, braille will not be displayed.
While the keyboard commands for the Bluetooth keyboard emulation do work as advertised, I found that not all commands were listed in the manual. For example, pressing F1 will activate the Control key, F2 the Command key, and F3 the Options key. This comes in handy for when you wish to perform some keyboard commands that exist on the Bluetooth keyboard, but not in braille. However it does not appear to work with commands that require three or more keys. For example, Control + Option + Shift + M will activate double-tap-and-hold on a Bluetooth keyboard, but does not work with the Bluetooth keyboard emulation. While this feature potentially has a lot to offer, the user doesn't really gain any functionality because commands to scroll pages, double tap, and other basic functions are already found on all braille displays through conventional pairing with VoiceOver.
Terminal Clipboard
One final unique capability of the Smart Beetle is a feature called Terminal Clipboard. Originally introduced in the Braille Sense line of products a few years back, Terminal Clipboard allows you to bypass the braille translation option on the device you are connected to, with any of its quirkiness, and edit your text on the internal word processing program. Some people who type in braille find Terminal Clipboard preferable. I found it worked well on iOS. One limitation is that you can only type a line of text since pressing Enter, which would normally insert a line break, will instead send the text to the connected device when you're using Terminal Clipboard. That said, it's still a great feature to have available.
The RefreshaBraille 18
The RefreshaBraille is an 18-cell braille display sold by the American Printing House for the Blind. It is well constructed of aluminum and feels very sturdy in the hands. On the front edge, you'll find the small square Power button in the middle. Place the display in front of you on a table or other surface with Power button facing you to be properly oriented. The top surface of the RefreshaBraille 18 is where you will find the rest of the controls, keys, and buttons. Starting with the front line of 3 keys, from left to right they are: dot 7, Spacebar, and dot 8. Next you will find the Perkins-style keyboard. From left to right, you have dots 3, 2, 1, and then slightly below that a 5-way navigation pad. This navigation pad is closer to the Spacebar than the Perkins-style keyboard and is in between dots 1 and 4. Continuing to the right of dot 1, there is a small gap and then dots 4, 5, and 6. The keyboard itself has all 6 keys configured in a straight line just like previous models of the Refreshabraille. Directly above dot 3, you have a small rectangular button for panning left. Continuing to the right, you then have another small rectangular button, the auxiliary Spacebar. On the right side, you have the advance bar, also small and rectangular. Above that, you have 18 cursor routing buttons and then the 18 braille cells. On the back of the device at the lower left corner, you will find a cut out space, which is where to plugin your Micro USB connector for charging the device as well as for connecting to external technology through USB. Battery life is between 20 and 25 hours of use on Bluetooth.
Connecting the Refreshabraille 18 to an iOS Device
Pairing the Refreshabraille 18 is achieved in one of two ways: Auto or Secure. Select which one you'd like to use by navigating to the appropriate option within the Refreshabraille's menu. Navigate through the various options using the forward and backward panning buttons, and make a selection by pressing a cursor routing button.
If you select Auto, you will not need to enter a PIN on the touch screen to establish the connection. Simply press and hold the Power button for two seconds to put the Refreshabraille into Discoverable Mode, and then select the Refreshabraille under the braille menu in the VoiceOver settings. Once you have chosen the Refreshabraille on your iOS device, the pairing should occur automatically within a few seconds.
If you choose Secure as your pairing mode, when you select the Refreshabraille 18, you will need to confirm that the PINs match on the device you are pairing with as well as the Refreshabraille. After selecting the Refreshabraille 18 as described above on your iOS device, flick right one time to find the PIN, and then flick right again to confirm the pairing request. You will also find the word "pair" along with the PIN on the RefreshaBraille once the iOS device initiates the pairing. Press a cursor routing button above the word "pair" on the Refreshabraille, and the pairing should be established.
Unique Features of the Refreshabraille
There are a few things that set the Refreshabraille apart from other displays in this series.
Joystick
Moving the joystick up or down will jump to the previous or next occurrence of the element the VoiceOver rotor is set to. Moving left or right will perform a flick in the corresponding direction. Pressing down on the joystick will perform a double-tap.
Reverse Orientation
Another unique function of this display is the ability to reverse the orientation of the device's various controls. You can change the orientation by pressing the left and right panning buttons when the Refreshabraille is not paired to another device. This will allow you to flip the Refreshabraille around so that the Power button faces away from you. You can still use the Spacebar between dots 7 and 8, but you can also use the auxiliary Spacebar located between the left and right panning bars. The USB port is located on the bottom of the device, in a kind of cut-out area. I suspect this design was intended to prevent the USB cable from being pulled out of the unit accidentally; it also makes it challenging to insert the USB cable properly.
No Case
Unlike the other braille displays in this series, the Refreshabraille does not come with any sort of carrying case. Executive Products offers such a case), but it must be purchased separately for $60.42. If you wish to carry the Refreshabraille 18 around, the case will help secure the device. If you do use a case, you'll find that plugging a USB cable into the Refreshabraille becomes even more of a challenge since the case does not take into account that you may wish to access this port.
Product Information
Product: Smart Beetle
Seller: HIMS
Price: $1,345.00
Product: RefreshaBraille
Seller: American Printing House for the Blind
Price: $1,695.00
