Dear AccessWorld Editor,
I’m writing to tell you about how Apple’s iPhone/iPad magnifier app, and the Android Magnifying Glass App not only magnify but eliminate the visual distortion I experience with my AMD.
I experience visual distortion rather than blank or dark spots in my vision. I see wavy lines, and when I read the letters sort of “decompose”: pieces of them disappear, and I have to figure out what I’m seeing from context. Several months ago I was trying to read a label on something, and was using my iPhone magnifier app. To my surprise, the app not only made the print bigger, it corrected the “decomposition” of the letters and made the print look normal to me. I started experimenting and found that if I looked at the rest of the world through the app, it corrected the wavy lines as well. A good example was watching the news on TV. Without the app, the anchors' faces were distorted; with it they looked normal. I’m convinced that what was happening was that Apple has interpolation software in the app that interpolates pixels— essentially adding data between pixels to complete the magnified picture.
I spent the last month or so gathering data on whether I was unique in benefiting from this, and have found out that apparently anyone that has this distortion problem gets the same effect from using the app. It’s a clunky solution for sure— holding the iPad up to view the TV, or trying to read on the small iPhone screen—but the quotes from people I got to try the app show the excitement that comes from being able to see without distortion. I’ve come to believe that there is a significant business opportunity for manufacturers of low vision magnifying devices if interpolation software was part of the magnifier product lines. And it turns out there is an amazing amount of this kind of software for sale, most of it directed at the digital photography market. I haven’t done the research, but I’d guess there’s open-source software available as well.
Andy
Dear AccessWorld Editor,
This message is in reference to Scott Davert's January 2020 article, A Review of the Braille Me Braille Display from Inovision.
I appreciate the work that was put into this article. Although I have recently purchased the Orbit Reader 20, I do like to find out what else is available. After reading this article, I am glad that I purchased the Orbit Reader rather than the Braille Me. Even though the Orbit Reader is more expensive and does not have cursor routing keys, it has more standard functionality and better support from the manufacturer.
James Oates
Dear AccessWorld Editor,
This message is in reference to Scott Davert's January 2020 article, A Review of the Braille Me Braille Display from Inovision.
I think Scott Davert did a pretty thorough objective review in Access World on the Braille Me, however the one thing he missed in his research was the reference to distributors for Inovision.
National Braille Press has been the master distributor in North America for the Braille Me since it was launched, and we are the distributors in 25 other smaller countries. Good for JJ Meddaugh (AT Guys) if he suggested the article, but the link for Braille Me information inferred that the AT Guys are the exclusive distributor for the Braille Me.
I am not looking for any correction in the next Access World, however if you are making any kind of referral list for braille products, I would ask that you include NBP for the Braille Me as well.
Sincerely,
Brian Mac Donald
President
National Braille Press
