Deborah Kendrick

During the early lockdown of the pandemic, many people squeezed the proverbial lemons into flavorful lemonade. Among those innovative optimists were some blind entrepreneurs. Laura Legendary, owner of Elegant Insights Jewelry, and featured in

AccessWorld October 2020

teamed up with her friend and colleague, Brent Harbolt of the Harbolt Company, to launch the first online Let’s Go Shopping event. For many blind artists and business owners, the exhibits held in conjunction with state and national conferences of the American Council of the Blind, Blind Veterans Association, National Federation of the Blind, and others represent the primary opportunities to showcase their products. With all such conferences on hold, Let’s Go Shopping

brought those products to shoppers everywhere, and in their own homes. As Laura Legendary put it, that first event was so popular that it broke the Zoom room! Not to worry, the event was soon back up and running, and was wildly successful. Early this November, Laura Legendary led the seventh Let’s Go Shopping event, featuring some old and some new companies. All were either blind-owned or proudly presenting products designed with the blind in mind. While not all products or companies presented in this gift guide were part of that event, many were, so it is with a nod to Laura Legendary and Let’s Go Shopping #7 that this 2022 AccessWorld Holiday Gift Guide comes your way.

Braille Lovers’ Bounty

Whether you want to reach the heart of someone who loves all things braille or raise the awareness of one who is just being introduced to tactile literacy, there are plenty of beautiful objects boasting braille available this holiday season. From Laura Legendary’s own Elegant Insights Braille Creations, choose from bracelets, pendants, earrings, or bling for your purse, your backpack, or your guide dog. Most items can be customized with either embossed braille or print engraving, and the web site is full of ideas.

Be sure to check out the 2022 holiday ornament and wine glass charms!

www.elegantInsightsJewelry.com

A west coast teacher of the visually impaired has taken her love of braille to a new level with her embroidery machine, adding braille phrases, acronyms, or expressions of your own creation to aprons, t-shirts, tote bags, and more. Prices are low and even lower if you buy several of one item for a group. For pricing and detailed availability, contact Terry at brailleWear4u@gmail.com.

An Ohio entrepreneur is creating quilted fabric creations with braille and tactile images. Her mug rugs, 5 x 7 inches, protect your furniture from hot and cold beverages while adding some style to your décor. Each mug rug has a tactile image and accompanying braille word. Holiday and year-round themes available. Write info@ThreadSceneLLC.com for pricing and available designs.

For a bit more bling or pizzazz, fashion designer Alexa Jovanovic with her company Aille Design adds custom beadwork to short- or long-sleeve t-shirts, pocket squares, masks, and more. Visit ailledesign.com for ideas or write hello@ailledesign.com with questions.

And if you want to buy a stylish leather bag for someone who has a special braille display that needs protection, contact Guidelights and Gadgets, bscheur@scheur.com or 617-969-7500 to find out if there’s a bag to fit the device you have in mind.

Cables, and gadgets, and chargers, oh my!

For the tech aficionado in your life, there are plenty of great choices from blind-owned businesses and in every price range. Try a 3-pack of magnetic charging cables (one cable, 3 plug-ins) to make charging the Victor Stream or other product easier. The Harbolt Company, www.HarboltCompany.com, has set available with various length cables. Also available are power banks to keep all that technology charged while on the go, and a variety of headphones and Bluetooth speakers.

A T Guys offers a $25 low-tone light detector, a foldable Bluetooth keyboard, and a speaker they say is the loudest around (Tribid, 12 pound boombox style, $199.)

For a more practical gift for those who want to build up the home first-aid department, Guidelights and Gadgets sells a talking oximeter, talking blood pressure cuff, and contactless talking thermometer. Buy all three or just one. Prices range from $30 to $50 per item. Email bscheur@scheur.com

And for those Furry Friends

The other half of Guidelights and Gadgets, Barry Scheur’s partner in both life and business, is KaeAnn Rausch, owner of GuideLight Dogs. Call her at 781-286-1696 or email her at GuideLightDogs@gmail.com to select best toys and tools for your favorite dogs, working or not. If you want something other than a toy, a leash, or a grooming tool, she also has raincoats and bathrobes (for quick drying your pooch), and fun things for the dog owner to use like bone-shaped carabiners and bone-shaped luggage tags.

If you want to treat your dog with bone-shaped items that are doggy edible, get some delicious treats from a new business opened this year by a new guide dog handler. Tully’s Treats sells organic nutritious dog treats in a variety of flavors (try peanut butter, pumpkin, apple, carrot, and more). For just $6.95, you can order a pack of holiday mini treats in fun holiday shapes. Call Jennifer, 708-635-3970, or email tullystreats2@gmail.com for details.

Make It Yourself

If you’d prefer to be that amazing person whose friends and family are in awe because you made all those beautiful gifts by hand, Mitsy Kits has projects for every ability, taste, and budget. Make a Bandana for your dog, an eyeglasses case for your spouse, a blanket for your favorite child, or a pillow or holiday wall hanging for yourself. Whether you have never made any craft items by hand or are a skilled artists with a needle and thread, Mitsy Kits has projects you can master. All projects are designed to be accessible to everyone. Buy kits and make gifts for your family, or select a kit to introduce someone you love to the joy of handcrafting. Visit Mitsy Kits online or call owner Tammy Rousssell at 978-419-1824. to find a project that’s right for you.

Scents and other Senses

From the mountains of northeast Tennessee, one blind couple has built a deliciously smelling business by crafting plant-based skin care products for every occasion and personality. Mountain Crafted offers goat’s milk soap bars in 250 fragrances as well as shea products, lotions, shampoos, conditioners, essential oils and more. Try Frosted juniper body mist, tobacco vanilla hand soap, butterscotch shampoo, Campfire hair conditioner, or any one of an almost endless list of other fragrant possibilities. Whether you want to give gifts that smell sweet, smoky, savory or exotic, Mountain Crafted is likely to have multiple choices that will appeal. Shipping is free for orders over $50. All items can carry braille labels if requested. Visit Mountain Crafted online or call 423-743-6805.

Fashion Statements

One fashion designer who decided to run with her blindness, so to speak, has launched a company called Blind Girl Designs. Her t-shirts, hoodies, dresses, and sweat shirts and more feature imaginative designs incorporating white canes into flowers and snowflakes and other fanciful images, combining beauty with blind pride in an innovative style. Visit BlindGirlDesigns.com or call 862-448-1011 for descriptions and orders.

The number of artists and entrepreneurs who are either blind or designing products with the blind in mind is growing, and the myriad of beautiful and useful merchandise is stunning. Give Yourself the win-win of the holiday season by supporting vendors such as these, enjoying the pride of supporting fellow travelers while also gathering some gorgeous holiday gifts.

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season!

Janet Ingber

On March 8, Apple held its “Peek Performance” event. Unlike their annual Worldwide Developers Conference, this event focused on hardware and had audio description.

Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, welcomed everyone. He spoke about the original content available on Apple TV+. Next was a video montage of current and upcoming movies.

Cook then talked about Friday Night Baseball. A video of major league players was shown. During baseball season, two major league games will be exclusively shown on Apple TV+ on Friday evenings. Following this, Apple detailed the following hardware.

iPhone SE 3

This new phone is a significant upgrade to the iPhone SE that was available in 2020. It uses the same A15 Bionic chip as the iPhone 13, which results in much faster processing. It also means that you will be able to do iOS updates for years to come. Battery life is improved, but it is less than on the iPhone 13.

Apple kept the Home button and Touch ID on the iPhone SE. For people who do not want Face ID, this phone is an excellent option. Face ID is not available on the SE. Therefore, if you want this feature, you will need to get a different phone such as the iPhone 13.

The iPhone SE has the same physical design as the previous iPhone SE. It has a 4.7 inch HD Retina display. The durable glass on the front and back of the phone is the same glass on the back of iPhone 13. Unlike its predecessor, this new phone supports wireless charging.

The iPhone SE has a single 12-megapixel rear camera and a 7-megapixel front-facing camera. Although these cameras are not as good as the ones on the iPhone 13, they are still very good and we believe should provide solid results when using OCR or image recognition.

Although the phone has 5G capability, millimeter wave is not supported. According to MacRumors, “With no support for mmWave 5G speeds, the iPhone SE models will be limited to sub-6GHz 5G. Sub-6GHz 5G is still faster than LTE in most cases, but it is not the superfast impressive 5G speed that you see in marketing materials.”

This phone does not have Apple’s U1 chip and therefore does not support Precision Finding. Precision Finding lets a U1 chip-equipped device communicate with another U1 enabled device. For example, I have an AirTag on my guide dog’s collar. I used the Find My app on my iPhone 13. With Precision Finding, my iPhone gave me step-by-step directions for where he was in my house. Both my iPhone 13 and the AirTag have the U1 chip. Any phone, including the SE 3, which supports AirTags, will still play a sound. On the SE 3, you will not get step-by-step directions.

The SE costs $429 for 64 GB, $479 for 128 GB, or $579 for 256 GB.

It is available in Midnight (black), Starlight (white), and Product Red.

iPad Air 5

This new iPad uses the same M1 chip as the MacBook Air, iPad Pro, and Mac Mini. According to Apple, the M1 chip offers up to 60% more performance than the chip used in the previous iPad Air. Like the iPhone SE 3, the iPad Air 5 has Touch ID rather than Face ID. The Touch ID is on the power button. It does not have a headphone jack but has a USB-C port.

This iPad has a 10.9 inch Liquid Retina display and a new, 12megapixel, ultra wide front camera. The camera supports Center Stage, Apple’s video conferencing feature. As with the iPhone SE, there is 5G support, but not for mmWave. The iPad is available in Wi-Fi and cellular models.

The iPad Air 5 comes in 64 GB or 256GB of storage. Wi-Fi models cost $599 for 64GB and $749 for the 256GB model. Check with your cell phone carrier for prices for cellular models.

This iPad is available in Starlight, blue, space gray, pink, and purple.

Mac Studio

Apple introduced its new desktop, the Mac Studio. If you do only basic tasks such as surfing the web and email, this new desktop is overkill. The Mac Studio is the same 7.7 inches square shape as the Mac Mini, but is 3.7 inches high. It has many ports including Thunderbolt 4, USB-C, an SD card slot, and an audio jack.

The Mac Studio offers two processors: the M1 Max and the M1 Ultra. The M1 Max is available on the MacBook Pro. The M1 Ultra is Apple’s newest processor. It uses Apple’s proprietary UltraFusion technology to connect two M1 chips together. According to Apple, the M1 Ultra is almost 8 times faster than the M1 Chip.

Apple also introduced its new Studio Display. It has a 27 inch 5K display, six speakers with Spatial Audio, three microphones, and many connecting ports. It also has a 12 megapixel wide-angle camera and Center Stage. Apple sells two stands that work with this display.

The Mac Studio with the M1 Max chip starts at $1,999. The Mac Studio with the M1 Ultra chip starts at $3,999. The Studio Display starts at $1,599.

Steve Kelley

Do you use a smartphone or tablet? Is it usually handy? If so, you have a powerful video magnifier built right in, and chances are it’s as close as your pocket or backpack. One of the simplest ways to magnify something is by opening the camera, pointing it at what you need to see enlarged and using a pinch gesture on the screen to zoom in or out. This will work on both Android and Apple smartphones and tablets. In many situations, this might be all you need to use. There’s a lot more magnification features out there, however, that make these devices really powerful magnifiers. Let’s start with Apple’s iPhone/iPad because it has a Magnifier App built in. “Hey Siri, open the Magnifier,” is an easy way to use Apple’s personal assistant, Siri, to open the Magnifier App that comes with iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad. The Magnifier App adds quite a few features to the camera and makes it a handheld video magnifier. Once the Magnifier App is open a rectangle appears on the screen with various controls. Use the slider to increase or decrease the magnification. The camera focuses automatically, and the image stays quite sharp, even at higher magnifications. Like many stand-alone video magnifiers, you’ll also find controls to adjust the brightness, the contrast, and the 11 color filters available. Open the Settings menu to personalize the options so those that are used most often are readily available. Press the large circle in the Control window to freeze an image. Multiple images can be frozen by selecting the multi-page icon. Press the plus icon to capture each image. Captured images appear as small slides in the Control window so you can open them individually as needed. This is really handy if you want to save a couple pages from a book or magazine, or several bits of information you might need during a phone call. These images are not saved to the device like pictures taken with the camera. They disappear once End is pressed to end the multi-page feature. Unlike Apple’s phones and tablets, Android devices do not have a built-in magnifier app. A quick trip to the Google Play Store will fix that deficit! A search for “magnifier” will turn up any number of magnifier apps, and one of the best is a free app, called Visor. Once installed, Visor opens to a view through the camera lens. Several control buttons are near the bottom of the screen. The largest button, with a plus icon, increases the magnification through four settings. Repeatedly pressing the button cycles through the settings and returns to the default magnification. The image remains sharp at the highest magnification, and Visor will reset the focus when the screen is touched. To the left of the central Plus button is a button to turn on the light, and to the right of this is the button to select filters for the magnified image. Like the magnification settings, the filter options include 4 filters which can be cycled through with repeated touches to the filter button. Filter options include a grey scale, white on black, yellow on black, and yellow on blue. The last control button, above the Magnification button, is a smaller button with an equal sign on it. This freezes the picture, until the button is pressed again. This is perfect for keeping information like a phone number or credit card number handy while you’re on a phone call, at the store, etc. Take a minute to check out the iOS Magnifier app, or the Visor app for Android. While the smartphone or tablet in your pocket may not have all the features of a dedicated handheld video magnifier, it may just have what you need when you’re out and about.

Janet Ingber

The latest book by AccessWorld's own Judy Dixon and Bonnie O'Day provides a great deal of information regarding accessible exercise in its many forms. The book contains information of use to both the beginner and the expert. For this article, I will be summarizing the book's contents to give you an idea what to expect from the text while providing my personal thoughts at the end of the piece.

Introduction.

I recommend reading the Introduction before proceeding to the first chapter. The Introduction discusses the definitions of physical fitness. The authors present research regarding visually impaired people and physical fitness. The authors also discuss barriers to physical fitness. The authors then provide information about fitness basics and different levels of exercise. Next they discuss four types of exercises: Strength, balance, endurance, and flexibility. In the introduction’s next part, the authors present a list called, “10 Things You Can Do to Become More Active.” In the final part of the introduction, the authors go through an extensive list of fitness and exercise terms.

Chapter 1: Simple Fitness Activities You Can Do at Home

In this chapter, the authors discuss exercising at home. Various equipment is described including weights and Stability Balls. Later in the chapter exercise machines such as stationary bikes and treadmills are presented. The authors talk about the accessibility of some machines.

In the second part of this chapter, the authors explain how to do specific exercises, with step-by-step instructions. For example, for body weight exercises, instructions are presented on how to do push ups, crunches, and squats. The same format is used for resistance bands and stability balls. Additional resources are also given.

Chapter 2: Fitness Opportunities in Your Community

Here, the authors write about joining various groups such as walking and tandem cycling. The write about group activities such as rowing, beep baseball, bowling, and dragon boating. Of course they also provide descriptions and resources.

In the final section, gyms and health clubs are discussed. The authors are thorough with their advice regarding checking out a potential gym. This includes visiting the facility and considering group classes and exercise equipment.

Chapter 3: Getting Fit with Your iPhone

There are many options for exercise using your iPhone. First the authors give an excellent description of both the Apple Health app and the Apple Fitness app. They give detailed instructions for using these apps.

Next, the Apple Fitness+ app is discussed. The authors give a great deal of information about what the app has and how to obtain a free trial.

In the final section of the chapter, the authors give examples of other, non-Apple, fitness apps. Some of the apps are My Fitness Pal, Aaptiv, and Pedometer++. As with the Apple apps, these apps are clearly described.

Chapter 4: Getting Fit with Your Smart Speaker

This chapter covers how to get exercise routines from an Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. The Amazon Alexa is covered first. Instructions are given for how to enable skills on Amazon Alexa. After that there is a detailed list of exercise routines.

For Google Assistant, the authors discuss Actions. Next, as with the Alexa, they provide a detailed list of workout Actions.

Chapter 5: Fitness Using Web-Based Resources

In this chapter, the authors provide an extensive list of websites that contain accessible exercise routines. Each listing gives a description of what is available and contact information.

Chapter 6: Key Groups and Organizations

This chapter has a long list of websites which promote fitness and recreation. Each listing contains the url to their website and a description of what is available. Websites include Blind Tandem Cycling Connection, The United States Association of Blind Athletes and American Blind Bowling Association.

Conclusion

I highly recommend this book. If you are new to fitness, the book provides a wealth of information. If you already exercise, due to the book's thorough nature, you might learn some new routines and discover new resources. Much like employment, fitness is an area where people who are blind or low vision are often less involved than their sighted peers. It is heartening to see such a detailed resource that provides exercise suggestions for people no matter their circumstances.

Book Information

Your Personal Path to Fitness: Finding What Works for You By Judy Dixon and Bonnie O’Day National Braille Press Price: $12.00-$14.50 depending on format Formats: Physical braille as well as Daisy, eBraille, and Word formats for download or on USB

Deborah Kendrick

Whether the pandemic has meant that time flies or crawls for you, the reality is that another year has gone by and we are ALREADY HERE AGAIN IN THAT LAST STRETCH OF THE YEAR. Thanksgiving is actually my favorite holiday – where, after all, the only requirements are that you cook and/or consume lots of delicious food and hang out with people you actually enjoy spending time with – but on the heels of that festival of gratitude tis the season that includes brightly wrapped packages and creative generosity. If you believe, as I certainly do, that there is every bit as much joy in giving as receiving, then you want to tailor your gift ideas as closely as possible to each friend or family member on your list.

For some of us, imagination and creativity are so abundant that generating creative gift ideas is as easy as, say, making a list and checking it twice. For others among us, divining what those gifts ought to be can create a certain dread or anxiety.

No matter which category fits you, I have tried once again to compile a list of suggestions for a variety of gift recipients, and have managed to keep most of these suggestions under $100. Best of all, (and this is the gift I am giving to myself) I have included a number of blind business owners and artisans. Oh, yes, and all of the gifts included in this years holiday gift round-up are ones that could be appreciated by someone who is blind or low vision (just in case you might want to wrap something up for your very own self!)

Some easy techie ideas

Since AccessWorld is a technology magazine, after all, let's talk first about the easy and affordable tech ideas. Whether you are bringing someone into the world of 21st century technology or simply augmenting an existing collection, smart speakers continue to be wildly popular and entertaining products. You can get a Google Nest Mini or Amazon Echo Fourth Generation for under $50. You can hear news, music, entries from Wikipedia, games, jokes, and more on a seemingly endless number of topics, get sports scores, word definitions, and oh so much more from these ever-evolving devices. If your lucky gift recipient is new to the smart speaker realm, you might add your personalized installation assistance as part of the gift and/or an audio tutorial. Mystic Access offers audio tutorials on these devices and others.

Another low-cost and powerful technology gift under $100 is the Amazon Fire tablet. This is perhaps the least expensive inroad to mobile and accessible technology. You can play music, games, and news reports, send and receive email, and listen to books. With the built-in Voice View screen reader and Amazon Alexa, it is completely accessible and entertaining. Some braille displays can be paired with a Fire tablet, thus minimizing the need for onscreen typing or gestures. Again, you might include a Mystic Access audio tutorial as part of your gift.

All about that braille

Readers and writers of braille love anything connected with braille, and there are a few new and fun products. For writing short temporary bits of information in braille, the Versa Slate is one of those products that will make you wonder why it took so long for someone to develop it. Four lines of 20 cells each contain mechanical braille dots. Magnetically affixed at one end is the stylus. Write a phone number, order number, web address, a few key words of a fact you need to pass along, etc., and then with the press of a few buttons, clear the slate later for another use. When buttons are pressed, the pins/dots retract and thus are ready for another use. For anticipated larger use, buy two of them and the custom frame to contain them, thus creating a larger surface of eight lines. For really small notes, the mini version of the Versa Slate offers 2 lines, 12 cells each, also sporting an attached stylus, and can fit easily into any pocket. Versa Slates and cases available from A. T. Guys.

And if you enjoy reading braille as much as writing it, here are a couple companies who proudly display braille for identification on much of their packaging.

Dedicated to organic and sustainable products for personal and home care, Cleanlogic sweetens the purchases by adding braille to many of their packages. Sponges, gloves, back scrubbers, exfoliating cloths, and more are available as individual items or in gift sets designed for the sports lover, the home, or the person with sensitive skin. All products are affordably priced (from $10 to $50) and combine cleaning, detoxifying, and sustainability. Visit CcleanLogic.com.

French soap and cosmetic company L'Occitane en Provence, has been adding braille to many of its packages for over 20 years. Beautiful face, hand, and body care products containing scrumptious fragrances will tempt you to buy a little something for yourself while shopping for others for sure! Try the classic shea butter hand cream or shea shower sets in scents from almond to cherry to verbena. Items are luxuriously presented and almost always labeled in braille. Visit the website or call (888) 623-8820.

If you're lucky enough to have a L'Occitane store near you, drop in for the sheer joy of browsing the shelves. Inhale the sweet smells of soaps and perfumes while reading braille labels – the experience is a gift in itself!

Hand-crafted beauty

Ray Wright is a blind artist and entrepreneur who makes a wide variety of beautifully crafted hand-turned wood objects. Woods from around the world are used in creating anything from seam rippers and key chains to bottle stoppers, smartphone stands, ball point pens, or cutting boards. For the younger (or young at heart) family or friends, try a wooden top or magic wand. All prices are well under $100. Visit www.wrightturnonly.com or leave voicemail or text at 801-560-9866.

If you have a friend to whom you'd like to introduce the joy of making craft items by hand, Mitsy Kits offers a variety of kits from basic and easy to intermediate and complex. Pillows, tote bags, blankets, and much more are available. Typically, everything you need to make the finished product is included. Best of all, kits are designed with blind crafters in mind – incorporating the company's patented tactile sewing system and clear directions in accessible formats. Visit www.mitsykit.org or call 978-419-1824.

To your health

The pandemic has all of us thinking more about staying healthy, and Guidelights and Gadgets is offering a wonderful bundle of accessible healthcare products. Talking infrared thermometer (just point is at the forehead and squeeze the trigger), talking blood pressure cuff, and talking oximeter (place it on your finger to hear announcement of oxygen level and pulse rate), can be purchased for $50 each or as a bundle for $142, including shipping. Guidelights and Gadgets is another blind-owned business, and offers a variety of other tech accessories, leather products, dog toys, and more

Visit their website, email bscheur@scheur.com or call 617-969-7500.

Finally, remember that one of the best gifts we can give to anyone is shared experience. Share a meal, a book, a movie at home or away. If you rely on resources already available to you, all you'll spend on that gift is your time – and you and your loved one will both have a special memory to treasure.