Apps for the Blind Make Life a Little Easier

Our mobile phones can do amazing things to make our everyday lives easier. Did you know that a mobile phone can also work as the eyes, seeing for those who can’t see themselves? These apps are amazing uses of technology, and there are more being created all the time. These examples of apps available now are just a few of the incredible ways technology can help make the lives of those who are visually impaired or blind a little easier:

1. The KNFB Reader App

   This app will read aloud text that it scans using your phone’s camera.  How does it work? Let’s say you got a piece of mail and you can’t read it because of your visual impairment. You lay the letter out flat, use this app to scan it, and the app will read the text in the letter aloud to you. The app maker’s claim they provide high quality speech and fast service. The app is available for download on iPhone and Android devices!

2. LookTel: Money Identifier App

   What do you do if you are visually impaired or blind and you have to use cash to pay for something? Coins feel different, but dollars? How do you tell whether or not you are holding a couple of twenties or a couple of ones? Enter the LookTel Money Identifier App. It will look at your bill and tell you, out loud, what denomination your currency is. It works on a number of different currencies too, so this is a great tool to use when traveling worldwide!

3. TapTapSee: Identify Objects Through Photos

   Whether you’re in your pantry trying to find a particular can of soup or pick out a shirt to wear the next day, the TapTapSee app takes a photograph of what you are struggling to see and identifies it for you out loud through a device’s speaker. This app could be helpful for items that feel the same (No one wants to mix up their toothpaste with anti-itch cream!)

4. Color ID Free
   

   This useful app can help you if you are colorblind, if your vision is fading or if you just want to identify colors around you! This app is available on iTunes and can help you answer daily questions like “Will these pants match my shirt?” or “What color pen am I using?” Pre-programmed colors have simple OR exotic names like Lavender Rose or Moon Mist.