Apps

Speaking at the M-Enabling Summit on June 6, Sprint CEO Dan Hesse announced that Sprint’s new LG Optimus F3 smartphone will be preloaded with TalkBack, Google’s accessibility app for the blind and visually impaired. Unlike other smartphones that require downloading and activation of Talkback, the Optimus F3 begins providing voice guidance to help with activation and setup as soon as the user powers up the phone.

"IDEAL Group Reader" is a fully-accessible eBook reader app that can read text aloud, just like an audio book.  It was developed by Apps4Android with support from Wireless RERC's App Factory.  The Beta version of this ePub3 reader has been tested by thousands of users in 116 countries.

Apps4Android's CEO Steve Jacobs showcased the IDEAL Group Reader (IGR) at the Consumer Electronics Association's (CEA) International CES 2013 in Las Vegas on January 8-12. 

John Morris, Wireless RERC research scientist, and Tracey Wallace, a speech language pathologist at Shepherd Center, presented at the 2012 American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) Convention. The presentation highlighted a variety of practice guidelines and techniques that use various mobile applications and can help with memory management in individuals recovering from a brain injury.

Four Wireless RERC papers will be featured at the 2013 International Technology & Persons with Disabilities Conference (CSUN) in San Diego, February 25-March 2, 2013.  The papers include: App Factory: Assistive and Accessibility App, which will be a demo session; Wireless Technology Use and Disability based on the Survey of User Needs; Social Media, Public Emergencies & Disability, which is related to the Survey on Emergency Communications; and Survey Says!

On September 6-7, the FCC hosted a free workshop for developers, “Developing with Accessibility" (DevAcc), at its headquarters in Washington, DC.  Jim Mueller, Wireless RERC project director, demonstrated "BrailleTouch" and "ReadMore," two of the apps being developed by the RERC's App Factory.