[Electronics-Talk] Color Identification Technology

Tue Jan 19 02:14:27 UTC 2016

Hello Sandra.
The English version of the ColorTest II is $798.00. As for accuracy, I find it to be good. I have bought and returned a Colorino in the past as well for similar reasons to yours. In my experience so far, the results spoken by the ColorTest II do tend to line up more frequently with the answers that sighted people give. Maybe other people have had different experiences, but mine has definitely improved now that I have this tool. I saw for 4.5 years, so I do not actually understand every answer that this tool gives. Sometimes I have to ask a sighted person, or someone who at least can understand or see color, to explain certain things to me. My wife told me that beige is like sand. When describing different types of green, people have compared it to grass, explaining how it is similar or different. There are other examples too. I am sure that even with all of this, It may still be a challenge for me at times with more complex outfits. Either way, I now have a tool that I didn’t have in the past, and I know plenty of people who can help me understand some things better if I have questions. I do have enough color memory already, though, to understand red, green, blue, and all the other colors that young children know, since I was a child when I went blind. One thing I have learned about this tool is that I often-times need to press it quite firmly against the surface in order to get an accurate reading. For example, I tried getting the color of a white garment. The ColorTest II was saying “pale green” as well as other results that included the word “green”. My wife said that there was absolutely no green. I pressed quite firmly, and then it said “white”. I believe that I must have been letting some light in, even if only a little. The ColorTest II will give an error message if one does not have the eye of the tool covered by the object being analyzed. This is helpful. But it does not take care of the light issue completely 100% of the time, at least not in my experience. Later on in my experimentation, after I thought I had figured out the importance of the firmness factor, I put it to the test. I put the eye of the ColorTest II gently over an undershirt which was neatly folded. It said “pale green”. I kept the  ColorTest II in the same position and over the same area of fabric. I simply pressed with a moderate amount of additional pressure. It then announced “white”. It is definitely a learning experience, but I have had much more success than failure, and I believe I will keep the unit. One thing I will add is that this tool, and pretty much every color identification technology I know about, will often give a reading that a sighted person may debate. Not everyone agrees on colors anyway, so this does not bother me too much. I am just looking for as much accuracy and consistency as possible, and the ColorTest II seems to deliver quite well so far. This unit gives well over 500 possible color descriptions, and maybe well over a thousand (I forgot). Basically, Most people that I know of do not have the color vocabulary that this unit has. At least they tend not to give as many color names. So there is bound to be some disagreement, overlap, etc. As long as I can figure out how to eliminate strange and incorrect results, like the white verses green issue above, I think the rest is mostly straightforward. It is also important to remember that the eye of this device is very small. If a sighted person is watching someone use this device, he or she may jump to contrary conclusions, focusing on the big picture, dominant color, etc., and forgetting that the eye of this device is only focusing on a small area at any given time. So for me anyway, when comparing results with those given by sighted people, it has been important to describe the device’s operation and the need for some level of tolerance. But it has also been important to accept human advice when a trusted sighted person says that the result is completely incorrect. I also enjoy the other features of the ColorTest II, especially the ability to detect patterns, which I use for clothing organization.
Ben

> On Jan 18, 2016, at 6:46 PM, S L Johnson via Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Ben:
> 
> I am glad to hear you are pleased with this product.  Several years ago, I 
> purchased the Colorino Color Identifier from APH and ended up sending it 
> back.  It kept giving me inaccurate readings such as calling my grey pants 
> green and my navy pants purple.  Have you had any inaccurate results yet? 
> Can you also tell us the price of this product?  Thanks
> 
> Sandra
> 
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: Benjamin Vercellone via Electronics-Talk
> Sent: Monday, January 18, 2016 4:37 PM
> To: Discussion of accessible electronics and appliances
> Cc: Benjamin Vercellone
> Subject: [Electronics-Talk] Color Identification Technology
> 
> I know it has been several weeks. But I want to thank everyone who provided 
> feedback on this topic. I decided to buy a dedicated color identifier. It is 
> the ColorTest II, sold through APH. This was definitely a substantial 
> investment, but it is helping me to coordinate clothing more spontaneously 
> and independently than I ever could before. And all of the outfits I have 
> picked out so far have been good according to feedback from my wife and some 
> of my coworkers. So I now believe that color identification technology can 
> be a great help. However, the most beneficial tool depends on the 
> individual. Additionally, one can use low-tech or no-tech solutions, if 
> preferred.
> Thank you for all of the feedback.
> Ben
> 
> 
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