[gui-talk] Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by 38%

Fri Mar 5 02:09:00 UTC 2010

It is an itneresting move, especially when the same company that wants
to support braille literacy, is continuing to require other braille
display manufacturers to sign their drivers in order for their
displays to work with JAWS, even though the FS displays aren't signed
themselves. If they really want to support Braille literacy, then how
about removing the requirement of driver signing for other braille
display manufacturers? By doing so, more people could use their
displays with JAWS and that would help to improve literacy.

Wayne

On 3/4/10, Dean Martineau <dean at topdotenterprises.com> wrote:
> True, but to FS's credit, I don't see other braille display manufacturers
> following suit yet.  So either the Focus displays are junier than the
> others, which may well be, or the others are even more overpriced.
>
> Dean
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: gui-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:gui-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Baracco, Andrew W
> Sent: Thursday, March 04, 2010 10:06 AM
> To: NFBnet GUI Talk Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [gui-talk] Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue
> Braille Display by 38%
>
> That only goes to show how overpriced it was to begin with.
>
> Andy
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: gui-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:gui-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
> Behalf Of Gary Wunder
> Sent: Wednesday, March 03, 2010 7:41 PM
> To: david.andrews at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [gui-talk] Freedom Scientific Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue
> Braille Display by 38%
>
> I forward FYI. ----- Original Message ----- From:
> @ Freedom Scientific News To:
> gwunder at earthlink.net Sent: Wednesday, March 03,
> 2010 3:20 PM Subject: Freedom Scientific Reduces
> Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by
> 38%       Having trouble viewing this email?
> Click here  Greetings! FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
> Media Contact: Brad Davis 800-444-4443 or
> 727-803-8000 www.FreedomScientific.com Sales:
> info at FreedomScientific.com Freedom Scientific
> Reduces Price of Focus 40 Blue Braille Display by
> 38% to Support Drive for Braille Literacy (St.
> Petersburg, Florida  March 3, 2010) - Freedom
> ScientificÂ® today announced that it has reduced
> the US list price of its Focus 40 Blue Braille
> Display from $4,495 to $2,795, a $1,700
> reduction, in a move to support Braille literacy.
> The National Federation of the Blind, in their
> report from the Jernigan Institute, has declared
> that there is a "Braille Literacy Crisis in
> America," citing such statistics as:   a.. Fewer
> than 10 percent of the 1.3 million people who are
> legally blind in the United States are Braille
> readers   b.. Only 10 percent of blind children
> in the US are learning Braille   c.. Over 70
> percent of blind adults are unemployed, and as
> many as 50 percent of blind high school students
> drop out of high school The factors that
> contribute to a low Braille literacy rate in the
> US are many, among them a shortage of qualified
> Braille teachers and an increasing reliance on
> recorded audio and text-to-speech technologies.
> "We believe that technology should be supporting
> Braille literacy, not replacing it," states Dr.
> Lee Hamilton, President and CEO of Freedom
> Scientific. "The combination of JAWSÂ® and a
> Braille display makes learning and using Braille
> easy. JAWS can translate almost any electronic
> document or Web page into Braille and then
> display them on the Focus 40 Blue. JAWS also has
> a built-in Braille tutor that works with the
> Focus 40 Blue to provide immediate spoken help
> when the reader encounters an unfamiliar Braille
> symbol. This makes independent Braille study
> easier as it can be used with any document of
> interest to the student. With a computer and a
> Braille display, a person who is Braille literate
> can carry hundreds of books on a single memory
> card or USB thumb drive. "Unfortunately, Braille
> displays have always been expensive, which has
> meant that not everyone who wanted a Braille
> display could get one. Freedom Scientific wants
> to open the world of Braille to as many blind
> people as possible. We first drastically reduced
> the cost of Braille displays in 2004, when we
> introduced models 40% below the average price of
> currently available Braille displays. We are
> pleased that the manufacturing efficiencies
> inherent in our latest product design make it
> possible for us to reduce prices once again and
> hope this will make Braille accessible to many
> more people." The Focus 40 Blue is a compact
> portable Braille display that is the perfect
> companion to a desktop, laptop, or netbook PC. It
> connects via USB or BluetoothÂ® and has a Braille
> keyboard. The 40 Braille cells are constructed
> without seams between characters, so the user
> experience is like reading Braille on paper. The
> Focus 40 Blue works with AppleÂ® computers and
> cell phones as well as with JAWS for WindowsÂ®.
> Freedom Scientific's Braille displays are the
> most reliable in the industry and are backed by
> technical support and service teams based in St.
> Petersburg, Florida. The new US/Canada list price
> for the Focus 40 Blue is USD 2,795 and includes a
> two-year manufacturer's warranty. For more
> information, please visit the Freedom Scientific
> Web site or call 800-444-4443. About Freedom
> Scientific Freedom Scientific is the leading
> worldwide provider of assistive technology
> products for those with vision impairments. The
> Company sells its products worldwide and has
> offices in Florida and Switzerland. The Company's
> products have been translated into 24 languages
> and are available in 55 countries. Freedom also
> has a line of software products for those with
> learning disabilities. Freedom ScientificÂ® and
> JAWS for WindowsÂ® are either trademarks or
> registered trademarks in the United States and/or
> other countries. The names of actual companies
> and products mentioned herein may be the
> trademarks of their respective
> owners.             Forward
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> Scientific | 11800 31st Court North | St. Petersburg | FL | 33716-1805
>
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>
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