[NJTechDiv] Orbit Reader 20

[Jane Degenshein]

I am impressed with your assessment Andy
Good for you and thanks for your valuable input here my friend and board 
member!

From: Andy via NJTechDiv
Sent: Tuesday, August 06, 2019 9:07 PM
To: Brian Mackey ; New Jersey Technology Division List
Cc: Andy
Subject: Re: [NJTechDiv] Orbit Reader 20

I have used the Orbit Reader 20.  Some notes:
* No cursor routing keys.  If this is a problem for you, you may not want 
one of these.  Cursor routing keys are useful for editing documents, since 
you can jump the cursor to the exact point that you're editing. 
Unfortunately, Orbit doesn't have them.
* Very, very high-quality cells.  I work for the NJ Commission, and the 
quality of the Braille cells is amazing.  The technology the Orbit uses is 
different than most other displays.  If you have neuropathy, for instance, 
you may want one.  You can press down on these cells all day and night, and 
they won't give to pressure.  (Don't; I don't want your display breaking, 
but just to give you and idea).
* Very noisy.  When the display refreshes to the next line, it will make 
quite a bit of noise due to the newer Braille cell technology, which differs 
than the current widely-used technology.  If you're in an environment where 
that's a problem, then the Orbit may not be the best choice.
* Note-taking capability.  The display itself has a (very, very basic) 
note-taker.  It's primarily designed for quick notes.  I suppose it's 
possible to use for a lecture situation, etc, but there's no reverse 
translator: what you see is what you get.  So, if you tried to display your 
notes on a computer, for instance, you would see what essentially amounts to 
computer Braille.  If you had Duxbury or something, then you could translate 
your notes back to Word format or something similar, however.
* A basic reader.  The Orbit supports .txt, .brl, and .brf files.  It's 
possible, then, to read books from Bookshare and BARD/NLS with this device: 
from Bookshare, select .brf as your file format.  For NLS/BARD, all you need 
to do is download the Braille file (to my knowledge; I haven't tested 
NLS/BARD files).
* Bluetooth/USB support.  The Orbit is capable of pairing with your various 
devices for Braille output, and has an 8-dot keyboard for input.
* Made of plastic.  Some people may find that concerning, though it does 
feel pretty solid to me.

The various caveats would really depend on your situation.  For me, the 
noise is really annoying, and the lack of cursor routing keys make it, in my 
view, very annoying for editing documents, typing in edit fields, and 
similar purposes.  If you do a lot of Braille reading, though, you may 
appreciate its (very basic) reader functionality.  The reader supports 
setting bookmarks, and will save positions when you exit books.




  On Aug 6, 2019, at 4:45 PM, Brian Mackey via NJTechDiv 
<njtechdiv at nfbnet.org> wrote:

  Greetings to all,

  I put my name down to consider getting the Orbit Reader 20, but I am still 
on the fence. Has anyone on this list used the Orbit Reader 20? If yes, what 
pros and cons can you tell me when you used it? The reduced price of $549 is 
only available until August 15, so I need to decide soon. Any input would be 
greatly appreciated.

  Sincerely,

  Brian A. Mackey

  Brian A. Mackey
  Owner, Mackey Enterprises, LLC
  Webmaster, National Federation of the Blind of New Jersey, Delaware, 
Pennsylvania, Nevada, Iowa, & Illinois
  Webmaster, National Federation of the Blind Deaf-Blind Division
  Member, NFB Blind Users Innovating & Leading Design (BUILD) Team
  609-680-8488
  Bmackey88 at gmail.com
  www.mackeyenterprisesllc.com

  “Happy are those who dream dreams and are willing to pay the price to make 
those dreams come true”
        -Vince Papale

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