[Trainer-Talk] Article: a review of the Brailliant BI 40X from Humanware

[Scott Davert]

There are many links to things in the below article that I couldn't
include in the email I'm sending. Please visit the link if you would
like access to those resources.
https://www.helenkeller.org/hknc/review-brailliant-bi-40x

A Review of the Brailliant BI 40X
By Scott Davert,
Coordinator: Technology, Research and Innovation Center
April 23, 2021
Introduction
Over the past decade, many braille displays have evolved to include
onboard features, extending their functionality beyond merely
providing access to the
screen of a host device. Humanware has modernized the Brailliant line
of displays with the new Brailliant BI 20X and 40X. The new features,
when compared
with the Brailliant BI series that preceded it, include the ability to
connect up to five Bluetooth devices, a Wi-Fi radio which allows for
access to Bookshare,
NLS BARD, and NFB Newsline, book reader that allows for the opening of
this content, a calculator, clock, and basic word processor. This
onboard software
suite, similar to that found on the Mantis Q40, has been rebranded as
Keysoft Lite.
What’s in the box?
You will find the Brailliant BI 40X inserted into a case, a strap,
USB-A to USB-C cable, a wall adapter and printed Getting Started
Guide. Notably absent
was any braille material. One would think that, at the very least, a
braille getting started guide would accompany its print counterpart.
The case is made
of leather and has a magnetic closure. When open, it exposes all of
the ports, Keys and buttons for easy access. The flap closes to cover
only the back
edge and top panel, leaving the buttons and ports on the sides and
front edge exposed.
Description
The Brailliant BI 40X is a forty cell braille display which has a
standard Perkins-style Keyboard, 32 gigabytes of internal memory, and
the ability to
connect to external media through the USB-A port. It measures 12.01
inches long by 3.54 inches wide by 0.86 inches deep and weighs 1.59
pounds. Unlike
the previous two generations of Brailliants, it is constructed of
EXTREMELY DURABLE plastic instead of aluminum.
Orientation of display
Positioning the device so the spacebars are closest to you, the
lay-out of the display is as follows. On the front edge from left to
right are five buttons.
you have the Previous Thumb Key followed by the Left Thumb Key, which
is about twice as long as the Previous Thumb Key. In the middle is a
circular shaped
button known as the Home Key. This Key is always used to return you to
the previous menu. To the right of the Home Key is the Right Key,
followed by the
Next Key. The Right Thumb Key is larger than the Next Key. The two
larger thumb Keys on the front of the device are what pans the display
back and forth.
The Previous and Next Thumb Keys are used for navigational purposes
that depend on the application in use and how they are configured.
On the left side you will find three items. Moving from front to back,
you will find a USB-A port used for inserting a thumb drive. Behind
this is the
Power button. Pressing and holding it for several seconds will toggle
the power, and a quick press when the device is on will either wake it
up or put
it to sleep. Behind this is a USBC port for charging or connecting it
to a computer. On the right side are two volume buttons and a 3.5MM
headphone jack,
which are not operational at the time of this evaluation.
On the top surface, the Keys located closest to you are two spacebars.
Behind these, you will find the forty braille cells with a
corresponding Cursor
Routing Key behind each cell. At the left and right end of the
display, you will fine three circular Keys which are known as Command
or C Keys. C 1-3 are
located to the left of the braille display, while C 4-6 are located to
the right. C 1 and 4 are the furthest two from the user. Behind the C
Keys, is a
standard eight-dot Perkins-style braille keyboard. Finally, on the
very back of the surface, on each end of the device, is a speaker.
Next to the right
speaker, you will find a microphone. Like the volume controls and
headphone jack, these items are not active at the time of this
evaluation, but Humanware
has indicated they will be active in a future update. The under-side
of the display has a braille serial number and a couple of rubber feet
to hold it
in place.
Running the Brailliant BI 40X for the first time
After pressing the power button for several seconds, the user will
encounter the message: “starting Keysoft” with a spinning braille
cell. After about
five seconds, the user will be presented with a language menu. The
default language is English. If the user doesn’t want to use English,
there are other
options available includingFrench FR, French CA, German, Dutch,
Italian, Norwegian, Swedish and Arabic After pressing enter on the
desired language, press
space with dot 1 to find the Close button and Keysoft will restart
after loading the English system language. I mention this process in
the evaluation,
as though it is included in the User Guide, since the user has no
introductory material included in braille.
Options
The first thing most people want to do when they get a new display is
set it up to their liking. On the Brailliant BI 40X, like all other
Humanware products,
these items will be found in the Options menu. You can navigate there
from the Main Menu by pressing space with O, using the Thumb Keys,
using the space
bar or by pressing space with dot 4 or space with dot 1 to move
through the menu until you encounter the application you wish to
select. This behavior
is consistent throughout the device. Options include the ability to
turn on Airplane mode; toggle Wi-Fi; set up other language profiles if
needed; the
ability to remove blank lines; the ability to have format markers
inside files; whether to get vibratory or audio feedback of error
messages; whether the
cursor should be visible; Word Wrap; the ability to change the
functions of the Thumb Keys; the option to customize the Main Menu and
the ability to run
in Exam Mode.
Expanding on some unique options
There are a few options that I will discuss which may be helpful to
the DeafBlind braille user. One is the ability to customize the Main
Menu. For example,
if a user wishes to only use the Brailliant BI 40X as a terminal, it
is possible to make that the only option in the Main Menu. For some
DeafBlind consumers,
who only wish to have a device for their computer or smart phone, this
can simplify the connection process.
For those in the education field, there is also a feature called Exam
Mode. This mode disables all of the functionality of the Brailliant BI
40X other
than USB Terminal Mode. This can be done to help prevent cheating on
exams. To disable the mode once activated, the user needs to enter the
passcode set
up when this mode was enabled. Turning the Brailliant off and back on,
when there is still time remaining, will leave the Brailliant in that
mode. The
maximum amount of time you can put the display in Exam Mode is four hours.
Managing files with Key Files
With some of the applications Humanware has decided to include both
the function of the application and also the Keysoft name. For
example, the file manager
is called that, but Humanware tacks on Keyfiles. This is also true of
the Calculator and Editor.
The Brailliant BI 40X comes equipped with 32 GB of internal storage.
It also supports flash drives. The file manager application allows you
to browse,
open any supported file type, delete, copy, cut, paste and search for
a file within multiple connected drives. I found that, even when a
drive has hundreds
of files, searching only takes a few seconds. You can only search for
a file name, not its contents.
This application will display all files located on a drive, and
pressing enter on a supported file will open it. Text-based files such
as .txt and .docx
will open nearly instantaneously. .brf and specialized braille files
will take a little more time to load in the Editor, since they are
translated into
text format. This is not the case, though, with the Victor Reader.
A 450 KB .brf file from Bookshare took approximately ten seconds to
load. The same book downloaded in Daisy format took about three
seconds to load.
Transferring files
When plugged into a PC, the Brailliant BI 40X cannot only serve as a
braille display for your screen reader, but will simultaneously show
up as a drive.
This means that it is possible to transfer files directly from your PC
to the Brailliant and vice versa. A refreshing advantage over the
Focus series from
Vispero is how the Brailliant can be active in both modes at the same
time without disruption. Note that during the evaluation, when
connecting the Brailliant
to a Mac over USB, the device did not show up as a drive but was an
available device in the Photos app. I’m told that the Mac requires
installation of
a utility but was unable to locate it on the product’s support page at
the time of evaluation. References to this information are also absent
from the
documentation as of April 2021.
The Editor: Keypad application
The editor: Keypad application allows you to open, create, and save
files in plain text format. Though you can open files in .brf, .brl,
.txt, .doc, and
.docx formats, any editing or creation of a file will be saved in .txt
format. You can edit, copy, cut, paste, find, find and replace,
select, select blocks
of text, auto scroll, and use a read-only mode in case you don't want
to modify the open file. The menu structure closely follows that of a
typical Windows
word processor. When creating or opening a file, you will find that
there are brackets that show the cursor’s location which follow you as
you type.
I found that even with very quick typing, the Brailliant BI 40X was
able to keep up with my input. Typing on the braille Keyboard seems to
be nondisruptive
to those around me, and the increased Key travel, especially that of
the space bars make typing much more enjoyable and reliable than the
previous generation.
Tapping the power button will put the Brailliant into a standby mode
that retains any changes in your current file. When you wake the
Brailliant back up,
the file will instantly appear and you can continue editing. The
drawback to this method is that if the system crashes for some reason,
your work will
not be saved. I have not had Keypad crash on me, even though I have
been taking notes often on the Brailliant BI 40X for a couple of
weeks, but still press
space with s to save my work regularly. I found using the editor to be
intuitive and enjoy the fact that I can save the file as a plain text
document.
Multiple storage and connectivity options allow for seamless sharing
of files between devices and people. Since there is a Wi-Fi option, it
would be nice
if there was some sort of cloud integration to
further facilitate collaboration. Since it is a basic Editor, there
are some limitations when opening different file types that are
roughly 2 MB in size.
For exact file size limits for each format, please see Answer number
61 in the Brailliant BI20x and 40X FAQ document. It’s worth noting
that, although
these limits apply to the Editor, you can open files as large as 100
MB in the Victor Reader.
Brailliant BI20x and 40X FAQ document
Calculator: Keycalc
The included calculator supports basic arithmetic operations that
include adding, subtracting, multiplication, division, percentages,
square root and the
constant pi. Entry in computer braille is required, as the application
does not currently support either Nemeth Code or UEB math. If you are
unfamiliar
with the computer braille symbols, the User Guide has a list of these,
or you can also press space with m to pull up a context menu that
lists them all.
I found that this application works as expected.
Downloading books
The Brailliant BI 40X supports the downloading of content from
Bookshare,
NFB Newsline and braille books from the NLS Braille and Talking Book
Library Service. Each service requires an account, which you can read
more about in
the links provided. You must also be connected to Wi-Fi to download content.
Bookshare
Within the Bookshare application, you will find the option to
configure your account and also to choose your preferred format. I
recommend DAISY for its
increased navigability. After logging in to Bookshare, you have the
ability to search by title, author, Keyword or to perform a full text
search. There
are also options to browse by most popular, recently added and
category. Once you perform a search or browse by one of the options
listed, you will be
presented with a list of titles. To get more information, select the
title to be presented with options to download, learn the author or
read the synopsis.
I find it convenient to search and download content internally. It
would be even better if the author was shown in the list of results
without having to
select each individual title.
NFB Newsline
The first option in this application is “configure account,” which not
only allows you to log in, but gives you the option to set how often
you would like
your list of publications to be updated. There is also an option to
set whether old issues of publications will be deleted when new ones
arrive.
If you already have a list of favorites, they will automatically be
added to the list of content you will download. You can add other
publications by selecting
"manage publications" from the applications menu and then selecting
the periodical to which you want to subscribe. Press space with e when
done. Subscription
is ind
NLS BARD
At the time of this evaluation, the only material available from NLS
BARD supported by the Brailliant is the braille content. Both the book
and magazine
collections are available but not braille music. You are able to
browse the most recent, most popular and books by category. You also
have options to search
the collection, browse your download history, browse by most recently
added magazines and to browse your download history. Just like when
searching for
content on Bookshare, you are only presented with the title of the
books in your search results and must press dot eight to get more info
including the
name of the author. Since the downloaded content is in .brf format,
you will not have access to the additional navigation options
available from the DAISY
content offered on Bookshare and NFB Newsline. However, the Brailliant
bi20X and BI 40X are the first displays to offer this library. I found
downloading
content from the NLS BARD service convenient and have enjoyed using it
for magazines, in particular, which I’m not able to get elsewhere.
Victor Reader
The Victor Reader application is the program you will use to read
books. Supported file types include BRF, PEF, TXT, HTML, DOCX, NISO
(daisy text only),
and RTF. The load times for files are the same as when you're in the
file manager for text files but the specialized braille formats also
open nearly instantaneously.
You have access to many of the same Editor capabilities, and there is
support for robust navigation when reading formats such as DAISY. This
means, for
example, if you have a DAISY book downloaded from Bookshare, you can
quickly jump from chapter to chapter. You can also jump quickly
between sections and
articles when viewing content downloaded from NFB Newsline. Sections
are typically at heading level two, while individual articles are
usually at heading
level three. When you have set the navigation to what you prefer,
using space+ T, you can then press the Previous and Next Keys to jump
by that chosen
element. Only those navigation options available for the currently
open book will be shown. Possibilities include sentence, paragraph,
level, percentage,
and bookmark. One thing missing, in my opinion, are hot Keys to jump
to specific elements within the open book. Instead of having to go to
a menu to jump
directly to the next heading level 3, for example, it would be much
quicker if there was a hot Key to do this directly. You can also
activate auto scroll
when reading. This is present within the Editor as well and I found
that the feature was reliable. It was functioning after an hour of
continuous use.
Another useful feature is the ability to set multiple bookmarks within
a file. This is an option I wish I had while in college, it would have
made jumping
directly to content much more efficient, thereby speeding up my
studying. One thing included on the notetakers I used in college that
is not available
on the Brailliant are options to copy and paste text using the Victor
Reader. This would come in handy when trying to create notes based off
of the textbook.
Instead of having to write my own notes, I would copy and paste the
most important information from the book into a separate file. After
providing Humanware
with this feedback, I was informed that it would be addressed in a
future update.
Connecting to other devices
For this evaluation, firmware version 1.1 of the Brailliant BI 40X was
used. It is compatible with iOS 13.6 and later, JAWS for Windows 18
and later, Mac
OS 10.15 and later, NVDA (no specified minimum requirement), and
development is ongoing for both Android and Chrome OS. The state of
development with Apple’s
Watch OS and Amazon’s Fire OS are not known. Evaluation was done using
the latest publicly available screen reader and operating systems as
of April 2021.
As a general rule, when connected to multiple devices, there is a menu
which allows you to jump from one device to another. However, there
are no Keyboard
shortcuts to jump quickly from one device to another like what is
found on the Focus and gBraille displays. Instead, the user must back
out of the device
they are currently connected to and then find the device they wish to
switch to in that menu. Absent from the Terminal menu is the ability
to unpair devices.
It can be found only by going to the Options menu, selecting
Bluetooth, and then “delete devices”. If you are looking for
information about how to specifically
use the Brailliant with various screen readers, the User Guide does
not provide this information. Humanware informed me that users can
download and install
the iOS and iPad OS app
HWBuddy
 to get further information about the Brailliant BI 40X and how to use
it. TO access this information, the user must have a compatible device
and also
sign up for an account. This feels
gratuitous to me, it would seem to make sense to have this accompany
the rest of the product documentation.
VoiceOver on iOS
Unlike most braille displays, the Brailliant connects through the
standard Bluetooth menu instead of using the one found under
VoiceOver’s braille menu.
Using iOS 14.5, I found that the connection was quite stable. However,
there were random times where the Keyboard would not respond to
commands. The only
way to rectify this issue was to either turn the Brailliant off and
back on or to toggle Bluetooth off and on using my iOS Device. There
is also a reconnect
option which will come in handy if your iOS device and the Brailliant
have a failed connection. One of the nice features of the Brailliant
displays is
the ability to wake up your iOS device from the braille display by
pressing any cursor routing button when the device is locked and the
Brailliant is on
that channel.
The C Keys located to the left and right of the braille display could
be a useful set of Keyboard commands on iOS. BY default, they are
designed on iOS
to make it so that the user does not have to enter a chorded command.
For example, space with H (space with dots 1-2-5,) can also be
activated by pressing
the corresponding C Keys. However, this feature is not currently
working in iOS. The only C Keys which work are 2 and 5 alone, which
pan braille back and
forth.
Typing on the Perkins style Keyboard functions as well as other
displays. All of the bugs related to connectivity and the cursor
jumping around are just
as prevalent as with other braille devices. All other commands are the
same on iOS as with other displays, though the User Guide does not
provide these.
They are available on the HWBuddy app as well as
Apple's page listing common braille display commands.
For more introductory material, you may also find this
introductory guide from AppleVis of help.
Mac OS Big Sur 11.2
Connecting over USB is as simple as it can be under Mac OS. As long as
VoiceOver is running and the Brailliant BI 40X is in Terminal,
plugging in the USB-Cable
should instantly start the connection. Like on iOS, pressing multiple
C Keys at once does not function though the individual C Keys do what
they are intended
to. When pressing space with k to launch VoiceOver help, the C Keys
only give some sort of numerical value. Like with other braille
devices under Mac OS,
sometimes the connection briefly drops, even over USB. Typically,
toggling VoiceOver off and back on with Command f5 resolves the issue.
If you are new
to Mac OS and braille, this support article from Apple should get you
started. The HWBuddy app does have more information, but not a listing
of all braille
Keyboard commands.
Like on iOS and Windows, the typing experience is much better than the
previous Brailliant, thanks to the newly redesigned Keyboard. When
checking for
the option to assign new braille commands, I noted that there are only
71 available for the new Brailliant BI 40X, but 88 options exist under
the older
Brailliant BI40.
NVDA 2020.4
Using NVDA 2020.4, I did not have to install any drivers before adding
the Brailliant BI 40X. I was able to follow the instructions provided
in the
NVDA User Guide
 to get connected and to look up the supported Keyboard commands for
the Brailliant BI 40X. I found that, once connected, the display
performed reliably
both on Bluetooth and USB. The amount of Keyboard commands available
are very few, but support for braille input appears reliable. There do
not, for example,
appear to be Keyboard command to emulate some of the Keyboard commands
a user may want such as Alt F4, Insert F12, etc. Typing in
contracted UEB was mostly reliable, though sometimes contractions
would randomly mistranslate. There were also some times where NVDA
would continue taking
braille input, but output from NVDA would stop being displayed.
Restarting NVDA resolved this issue which seemed to happen more often
over Bluetooth than
USB. I hope we can eventually see a more extensive set of braille
commands including some of the previously-discussed emulation in NVDA.
One of the annoyances
with using many braille displays on a computer is needing to switch
between using the braille and qwerty Keyboards. The more robust
braille support generally
provided with JAWS can still provide an advantage over NVDA.
JAWS 2021
Just like with NVDA, I was not forced to download and install braille
drivers. I simply went to “add new display” under the braille basics
menu, chose
the Brailliant BI 40X and then configured it accordingly.
As written above, the set of Keyboard commands you will find when
using the Brailliant with JAWS far exceeds what you will find with
NVDA. Thus, it’s a
shame that Humanware has not taken the time to compile a list of all
of the commands available. They are different than those used on the
Focus, but are
about as plentiful.
This guide on the BrailleNote Apex,
gives many of the commands supported. See the section titled: “Jaws
command summary”. However, there are other supported commands with the
C Keys which
are also useful. This guide from Perkins learning is a Word document
that lists many Brailliant commands as well.
Typing using JAWS was very reliable, though there were random times
when I had to restart my computer to get the display to show braille
even though my
default display was the Brailliant. Typing in contracted braille
yielded flawless translation using UEB. After connecting the
Brailliant, I was able to
operate my computer entirely from this device. One of the things
missing from the Windows experience is the plug and play support found
on Mac OS. If you
are unable to hear the screen reader or see the screen, you will
require support for initial set up even when connecting to USB. This
is not a limitation
of the Brailliant, but a limitation of Windows.
Guide from Perkins Learning
Conclusion and personal remarks
The Brailliant BI 40X is worth strong consideration for those in the
market for a forty cell braille display. Its software and features
could use some
refinement, particularly for those outside the United States who would
like access to library services in their country. Though the ability
to connect
to multiple devices is solid, Humanware could give users a serious
productivity boost by allowing them to change among the connected
devices with a single
Keystroke. Battery life is impressive, averaging around 14 hours for
me while having Bluetooth and Wi-Fi always connected which means I get
an entire day
of use out of one charge. The User Guide could certainly use some
updating to assist the customer in utilizing their braille display
with other connected
devices. If you are a new user to braille displays, the task of
obtaining all the available documentation can be daunting. Unlike the
Focus, qBraille,
and Orbit Reader 40, the Brailliant can be updated online. An updated
and more mature firmware would only serve to make an already-exemplary
device an
even stronger contender in the current market.
Product information
The Brailliant BI 40X is
available
from Humanware for $3,195. At the time of writing, it is temporarily
out of stock.