Two options, and both let people down
Today a blind or deafblind person who wants to read a message on their phone has two main tools. Each one fails in a way that matters.
Screen readers speak out loud
TalkBack on Android and VoiceOver on iPhone read the screen aloud. They are free and built in, but:
- There is no privacy. Everyone nearby hears your bank code, your doctor's message, your private chat.
- They don't work for deafblind people, who cannot hear the voice at all.
- They struggle in noise: on a bus, in a market, at a station.
Braille displays cost a fortune
A refreshable Braille display is a separate device with tiny pins that rise and fall to form Braille under your fingers. It is private and works without sound, but:
- It usually costs thousands of dollars, far more than the phone it connects to.
- It is another device to carry, charge and connect.
- Most people who need one can't get one, especially in lower-income countries.
So some people have no way to read at all
Put those two facts together. A deafblind person who cannot afford a Braille display often has no practical way to read their own text messages. They wait for someone else to read them, which means giving up privacy and independence for something as ordinary as a message from family.
And a skill gap on top of it
That means even a perfect technology isn't enough on its own. If reading by vibration is going to help people, they also need an easy way to learn it, at their own pace, without a teacher next to them.
What this looks like day to day
- A one-time bank code is read out loud on a crowded bus.
- A deafblind person waits hours for a relative to come and read their messages.
- A shopkeeper wants to say something simple, and there is no way for the message to reach the person in front of them.