Mar 31 2010
Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) today announced the availability of Nuance TALKS 5.0 for Series 60 5th edition touchscreen phones.
Nuance TALKS is Nuance’s leading assistive software that converts displayed text on a handset into highly-intelligible speech for blind or visually impaired mobile consumers.
Nuance TALKS 5.0 enables both blind and visually-impaired users to take full advantage of the many features found on popular Series 60 touchscreen mobile phones, including contact directories, caller ID, text messaging, access to Web browsers, and other applications like the popular Fring messaging application – all while retaining the original user interface. Until now, it has been challenging for the visually-impaired community to use touchscreen devices given the dynamic placement of icons, letters and numbers on virtual keypads, and existing screen readers for touchscreen phones override the original user interface for low-vision and fully-sighted users.
Nuance TALKS 5.0 features a new exploration mode that allows users to simply slide their finger across the screen to hear menus, applications, widgets, text, and more via Nuance’s robust text-to-speech capabilities. To access content, users just tap anywhere or slide their finger on the screen. The software also enables use of the virtual keypad by sliding their finger across it, and tapping once to emulate a keystroke. Additionally, Nuance TALKS 5.0 allows users to navigate all menu and application options with one hand by using the volume keys located on the side of the device, further increasing accessibility while on the go.
“With Nuance TALKS 5.0, we’re providing blind and visually impaired consumers with access to a variety of applications and services that make today’s touchscreen devices so powerful,” said Michael Thompson, senior vice president and general manager, Nuance Mobile. “We’re continually investing in our mobile assistive software portfolio so all consumers can stay connected with friends, family and colleagues no matter where they are – regardless of the device.”
Nuance TALKS 5.0 also features unique SIM-based licensing that offers users the freedom to leverage the software on as many handsets as they like where the same SIM card is used, as well as access to the DAISY2Go Audio Book Player that enables users to read content right from their mobile phone. This latest version also supports recent enhancements to the Series 60 calendar and email capabilities, and features enhanced audio handling.