Created by the same person who made AGram for the Mac:
Talk Forward is Talkback (based off of AOSP), with a more VoiceOver native feeling to it.
Download and details, can be found at:
https://app-suite.eu/talkforward
But in short after playing with it for around 10 minutes, most things work well! Only thing that's missing is split tapping on the screen which native Talkback has.
I am guessing that Talk Forward could be on the play store at some point, since I did see a link to a 404 not found page to it under the advanced settings. With that being said though, my main concern, is that I hope it actually 'can' be added to it, given what's going to be happening with sideloading (installing unknown apps) in a few months' time.
I will definitely be supporting its development when I can.
PS. Unlike Samsung's version of Talkback (until OneUI 9 rolls around) or if not using Jiesuo premium, Talk Forward does allow you to use your free Google Gemini API key for describing Images/screens. Or support the project with a onetime payment like I'll be doing in the future, which also unlocks said feature.
Comments
If only...
It had split tap functionality. I use that so much on my iPhone, and I was happy to hear that it came to Android awhile back.
Still, I guess they're still Prudence, and I don't know about CSR... was there a reason that was taken off of the Google play store?
@Brian
prudence did get an update, though it's mainly a bug fix. It's not up to Talkback 16 standards yet sadly.
As for Commentary, it was removed from the play store
because it uses Paypal for payments and not the Play Store directly. With that being said though, that should be changing hopefully, thanks to what Google's doing with Sideloading and that Advanced Flow thang.
Talk Forward
I think this one has potential. I like that you can use the rotor, or you can use the normal Talkback way of doing things. It's a bit faster than regular Talkback too. And the dev is pretty active on the Blind Android Users telegram group and has been quick to make changes based on user feedback.
Re: Talk Forward
Honestly,
Once Talk Forward's text descriptions get cleaned up/replaced a bit more with their own specific ones throughout the interface, I could see myself ditch Google's own Talkback in the future! And keep Jieshuo as a backup.
Now this is a screen reader I would love a Voiceover sound pack for!
And unlike with Jieshuo & Prudence sound pack areas (if they ever come to Talk Forward), should not have
repetitive versions of sound packs! At least like, check for quality control please?
I don't have android but
I 101% trust @kaillewaille with anything he comes up with so :) cool!!
Happy for Android Users
We are stuck with one screen reader on iOS and MacOS.
An Update on Split-Tap When Using Talk Forward
Okay!
It's there... I guess I'm still getting used to the concept of it being on Android still. But yes, it's there (even on Samsung's latest version using OneUI 8.5.)
Still not there for Jieshuo & prudence though...
That name.
I don't know whether to laugh or repeatedly slam my head against the nearest available surface.
It's A Play On Words
, considering that Braille back, Sound back, and Kickback were all separate products back in the day when Talkback was known as the Eyes-Free Shell.
And yeah... Talk Forward is a silly name. But for what it is meant to do, totally makes sense.
Easy to remember, that's for sure.
Re: Split-tap
Awesome. So happy to hear that it's on TalkForward. So I have a question, do the angle gestures exist with TalkForward?
@Brian
No, they don't. Dev might bring them back, but one of the ways he was able to improve latency involved zapping those. As far as I'm concerned, good riddens. With Talk Forward, you get edge gestures, so you go home, to recents, quick settings or notifications with one finger drag from either the bottom or top of the screen. Still slightly buggy but when it works, it's really cool.
thanks for opening that thread
Dear all,
First, thanks to all of you who expressed support and encouragements for this new project. A few notes before going away to finish shaping the next Talk Forward release:
Thanks again!
Thanks for doing this
Thank you very much for your project.
As an Apple user, you made me want to buy an Android phone just to try it with VoiceOver sounds and gestures.
I use Agram for iOS, and you really made a masterpiece.
Your passion and your attention to users are admirable, and I am sure that Talk Forward will also go very far!
God I can't wait to finally get my hands on a Samsung device
This project makes me want Android.. now. 🤯
Home Screens with Talk Forward
Wow!!
I'm off to pull out my Google tablet to check it out, this is exciting!!! I got so frustrated with the Talkback lag that I kind of gave up on Android temporarily.
@Justin
Since you mentioned removing the angle gestures to reduce lag, how responsive is TalkForward on your Pixel?
@Brian
It's kinda hard to say. I notice the difference, but after a year on Android I don't notice regular talkback lag much anymore. I can say Talk Forward is faster, but hard to quantify. Until a few more bugs are fixed I can't commit to using it full time, but it is very promising and I look forward to seeing what else this dev can do. I also brought up in the Blind Android Users telegram the need for a good NVDA remote app, as the one on the play store that was first released on iOS then Android just force closes whenever you try connecting. Whether he releases it as a standalone app or bakes it in to Talk Forward, he did say he might be doing something for NVDA remote access, which will be amazing.
Talk Forward
The only major issue I'm having is with the Google keyboard. It's a little jumpy; after I type a letter, Talk Forward repeats that letter over and over, even if I'm not touching the screen.
But a huge positive is that I can now easily moderate Facebook groups again! The join requests and pending posts, which have been a nightmare to handle on iOS for weeks, are completely accessible on Android.
I'm really looking forward to future Talk Forward updates!