Braille display for a small kid

Braille displays, as you probably know, have a lot of components inside them that make them work. There are naturally going to be bad displays from just about any manufacturer, so I would argue that saying that one display manufacturer is worse than another based on that principle alone is invalid. Some displays last for upwards of ten years; others might last for only a few years.

What I think is more important to discuss is what your son thinks of the braille display. He is the one who will be using it, so he should ideally get to see what he prefers. This means that he should feel the different displays, and he should ask himself the following questions.
<ul><li>Which dots do I find easiest to read?
Some braille displays have sharper dots than others. Some have a very distinct metallic feel, while on others this is significantly less noticeable.</li>
<li>Which keyboard do I prefer typing on?
For example, HumanWare displays traditionally have rather loud keyboards, whereas HIMS displays have probably the quietest keyboards of any manufacturer in the industry.</li></ul>

You should also think about things like:
<ul><li>Will he be using it predominantly at home or away from home? If he is using it away from home, one with longer battery life may be advantageous.</li>
<li>Is there good support for the display in your country? The display will probably need to be fully serviced once a year or so, and you don't want to have to send it too far away for that, not only because of the postage costs, but also because of the time you will have to spend without it. He may also want training in the display, and someone who is qualified in its operation would be better than someone who is just reading the user manual.</li>

<a href="http://www.freedomscientific.com/Forms/DealerLocator/DealersList">Here is a link to the Freedom Scientific dealers page.</a> Select Malaysia from the drop-down list and you will see the dealers who sell Freedom Scientific products to customers in Malaysia. (I got your country from your user profile.) It is quite likely that these dealers sell other braille displays as well.

A thousand times yes! If you have a dealer in your country that would let you try out different displays that is the way to go. You can read reviews and get oppinions from people all day but they're just that... oppinions. One person might love a certain display, but then someone else would tell you to avoid it at all costs because they had a horrible experience. getting your hands on different ones if you can is imo a huge deal since a braille display is such a big investment. I have a 4th gen focus 40 blue. At the time I got it, all my online research told me that a 14 was the best device for me. Then I set up an appointment to go check out different displays since people buying it for me actually thought a bigger display would be better for me since part of why I was getting it was to help with finishing college. Anyway, I played with a Focus 14 and decided the keyboard felt way too cramped and 14 cells was a tiny bit too small for me. I got the 40 based on potential future use with a PC, which hasn't happened yet. In some ways I wish I had the smaller size of the 14 since all I have right now is my iPhone. It's a game of trade offs.

I have had the focus 40 Blue for at least 6 years. It works very well with Apple devices. I have not had any issues with it and it definitely is very rugged. I highly recommend it, but as others have said there are a ton of choices to select from. If you can try any or find a place to demo them first I would say go for it. The only thing I could argue is that it is probably not the slimmest and smallest 40 cell device on the market, but I prefer something that will last verses something that is compact.

If the plane ride is going to be inconvenient for any reason, I suggest doing the online research and then choose a device. I believe there should be a small return windows so the child can have a chance to acclimate to the device. Even if a return becomes necessary, it might still be better than managing the flight. That's not to say that, the best way, as others have stated, is to get a hands-on experience, though.

I use the Focus 80-cell model, which doesn't have Bluetooth connectivity so the iPhone doesn't get used with it; however, my experience with this device has been incredible. The braille is very crisp and the buttons have never given me any problems. So despite not having use the Bluetooth models from Freedom Scientific, I still wouldn't hesitate in recommending them to a braille user.

This is a difficult question, and people have very different opinions.

Generally, studies have shown that having more cells on a display is beneficial because there is less of a need for panning (scrolling). Reading rates tend to increase when there are more cells because braille readers do not need to constantly return to the start of the line.

You said that he is being home-schooled, which makes me wonder about how much hardcopy braille he will have access to. As he grows up, he will probably find that he likes having more cells because it is easier when reading large amounts of material, and if he plans on using the display for math, having more cells will definitely be an advantage. His reading speed will likewise increase and he will find that he enjoys reading when he can read with more than just two or three words per line.

If it is within your budget, I would recommend a 32- or 40-cell braille display. When braille is printed on paper, usually between thirty and forty cells are written per line, so having a braille display of this length (preferably forty cells) will be the closest approximation to hardcopy braille.

I also concur with the above poster on this issue. The more cells the longer he will be satisfied with the device. If he takes to braille reading but only has a small number of cells then a new device will have to be purchased.

Another thought is that, if his vision is continuing to diminish, then he will be forced to leave large print behind anyway. So, if he has a larger cell count on the braille device and continues to lose his vision, then his natural tendency will be to reach for the device anyway.

No matter what equipment a blind person chooses, money tends to always be an issue. My personal opinion is to purchase the absolute best one can at the time and go from there. That's why a forum like this one is quite valuable. This way someone like yourself can formulate the best decision for the situation and then drop some cash on a new device. It's hard to tell where a young person will go as far as devices, but don't sweat it too much. Just make the best decision you can, based on the financial availability, and then make the purchase.

Happy hunting for the perfect braille display. There are lots of them available. My personal preference is the Focus series from Freedom Scientific.

A few posts ago, we were talking about math, and you mentioned Nemeth. I am not sure what country you originate from or are residing in, so you may want to check out this book which lists the braille codes for many countries. Note that this book was published five years ago, so it is possible that information may have changed somewhat. The reason that you should look at this book and then decide what code to teach for math is that, for example, Nemeth and UEB math have almost no similarities whatsoever, and it may take a long time to adjust to a new code, so you should really think in advance, or potentially teach multiple codes at the same time, though I would discourage this as it is likely he--and you--will become very confused.

On another issue, you wanted to know about an SD card. If you want a braille display that also has basic notetaking functionality and allows you to read books from an SD card, I would recommend the Braille Edge 40 from HIMS as HIMS has quite a substantial worldwide presence, and this display is fairly similar in price to stand-alone braille displays like the Focus series. One thing to note, however, is that this device was released in 2012, and as a result, it may be harder to get support on this product as years go by, but I think you will be okay as HIMS arguably has the best customer service in the industry.

Another thing that you should probably keep in mind is the device the braille display is being paired to. If your son is going to be doing schoolwork on the device, I would discourage an iPad as it is much harder to do schoolwork on it with assistive technology than a computer. I would imagine that you have a computer because you talked about an SD card before, which you would likely need a computer to use. Also, if your son were to ever enrol in a school, he would probably need to use a computer anyway. A free yet very good screen for Windows is NVDA, and for macOS, VoiceOver comes pre-installed.

Based on all of your circumstances listed above, I think you have made a good choice. The nicer displays will still be available in the future anyway. It's nice to see that the industry has created a more "disposable" braille display that will fit your application perfectly. I'm certain that your family situation isn't the only one and that your chosen display works for many others.

One thing you may be aware of about the Smart Beetle is that there have been several reports of keys and the rubber feet becoming detached, which may pose a problem for you because of the lack of support in your country. Of course, it is your choice, but it's just something to think about because apart from that, it's a really nice display.