Braille display questions

1. Qwerty notetakers will not work well. You will have to use the home row keys like braille keys, as in s d f for dots 3 2 1 and so on. So, unless you plan to do a lot with the notetaker outside of using it as a terminal, you may be better off with a braille keyboard. 2. No one device works better as far as iOS, though there are, of course, different qualities of displays. Overall, though, none should have to be paired more than once (barring resets) and all should be stable and work as expected. 3. People like the Focus line, but you also mentioned Hims. The advantage of the Braille Edge from Hims is that it includes basic notetaking functions that do not need the iPhone or another paired device to work, letting you use your Edge as a basic notetaker, calculator, calendar, and so on independent of any other devices, then pair it with your iPhone or computer when you want to. At $2700 (last I checked anyway) for forty cells, that seems the best bargain to me, giving you the best of both worlds. 4. To enter computer braille, just toggle it on with space-2-3-6 (or maybe it's space-3-5-6). Assuming you enabled 8 dot braille, which I highly recommend you do, entering symbols is as easy as just typing them in, from capital letters to accents to at signs. The other advantage of this mode is that there is no grade 2 translation, so you do not see the odd errors you can get with grade 2 entry on iOS. I hope this helps.

Hello Sarah. I use a lot Braille displays with my iOS device. It's very useful especially when reading and typing long texts. I use HIMS BrailleSense On Hand. It's a great device, I love it myself. It's very handy, portable, simple and easy to carry. You don't have to pare it each and every time, once you've pared it, you are ready to use it with VoiceOver. You can capitalize a letter by hitting the dot 7 key (the back space key) with any letter. You can also make the on-screen keyboard visible and type on the screen. Please feel free to ask a question, I'm more than happy to help. Regards. Khalfan.

Hi Sarah. Once you have paired the display for the first time, meaning that you enter the authentication code required, when the display and phone are both turned on and in range, they should see each other and pair up. You may have to lock and then unlock your screen again to get this to happen, but often times it does this automatically as long as VoiceOver is running. If you have contracted braille on, you capitolize letters by putting a dot 6 before them, though you can also use dot 7 along with the letter either way. How you enter other symbols depends on whether contractions are on or off, but they can all be done. I personally agree with the Edge as a great display if you're looking for something that is 40 cells, but if possible, I'd recommend trying out both and seing what you're most comfortable with. The Focus 40 Blue and the Braille Edge each have a different feel to their cells. Also, as mentioned above, the Edge has other features and functions which you may or may not find useful.

I use my iphone with qwerty braillesnse u2 but I have trouble with the symbol on the keyboard. when I type in the symbol such as @ sign, it doesn't appear as an @ sign. what do I do to make it appear as an @ sign? thank you

I use a Focus 14 blue with my iPad. It works well. It has the Perkins style keyboard. When I had my iPod Touch, I used my braillenote Apex with the same style keyboard. I like my Focus 14 because it is very small and can easily fit into my backpack. Sometimes I wish it was bigger, but I have what I have. I paid about $1300 (not including the case). It came with a case, but I purchased a more heavy-duty case being I move around a lot. My advice is to try out different displays until you find that you are comfortable with. I called different companies when researching braille displays for my iPad. I originally got it as a backup in case something happened to my braillenote; but use the Focus as my primary display on my iPad because it is smaller.

There is one out there called the Braille Pen, but it doesn't have cursor routing keys. Those keys are useful for double tapping. Just call or lookonline different ones. Wayne

All displays that are supported generally work well, though as others have said, I'd stay away from the qwerty devices if your primary use is for iOS. I'd personally never buy a product from Freedom Scientific given the way I've been treated by them in the past. HIMS makes good products and, in fact, after some deliberation and some time with a lot of different products, I decided on the Smart Beetle. If you're looking for a 40-cell, as it sounds like you are, their Braille Edge is very nice though too big for my taste (I like small displays for portability). Baum's Vario Ultra is also a really great product, and they have a 20 and a 40 cell version of that.
As for pairing, you should only need to pair more than once. However, something to keep in mind, how many Bluetooth devices do you intend to use? If you have multiple devices you plan to use on a regular basis, you might consider the Vario Ultra from Baum or the Smart Beetle, depending on what size of display you want. These two displays have the ability to pair with several devices at the same time.

Before buying any Braille display, read its manual online and imagine yourself using it. Be sure to read any sections they have on iOS. One thing that sold me on the Focus Blue was the free training FS offered on using it both with JAWS and with iOS. The thing that sold me on the VarioUltra was its fine manual. I bought both for our department, and my only regret is that I didn't buy something with 40 cels, because I get very tired of panning.
Also if you are a clutz look for something with fewer buttons. On both my Braille displays I still hit the wrong button more often than I like.