The visually impaired could soon be able to read text messages thanks to a unique smartphone which supports braille, reports indiatimes.com.
Until now, those with sight issues have only been able to answer phone calls due to their lack of vision. Meanwhile those with perfect eyesight can use their devices for everything, from waking them up in the morning to reading e-books when they settle down for the night.
However, an Indian has now designed a smartphone for the blind that uses braille language to facilitate the reading of text.
Sumit Dagar’s new product takes the concept of touchscreen to another level by elevating and depressing the text received by the phone and displaying it through ‘touchable patterns’.
According to thinkdigit.com, the depression panel is used instead of glass and shaped through a host of pins under the screen. To enable the reading of messages, Mr Dugar has used ‘Shape Memory Alloy’ technology, which sees metals moving up and down to form certain positions.
This is likely to have huge implications for businesses that use email to SMS to deliver communications, as no longer will they have to make special arrangements for blind customers.
Mr Dagar’s device is set for a release at the end of the year and will be priced at around Rs.10,000 in India, working out at a reasonable £120 should it arrive in Britain.
