I thought the below review might be interesting for some. Unless I am
completely dense, I just cannot understand what Roger means by the vertical
position of the keys in terms of layout. If someone has seen or used this
device, could they please expand?
Text follows:
Thoughts on the Hable One
Roger Fordham
A few days ago, I read about a new product called the Hable One in an RNIB
promotional email. It's a braille keyboard designed to work with iOS and
Android devices of all kinds, using a Perkins-style keyboard with a couple
of function keys to navigate phone screens via braille input. It is claimed
that with this braille input, you can do everything via braille input,
without having to use iPhone or Android hand gestures. Great! Just the thing
for me, bring it on quick.
At a cost of £240 or so, it's not cheap, in fact, more than double the price
of an Apple qwerty keyboard, but I thought, "what the heck, go for it".
Which I did. It arrived quickly, and I was keen to see how it worked in
practice.
I asked to be supplied with braille instructions, which duly arrived along
with a print copy. In the box, as well as the Hable One, you get a USB-C
cable which you plug in to a mains adapter, and a lanyard wrist strap.
The Hable One is very small, smaller than my iPhone 12. Apart from a
charging port on its back, six Perkins-style keys and two extra keys for
dots 7 and 8 which also act as function keys, and an on-off switch at the
front, that's it.
The instruction manual is very straightforward and easy to understand; and
pairing the phone with the Hable One is also very easy. Once that's done,
off you go. Navigation is well explained as to what each key combination
does, and even if you're a non-braillist, you could learn braille itself
from this instruction manual.
Are there any downsides? Yes, just one, and it was a big one for me. The
keys on the machine are arranged vertically, not, as on most Perkins-style
devices, horizontally. For most of the braille alphabet that doesn't matter
very much, except when you come to vowel letters. So, the arrangement of
dots two and four, when for example writing the letter "i", means in
horizontal (normal mode), that the hands mimic the shape of the braille
letter being typed. But, in vertical mode, it means the opposite is true,
and to us experienced braillists, it feels like an "en" sign. Dot four is in
the wrong place. This is very hard to visualize on paper, but if you have
the Hable in your hands, you'll find it a little confusing to have to adjust
your braille thinking.
Initially, this caused me so much difficulty that I sent the machine back,
claiming that was for me at least, unuseable. I asked for a refund, and got
it.
Having contacted RNIB, it turns out that about 50 per cent of users of the
Hable One share the same difficulties as I did. Unfortunately, the product
was sent out with an outdated instruction manual. Had it come with a more
up-to-date version, I would have learned that there is, in fact, a very easy
workaround for the problem, and you can re-assign those keys to mimic
Perkins-style braille shapes. So, it's okay after all, and will be for
anybody else. When you know what to do, it's simplicity itself.
The Hable One lives up to its advertising blurb. It's a quite brilliant
piece of kit, and, as the instruction manual states, it makes using an
iPhone or an Android phone "super easy." With my reservations gone, I warmly
recommend it. I'm sure you won't be disappointed.
[The Hable One (HT388) is available from our shop (
https://bit.ly/30m8Lhb)
priced £239.00 ex VAT / £286.80 inc VAT, or by calling our Helpline on 0303
123 9999.]
Kind regards,
Jackie Brown
Email:
jackiean...@gmail.com