Wander through any major technology retailer today and you will find a respectable choice in most categories at varying price points to suit most people's budget. But how much of that actual technology willl meet the customer with accessibility needs? For some this is not an issue as they can make simple modifications such as utilising a laptop and activating the magnifier. But what if you need a braille display? Gesture Recognition? Sreen Reading Software? Special adjustment to your desk....?
Chances are your stuck..... for choice.
Due to lack of demand most Disability Technology is either not mass produced or there is not a competitive market (unless heavily subsidised) to foster a great level of choice. Let's take a look at Vibrating Baby Cry Alerts for the Deaf as an example.
At the moment in Australia you can purchase 2 different systems. They both hook into various notification devices and are part of a notification system that provides doorbell, fire alarm and telephone notifications. Alerts are either via a vibrating pager/watch or a strobe light. Problems? Neither of these are particularly effective. One is a hyperactive general sound detector which goes off every 5 minutes regardless of what noise it is. The other is apparently "Cry activated" but never worked properly with y own child's cry (rarely a sustained scream). but there's no other choice....
On the other hand baby monitors for hearing people are a dime a dozen at your local baby store. Some will now even sync with your phone or broadcast over the internet (not advisable). The ability to make a choice is based on the presumption that the choice actually exists.
Which all leaves us where we started....
With little choice, or in some cases none at all, and generally quite expensive proprietary solutions.
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