Texts offer voice to the blind

Blamed one day for bullying, praised the next - texting is being welcomed by blind people using new technology that converts writing into spoken words.

Vodafone and the Royal New Zealand Foundation of the Blind yesterday launched a three-year, $800,000 partnership funding technology training for blind people beyond the foundation's existing classrooms in Auckland and Wellington.

Blind musician Mike Lloyd, 36, who runs the classes in Auckland, says a pretty-much-standard cellphone plus software costing around $1000 allows him to "read" any text he receives by having it read out to him in a mechanised American accent.

If it's a complicated message, he can slow the voice down. If he's at a noisy party, he can turn up the volume.

Linked with a computer and a scanner, the same kind of software can be used to do things such as scanning in a phone bill so that the computer can read it out to you.

One of Mr Lloyd's students, a blind carpenter, has been able to reach new customers by learning to use email. Others wanted to learn how to email their grandchildren.

"These days independence can be anything from reading the newspaper to answering the telephone," he said.

"The adaptive technology that we are using and teaching has changed the lives of many people for the better. It has restored their independence."

Foundation chief executive Paula Daye said Vodafone's sponsorship would help with training but did not extend to actually giving cellphones or computers to the country's 11,500 blind people.

"People have to purchase their own computer, But we do have a fund that makes funding available if they can't afford it," she said.