Looking for a faster and easier way to type on your iPhone or iPod touch? BrailleTouch is a revolutionary app for the blind community that lets you type on your touchscreen using braille. Many people have reported typing at 30 words per minute or faster with accuracy.
We offer a free download of BrailleTouch so you can try it at no cost. You can enter braille on the touchscreen and hear each character and/or word as you type. The free version is also a great teaching tool for braille instructors and students.
The real power of BrailleTouch is in the full version, available as an In-App Purchase. After upgrading, you can send text messages, tweets, and emails from the touchscreen braille keyboard. You can...
Looking for a faster and easier way to type on your iPhone or iPod touch? BrailleTouch is a revolutionary app for the blind community that lets you type on your touchscreen using braille. Many people have reported typing at 30 words per minute or faster with accuracy.
We offer a free download of BrailleTouch so you can try it at no cost. You can enter braille on the touchscreen and hear each character and/or word as you type. The free version is also a great teaching tool for braille instructors and students.
The real power of BrailleTouch is in the full version, available as an In-App Purchase. After upgrading, you can send text messages, tweets, and emails from the touchscreen braille keyboard. You can also copy text that you enter using braille and paste it into any other app on your iPhone.
BrailleTouch features a unique split keyboard design that is based on the layout of the braille cell and the dimensions of the iPhone screen, rather than the traditional straight line six-key keyboard as found on the Perkins Brailler. You can find a full User Guide and FAQ at BrailleTouchApp.com.
Most people are able to start typing in braille right away. For others, it takes a little time to get used to the unique split braille keyboard layout. After some practice, they are able to braille quickly and accurately. If you are having trouble at first, please read the Help in the app and feel free to contact us directly at info@brailletouchapp.com. We are happy to help.
The trick to typing with BrailleTouch is to hold your iPhone in a special way. Place the phone in landscape and hold it with two hands from the left and right sides, respectively. Now turn the phone around so the screen is facing away from you. The standard orientation is with the Home button in your right hand and the volume buttons on the top edge.
Now adjust your hands so you can lift the first three fingers of each hand off the screen and move them freely. Some people support the phone from the sides by pressing in with the palms of their hands. Some people support the phone with their thumbs on top edge where the volume buttons are and their little fingers on the bottom edge. Please experiment to find what grip works best for you and allows you to type with maximum ease and comfort.
The left side of the screen is dots 1, 2, and 3 arranged vertically. You can tap dot 1 with your left index finger and BrailleTouch will speak “A”. You can type dot 3 with your left ring finger and BrailleTouch will speak “apostrophe”. You can tap dots 1, 2, and 3 with the same fingers of your left hand as you would use on a Perkins Brailler.
The right side of the screen is dots 4, 5, and 6 arranged vertically. You can tap dot 4 with your right index finger and BrailleTouch will speak the “at-sign”. You can tap dot 6 with your right ring finger and BrailleTouch will speak “capital”.
After you have found the four corners of the touchscreen and are comfortable tapping dots 1, 3, 4, and 6 individually, you are ready to start brailling on your touchscreen. Try practicing the alphabet slowly at first. If the braille dots feel reversed to you, there is a setting to “Flip Dots 1&3, 4&6” that some people prefer.
The current version of BrailleTouch is based on US English and North American Grade 1 uncontracted braille. It supports upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and most punctuation.
For best results, we recommend using a case in order to grip the phone more comfortably. Headphones may also be helpful to avoid covering the speaker next to the Home button.
BrailleTouch is designed specifically for iPhone and iPod touch. It is not designed for use on an iPad. BrailleTouch will run on iPhone 3Gs or higher, iPod touch 3rd generation or higher, and requires iOS 5.0 or higher. BrailleTouch is fully compatible with VoiceOver.
