How to Choose the Right MP3 Player for Your Visually Impaired Teenager

Editor's note: Launched in January 2008 in direct response to the feedback we received from the recent JVIB Readers' Survey, JVIB's new "Technology Q&A" column, written by technology expert Jay Leventhal, editor in chief of AccessWorld[R]: Technology and People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired, provides readers what they said they wanted: more practical information on assistive technology and how such products are being used in daily life, education, and employment. Readers are encouraged to submit their own technology questions to the column's editor by e-mail to: . In this month's "Technology Q&A" column, the technology expert answers a question from a mother of a teenager with low vision who wrote: My daughter Skylar will be making the transition from junior high to high school this fall. All her friends have iPods, and since Sky's birthday is coming up, her father and I are looking to purchase an MP3 player for her so she can enjoy listening to music on the go just like her friends. Skylar's macular degeneration makes it impossible for her to read the screen of an iPod, so I am wondering if the Technology Expert has any advice regarding accessible MP3 players that would work for my daughter. Thank you for any advice you can give! I give Skylar's mother a lot of credit for asking about "accessible" MP3 players. I would expect most readers of this column to be familiar with Apple's iPod, but for those who are not, a description of this device follows this introduction. As Skylar's mother indicates, iPods are not accessible to people who are blind or have low vision. Luckily for Skylar and other people who are visually impaired who wish to own an MP3 players, there are also MP3 players in the marketplace that are designed specifically for people with visual impairments. These devices are in the same price range as iPods, and they offer a lot of potential for helping, as well as entertaining, visually impaired teenagers like Skylar. IPODS The Apple iPod is by far the most popular MP3 player on the market. The catch is that there is no built-in speech or text enlargement capability included in an iPod, which means that people with visual impairments cannot read the menus, make and select playlists, or comfortably perform other functions. I happen to know a teenager who is blind who uses an iPod by counting the clicks emitted by the device's click wheel and memorizing some of the menus, but she also had a sighted person help her delete some of the menus to limit her choices. iPods are controlled by their patented click wheel, which consists of a center Select button surrounded by a larger circle. The click wheel concept comes into play when one wants to adjust the volume or scroll through a menu item, Instead of pressing buttons to accomplish these tasks, it is possible to simply run a finger along the outer circle. A clockwise movement increases the volume or moves forward in a list of menu items, and counterclockwise movement decreases the volume or moves backward in the menu list. An audible "click" sound is emitted for each unit that the volume is increased or as one goes from one menu item to another. The iPod Classic measures 4.1 by 2.4 by 0.53 inches and weighs 4.9 or 5.7 ounces, depending on the size of its hard drive. The Classic is a bit larger in size than other mainstream MP3 players, but its hard drive is available in 80 GB (gigabyte) or 160 GB versions, allowing one to carry up to 80,000 songs in the device. The 80 GB version costs $249, and the 160 GB version costs $349. Measuring 2.75 by 2.06 by 0.26 inches and weighing only 1.8 ounces, the Nano is a smaller, more portable iPod. The hard drive is also significantly smaller in size than the Classic, available in 4 GB or 8 GB versions, but it functions almost exactly like the other versions. The 4 GB version costs $149, and the 8 GB costs $199. …