Software Deals, Sales, and News

Buy.com has Nuance's Dragon Naturally Speaking version 9.0, the standard edition, for $42.99 after a $40 mail-in rebate. With free shipping, we haven't seen this price for this voice recognition software since last year. Rebate ends December 16.

As expected, GW Micro has released its GPS software for the Voice Sense accessible PDA. Called GW Sense Navigation or SenseNav for short, it was developed by Sendero Group, the same company that programs the GPS software for the BrailleNote family of PDAs. The price is also similar to the BrailleNote offering at $1,549. The Voice Sense itself costs $1,895 through December 21. In January, the price will balloon to $2,395.

As a follow-up to the posted feature list for the next version of Wayfinder Access, the newest version is now available. It's actually not version 2, but version 1.24, though the list of new features remains the same. It's available in many languages and is a free update for current Wayfinder Access users.

GW Micro has just released the version 1.1 firmware for the Voice Sense. The major update for version 1.1 is support for the Voice Sense GPS product, based on Sendero's popular GPS for the BrailleNote and VoiceNote. Additional features include support for SDHC memory cards and SSL email support among numerous other enhancements and bug fixes.

Neil Barnfather of TalkNav has posted a preliminary feature list for the upcoming release of Wayfinder Access 2.0. It appears to be a free upgrade, and adds several features found in other GPS solutions for the blind including hotkey support, better descriptions of crossings, and an expanded "where am I" mode. No release date is given, but expect to see this version sometime in December or January.

An EBay seller has listed a copy of Zoomtext 9.1 with a price of $475. With free shipping, it's $120 under the list price for this magnifying software. Deal ends today.

Serotek offers it's entire System Access line of accessibility products including System Access Mobile for U3 and 2 computers, Neospeech, 4 years of System Access Mobile Network access (including SAToGo), and product updates, all for $24.95 a month.
It's a great way to make your computer talk without a massive financial outlay up-front.
If you would rather buy this package with only one year of network service and updates, it's only $499 through December 31st, a $129 savings since the year of access is basically included for free. Plus, get Neospeech free when you mention Blind Bargains.

Fredom Scientific has posted the final release for JAWS 9.0. This latest version adds support for retaining HTML formatting while copying and pasting, improved support for Microsoft word, and support for the Outlook calendar, among numerous other enhancements and bug fixes.

Microsoft Office 2007 will soon be able to export files into the DAISY format, according to CNet. DAISY allows for easier navigation, embossing, and narration and is used by many accessible Ebook publishers including Recordings for the Blind & Dyslexic. The office extension will add a "Save as DAISY" option to some of Microsoft's applications. The new plug-in should be available sometime in early 2008.

Sendero Group has released a version of Sendero GPS without the GPS. Titled Way to
Go
, the product includes the features of its GPS product without the actual tracking
support. Think of it as the virtual mode portion of navigational software. In addition,
you can attach audio narratives or sounds to specific points of interest, a feature
that we hope will find its
way into the regular GPS product. The cost for Way to Go
is $749 for the download or a bit more for a version shipped to your door. The download
is a better value, even if you choose to buy your own 8GB compact flash card and
download the maps.

System Access to Go (or SA
to Go) is no longer available in its free beta form. But you can still gain access
to the mobile screen reader through an annual subscription to the System Access Mobile
Network ($229 for the first year, $129 for each additional year) or through purchasing
System Access Mobile for $499, which gives you a year of SAMobile.net access for
free. System Access to Go allows you to access nearly any modern computer by loading
a remote web application. The deal for the free year ends December 1.