Our favorite accessibility innovations at CES 2024

Much of what we see at CES tends to focus on technological innovation for innovation's sake, or obvious attempts to exploit whatever trend is grabbing the Internet's attention that year . However, in recent broadcasts there has been an increased focus on assistive products designed to help improve the lives of people with disabilities and other different needs. At CES 2024, I was happy to see more development in the accessibility category, with many offerings appearing to be more thoughtfully designed in addition to being clever. It's so easy to get distracted by the shiny, flashy, glamorous, weird technology at CES, but I wanted to take the time to give some due attention to some of my favorite accessibility products here in Las Vegas.

GyroGant

Before I even packed my bags, many colleagues had sent me the link to GyroGlove's website after it won several CES innovation awards. The device is a hand stabilizing glove that uses gyroscopic force to help people with hand tremors minimize shaking. Because the demonstration unit at the show it was too big for meand above all, I have no tremors in my hands, I was not able to accurately assess the effectiveness of the glove.

But I spoke at the booth with a person with Parkinson's, who had been wearing one for a few days. She said the GyroGlove helped her perform tasks such as buttoning a shirt more easily and that she intended to purchase one for herself. At $5,899, the device is quite expensive, which represents the sad state of assistive products these days. But the makers of the GyroGlove said they are in talks with some insurers in the United States, which could lead to the product being covered for those who could benefit from it in America. This is one of the main reasons why we named GyroGlove one of the our CES 2024 winners.

A glimpse of the MouthPad inside a person's mouth.
Photo by Cherlynn Low / Engadget

Mouth pillow

I didn't think I'd be looking deep into a person's mouth and nose at CES 2024, but here we are. Sometimes you have to do strange things to discover unconventional gadgets. The mouthguard is as unusual as possible. It's a voice-activated controller for phones, tablets, and laptops, and basically anything that accepts Bluetooth mouse input. Components include a touchpad mounted on the paddle of what is essentially a restraint, as well as a battery and a Bluetooth radio.

As strange as the concept may seem, this could actually be a boon for people who aren't able to use their limbs, since your tongue, as a muscle, can provide more precise movement and control than, by example, your eyes. If you're worried about sticking a device in your mouth, it may help to know that the battery comes from the same company that made them for medical grade implants, while the rest of the dental tray is made from a resin that is commonly used in aligners and bite guards. The product is currently available as an early access package including setup and calibration support, with a new version (with longer battery life) planned to launch later This year.

OrCam hear

Assistive technology company OrCam won our Best of CES Award for Accessibility in 2022, so I couldn't wait to find out what he had in store for us this year. I was not deceived. The company had a few updated products to introduce, but the most intriguing was a new offering aimed at people with hearing loss. The OrCam Hear system is a three-part package consisting of a pair of headphones, a dongle for your phone, and an app. Together, the different parts work to filter out background noise while identifying and isolating specific speakers in a multi-party conversation.

During a demonstration at a loud event at CES 2024, I watched and listened as the voices of select people around me grew clear or muffled as company representatives slid their icons in or out of my field of hearing. I was particularly impressed when the system was able to identify my editor next to me and allowed me to choose whether to focus on his voice or filter it out.

Audio Radar

If you're a gamer, you'll know how important audio cues can sometimes be to a successful run. Developers often design the soundscape of their games to be not only rich and immersive, but also to contain clues about approaching enemies or dangers. Players who are hard of hearing may not benefit from this and it is not fair that they are at a disadvantage due to a disability.

A product called Audio Radar can help turn audio cues into visual cues, so hearing-impaired gamers can “see the sound,” according to the company. The setup is quite simple. A box plugs into a game console to interpret the audio output and convert it into lights. A series of RGB light bars surround the screen and display different colors depending on the type of sound coming from the respective direction they represent.

CES 2024 not only saw the official launch of Audio Radar, but was also when the company introduced its SDK allowing game developers to create custom visual cues for gamers with hearing loss. Company founder and CEO Tim Murphy told Engadget that it is partnering with Logitech, the gaming accessory maker “providing us with support as we further develop our product and design our go-to-market strategy.” the market “.

A person wearing TranscribeGlass on the right side of a pair of black-framed glasses.
Photo by Cherlynn Low / Engadget

Transcribe the glass

Google Glass was resurrected at CES 2024. Sort of. A new product called Transcribe Glass is a small heads-up display that you can attach to any frame, and the result looks a lot like the long dead Google device. It connects to your phone and uses that device's built-in processing to transcribe what it hears, then projects the text onto the small transparent screen hovering above the eye. You will be able to resize the font, adjust the scrolling speed, and choose the language model of your choice, as TranscribeGlass uses third-party APIs for translation. Yes, it also converts foreign languages ​​into languages ​​you understand.

The company is aiming to launch at the end of the year and hopes to offer the device at $199 to start. When I tried it at the show, I was surprised by the lightness and flexibility of the material. I had to squint slightly to see the captions and experienced some Bluetooth lag, but otherwise the transcriptions ran fairly quickly and seemed accurate. The TranscribeGlass should last around eight hours on a charge, which seems reasonable considering everything it does.

Samsung Subtitle Accessibility Features

Although we didn't see an in-person demo, Samsung briefly mentioned a “sign language feature in Samsung Neo QLED” that “can be easily controlled with gestures for the hearing impaired, and an audio subtitles feature (which) turns subtitles into spoken words in real time for the visually impaired “. We weren't able to find it at the show, but the concept is certainly significant. Additionally, the fact that Samsung TVs have mainstream appeal means these features could be more widely available than many of the niche products we've covered in this roundup.

We're reporting live from CES 2024 in Las Vegas from January 6-12. Follow all the news from the show here.

This article was originally published on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/our-favorite-accessibility-products-at-ces-2024-170009710.html?src=rss

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