PCs can open up a world of information, giving you access to live news, entertainment and communication with others. They can also be useful at work.
Products for your PC can convert text into braille, change text into large print and change to colours on the screen, and speak the text to you.
Braille and your PC
There are several different braille products for use with your PC.
Screen magnification
This allows you to increase the size of text and graphics on your PC to make it easier to see. There are a number of different methods for achieving this, some of which require new equipment and some which just need software.
Screen readers
They do literally what their name suggests - they read the text from the screen. Unlike Talking Browsers, they function with almost any computer program and are not just used to browse the internet.
Talking browsers
They differ from screen readers. They are specially designed for reading webpages and they are a browser and screen reader combined.
 | Braille Keytop Stickers | Adapt-IT | 57BKS | £17.50 | Free | | |
| Keytop stickers are self-adhesive stickers, which can be stuck onto individual keys on the computer keyboard. The lettering on these stickers is in Braille. |
 | Keytop stickers | RNIB | HK32 - 34 | £11.50 | Free | | |
| Keytop stickers are self-adhesive stickers, which can be stuck onto individual keys on the computer keyboard. |
 | Magnifying filter screen | RNIB | HT230 | £82.25 - £94.00 | Free | | |
| A magnifying screen that can increase character size more than double will attach to a flat panel computer screen. |
 | Lunar screen magnification software | RNIB | HT198 | £339.25 | Free | | |
| Lunar is a screen enlarge program that allows partially sighted computer users to easily magnify and manipulate the on screen display of their computer, in a variety of ways, to suit their requirements. |
 | Supernova screen magnification software | RNIB | HT193 - HT194 | £960.25- £1,374.25 | Free | | |
| Supernova combines magnification, speech and braille output in one program. This is to benefit individuals and establishments with a range of requirements. |
 | Jaws for Windows | Sight and Sound | Standard, Professional, Premium 10.0 | £655 - £795 - £985 | Free | | |
| With its internal software speech synthesizer and the computer’s sound card, information from the screen is read aloud. |
 | Braille Maker for Windows translation software | RNIB | HT85 | £229.25 | Free | | |
| Software package that turns a word processed document into grade one or grade two braille format. |
 | Zoom Text Magnification software | RNIB | HT69 | £310.00 - £364.25 | Free | | |
| This magnification software is most suitable for large print users. It has advanced features for magnifying Microsoft Windows. |
 | Maestro Notetaker | Humanware | N/A | £870.00 | Free | | |
| A very portable solution of a note-taker for those who use braille. Can also access web site and get emails on the move. |
 | Pacmate Portable Braille Display | Sight and Sound | QX440 | £3750 | Free | | |
| This 40-cell refreshable braille unit adds the most manageable functionality available to any computer with a USB port. |
