For a very long time I've wanted access to a BlackBerry Smartphone. I'm not even sure why, but it always sounded ultra cool, it seemed to be on a level above every other device I ever had.
The idea of emails just getting to you without you having to physically check really appealed to me. Since I got my iPhone 3GS this functionality is there, thanks to the seamless synchronisation with Exchange, but I still had a yearning for BlackBerry and I still wanted to have one!
Enter Oratio for BlackBerry Smartphones, a screen reader for BlackBerry devices, from Humanware. The software, which was actually released about a year ago, is very slowly making a name for itself.
On Monday 7th February 2011 I received my very own copy of Oratio and activated it on my BlackBerry. What appears on this section of the website are a series of audio recordings which demonstrate the device, and, even more importantly, which track the way in which I learned to use it.
As this project is a work in progress, I welcome questions, comments and suggestions and am very happy to talk to anyone about BlackBerry accessibility.
Each recording can either be listened to or downloaded, so you can take it with you on a portable device.
Simply activate the link appropriate to the option that you want. Each audio recording also contains a summary of what will be explained in that recording.