Brian Kemler, the product manager for Android accessibility , announced on the official Google blog that a virtual braille keyboard called TalkBack will be launched for Android devices. This feature was developed with Braille developers and users.
The TalkBack keyboard uses a standard six-key layout, with each key position representing a braille dot. According to different key combinations, different braille characters can be generated. E.g:
- Click key 1: Enter the letter "A"
- Click keys 1 and 2 at the same time: enter the letter "B"
- Click keys 1 and 4 at the same time: enter the letter "C"
- Click keys 1, 4, and 5 at the same time: enter the letter "D"
In addition, various operations can be performed on the keyboard according to different gestures. For example, swiping left deletes letters, swiping left with two fingers simultaneously deletes words, swiping right adds new spaces, swiping with two fingers to the right is line breaks, and swiping two fingers up submits text.
You can turn on the TalkBack Braille keyboard in Android Settings> Accessibility> TalkBack. It is suitable for all applications on Android devices, can provide Level 1 and Level 2 Braille, and currently only supports English.
Prior to this, visually impaired people could type on a mobile phone or computer by connecting a physical braille keyboard. However, it is inevitable that the external device is not convenient enough, and it is time-consuming to connect. The virtual keyboard TalkBack is directly integrated into Android without connecting additional devices, which is undoubtedly faster and more convenient, which will bring more convenience and a more friendly user experience for special groups in need.