Smartwatches are the new in-thing these days. University of Washington students think so too. However, instead of a regular smartwatch, UoW students have created a smartwatch for the visually impaired. This watch – simply called the Dot – is an active Braille smartwatch.
The Dot smartwatch will sync with the Dot app on your smartphone. Using Bluetooth connectivity, the Dot app on the phone looks for new messages, tweets, calls and sends it to the Dot smartwatch. The Dot app translates new items in Braille and sends it over the Dot smartwatch, which then notifies the user with a vibration. The Dot smartwatch features pins which rise and fall to let the user read it in Braille. This may sound a bit complex, but the bulk of the work is done by the Dot app on your phone.
In standby, the Dot smartwatch simply shows the current time. If the watch has any new notifications to deliver, six pins on either side of the two halves on the Dot smartwatch rise depending on the words to translate. Users can set speed to suit their comfort.
The Dot braille smartwatch costs $300 and is now up for pre-order.
