News

This is a shameless plug for an email group I set up a few years ago.  The BrailleBookSwap email list exists to allow people to pass on braille books which they no longer require.  It was launched following the changes made by RNIB to the braille library service, meaning that books could no longer be returned to the library, but should simply be consigned to the recycling bin.

The group has been running successfully for the past few years currently having approximately 100 members.  Changes to the administration of the list mean that it is now open to new members, so if anyone would like to join the list they can post a blank message to [email protected].

Anyone having problems signing up should contact me at [email protected].

We invite you to join the new Blazie Technologies Community group on Facebook!

This group is a place for BT Speak and BT Braille users, prospective customers, family members, educators, and anyone interested in Blazie Technologies to connect and learn from one another.

Use this group to ask questions, share tips and experiences, discuss BT Speak and BT Braille, learn about new features and updates, and connect with other members of the Blazie community.

The Blazie Technologies team will also be active in the group to answer questions, provide helpful information, and keep you informed about our products.

Whether you’ve been using Blazie products for years or are just getting started, you’re welcome here.

A recording of HumanWare’s recent webinar about the BrailleNote Evolve is now available.

Watch on YouTube

For the first time on a tactile graphics device, digital tactile street maps are here!

Developed by accessibility innovator Dr. Josh Miele, TMAP makes it possible to generate tactile street maps from a ZIP code or postcode.

We recently joined Dr. Josh Miele for a special session demonstrating TMAP on Dot Pad.

Josh takes you through how to create a tactile map and explore a location, followed by a detailed Q&A about the technology and what could come next.

Learn more about TMAP on Dot Pad

Listen to Josh on Raising The Dots podcast:
Tactile Street Maps on Dot Pad

Access TMAP for Dot Pad:

Dot TMAP — Tactile Street Maps for Dot Pad

Watch the Webinar Recording

Watch The Recording

Recent developments in braille technology have shone a particular spotlight on NVDA, but what is its braille support really like? In this two-part series, we will explore the braille features available to NVDA users and how well they work in the real world.

In part 1, we will introduce NVDA’s braille support, describe NVDA’s braille settings, and discuss NVDA’s braille output. In particular, we will cover:

• Which braille displays and braille codes are supported
• NVDA’s braille settings and what they do
• Getting used to NVDA’s braille output
• Auto scroll
• Braille typeforms
• Using configuration profiles to optimise braille output
• Using braille without speech

In part 2, we will concentrate on NVDA’s braille input, including:

• Entering text using the braille keyboard
• Correcting mistakes
• Navigating using the braille keyboard
• Strategies for quickly changing braille tables
• Controlling the computer using the braille keyboard

Register for NVDA and Braille

To join by phone, please use these details:

• Phone number: 0131 460 1196
• Meeting ID: 811 6921 7374
• Passcode: 123456

Meet the Future of Accessible Coding

Blazie Technologies are excited to invite you to an upcoming presentation featuring Dr. Stephen Blazie as he showcases BT Code, a one-of-a-kind Braille-first platform designed to help blind learners go from their first lines of Python to building and sharing real applications.

A New Way to Learn, Build, and Share

BT Code was designed to make learning programming accessible, engaging, and hands-on. Built around the PRIMM learning framework, BT Code combines guided lessons with coding challenges that encourage students to predict, run, explore, modify, and create programs of their own.

Meet Cody, Your AI Coding Assistant

You’ll also meet Cody, BT Code’s entertaining and colorful AI coding assistant. Cody helps learners evaluate code, get helpful hints, understand errors, ask Python questions, and get unstuck as they develop their skills.

See BT Code in Action

During the presentation, Stephen will demonstrate:

• BT Code’s Learning Workflow featuring Cody
• Build Mode: a Braille-first IDE
• Code Store: a place to share projects, discover what others have created, and connect with a growing community of blind coders.

Whether you’re a student, educator, parent, technology professional, or simply interested in the future of accessible programming, we invite you to join us and see what BT Code can do.

Come discover how BT Code is opening a pathway from learning Python to developing career-ready coding skills.

We hope to see you there!

Register here to attend

Get your carry case now at a 10% pre-order discount.‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­‌   ­

By popular demand, it is finally here: the Hable Carry Case! With this, you can safely take your Hable One or Hable Easy with you wherever you go.

The Hable Carry Case is a durable, lightweight case designed to give your device optimal protection. It features a tactile hard shell, a soft protective lining, and a smooth zipper for easy access. It keeps your Hable safe and easy to bring along on the move. At the bottom of this article, we have also included a visual description of the case.

The first batch is currently in production. We want to give you the first opportunity to pre-order the carry case with a 10% discount.

Here are all the details at a glance:

• Pre-order now and receive a 10% discount.
• Shipping: Mid-October for Europe, and end of November for the US and the rest of the world.
• Fits both the Hable One and Hable Easy. Please note: this case is designed strictly for safe storage and transport, and your device must be removed from the case to be operated.

Order and view the Hable Carry Case directly on our website here.

Prefer to order via email? Simply email [email protected] with your details, and we will place the order for you.

Visual description: A compact, hard-shell black protective case with rounded corners and a finely woven fabric exterior. On the front cover, there is a tactile, white oval Hable logo in the shape of a speech bubble. A black zipper along three sides opens the case clamshell-style. The interior features a soft, dark fabric contoured to hold the device flat and snug in place, keeping the Hable and its white buttons securely protected.

We are excited to announce that the Orbit Flow 40 will begin shipping on Monday, September 7, 2026!

The Orbit Flow 40 is a compact 40-cell braille display with cursor routing keys and instant USB-C plug and play. It connects smoothly with computers and mobile devices across Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, Chrome OS, and Linux, for natural, comfortable braille reading.

Orders are now open, and we encourage you to place yours early to ensure timely delivery from our initial batches.

Please note that initial production batches are limited and expected to sell out quickly. We recommend placing your order as soon as possible. Shipments will be fulfilled in the order they are received, with priority given to customers on the pre-order list.

You can place your order online here:

Or call us at 888-606-7248 to order by phone.

Thank you again for your continued support.

We are pleased to announce the release of firmware version B0.08.00.00r71 for the Orbit Slate 520 and firmware version B0.09.00.00r71 for the Orbit Slate 340.

Following are the new features and improvements.

1. Resolved an issue where incorrect text was displayed while entering search text in the BRF file.

Notes: If the current firmware version is B0.08.00.00r59 or an earlier version on the Orbit Slate 520, or B0.09.00.00r59 or an earlier version on the Orbit Slate 340, following points must be considered:

1. The device settings will be reset to their defaults after the upgrade.
2. If localization has been applied, you will also need to re-apply it after the upgrade using the package available on our website at Orbit Slate 520 Support : Orbit Research or Orbit Slate 340 Support : Orbit Research

The firmware package can be downloaded from our website’s Support menu.

The Orbit Slate 520 firmware package is available here –  Orbit Slate 520 Firmware Download : Orbit Research

The Orbit Slate 520 localization package is available here – Orbit Slate 520 Support : Orbit Research

The Orbit Slate 340 firmware package is available here –  Orbit Slate 340 Firmware Download : Orbit Research

The Orbit Slate 340 localization package is available here – Orbit Slate 340 Support : Orbit Research

For instructions on upgrading the Orbit Slate 520 or Orbit Slate 340, please refer to Section 24 of the User Guide available on the website at Orbit Slate 520 User Guide : Orbit Research or Orbit Slate 340 User Guide : Orbit Research

We are pleased to announce the availability of a new software update, version 2.3 for the Orbit Speak and Player devices.

This is our first unified software release, available for both products at the same time.

Important note: this update is only for users who are running version 2.1 already. If you did not upgrade your unit to at least version 2.1, we strongly encourage you to do this first. Please do not run this update on 1.x software versions.

We also recommend consulting the updated user guides, available on our website, to fully enjoy the new features and improvements available in this update.

Changes and improvements

This update focuses hard on performance, stability, reliability, and some new experiences. The following is a list of everything new in this update:

• Refactored file manager, media player, internet radio, redesigned voice recorder.
• New features in the media player:
  • Significantly improved stability and performance.
  • Ability to toggle the music library feature on/off, now off by default.
  • More reliable file and folder browsing.
  • The ability to allow playback in the background (for multi-tasking).
  • Improved file handling – such as skipping to previous/next tracks, shuffling, etc.
  • Improved library management – better handling of organization by artist/song/genre.
  • Improved Opus file support.
  • Improved file handling when opened from the file manager.
  • Improved search.
  • Added support for Bluetooth headset controls – play/pause, previous and next track.
• Changes in the file manager:
  • Improved stability and performance for common actions – selecting, copying, pasting, deleting.
  • Added an “open with” feature that allows you to select in which app you want to open a particular file – applies more to the Speak. For example: you can choose if you want to open a BRF file in the editor instead of the book reader.
  • Improved performance of zipping and unzipping files.
• New voice recorder application:
  • A completely new user interface, file-browser like experience, designed with professional audio experts from our field.
  • Allows to record to any folder on the device, not just the default. Just locate the folder you want to record in, press the record key while inside it, and you’re set.
  • Added features such as appending and inserting content to an existing recording.
  • Improved bookmark handling.
  • Fixed serious issues where sometimes recorded content caused corrupted files.
  • Improved voice recording playback – added previous/next recording commands, playback speed, improved speech.
  • Flexible settings allow you to choose your notification preferences while recording, as well as mute or unmute speech.
• Bard support for Orbit Speak including proper contracted-Braille entry across every Android app. Please use the app catalog under tools to download Bard.
• A completely new podcast application – the best available on any blindness player:
  • Inspired by Castro for iOS.
  • Allows organization by inbox (shows only unplayed episodes from your favorite podcasts all at once), playback queue, and much more.
  • Automatic podcast downloads with the ability to choose how many episodes to keep.
  • Improved podcast playback experience – more easier chapter navigation, greater speed control including quickly resetting to the normal speed, stop playback during screen reader speech.
  • Improved podcast search, as well as improved podcast subscription management.
  • The ability to skip some parts from start or end of an episode.
  • Extensive settings system allowing you to make the app look and feel exactly as you wish.
  • Improved displaying of podcasts descriptions and show notes.
• Stability fixes and other enhancements:
  • Fixed issues on Orbit Speak where the editor sometimes was not saving files.
  • Improved situations where some Orbit Speak and Player units would beep unexpectedly and not respond to any key presses.
  • Improved situations where contracted Braille entry was not working in system apps, outside the editor.
  • Fixed an issue causing the capital sign not to produce a fully capitalized word in uncontracted Braille.