Hi all, Very good points. Alice, in answer to your question I can tell you that Baum is indeed still manufacturing the Pronto products. They recently launched version 3 of the Pronto! 18, and they also have the Pronto QS, which has a standard QWERTY (or QWERTZ) keyboard, and the Pronto 40, which is quite large and has a 40 cell Braille display and interchangeable Braille and QWERTTY keyboards.
I couldn't find much up-to-date information in English about the new Pronto 18 V3, but I gleaned from the German part of their website that it has the following features: Faster processor (it didn't specify what kind); USB host port, as well as the client port as before; Serial port; SD card slot which supports SDHC cards - I got the impression that the CF slot has disappeared; Built-in WIFI 802.11g with WPA support; Built-in Bluetooth; 128 MB RAM, 64 MB Flash and 128 MB flash disk, presumably for storage. It doesn't say anything about the underlying CE version. As to the software, I think it's like the BrailleNote in that it comes with its own suite of applications and you can't run off-the-shelf programs. It has things like a word processor (don't know what file types it handles), web browser, e-mail, DAISY player, MSN Messenger, address book, calendar etc. It doesn't mention GPS. The weight is still 450G, like the PK, as opposed to the APEX's weight of 812G. I agree that there is definitely still a market for a device like the PK. I've been saving up and thinking about purchasing one for some time, but was put off by the prospect of it becoming obsolete. I wonder if Humanware is planning a replacement PK based on the new Pronto hardware platform? Could that perhaps be one of the exciting developments in 2010 mentioned by Matthew Janusauskas in the excellent ACB radio programme on the APEX? Or have I just drunk too much coffee? In any case, it would be good to know whether Humanware intends to go on selling the PK, and if so, whether its acknowledged obsolescence will be reflected in the price. I commend Humanware on producing the APEX, which appears to be a fantastic product, and I hope to be able to trade in my mPower in the future. Of course I fully understand the constraints of commercial secrecy, but any information about the state of the PK would be much appreciated. Sorry for the long post! Best, Nicky ----- Original Message ----- From: "alice dampman Humel" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, November 15, 2009 4:47 PM Subject: Re: [Braillenote] customer viability in the face ofplannedobsolescence > Hi, Earlene and Cheree, > I,, too, agree quite strongly with Cheree's well-considered post. > I also love my PK, and for some of us, the PK is the perfect device, or > as perfect as we can get. I know it does not have all the bells and whistles > of more powerful devices, and that it is limited in what it can do, but for > what I use it for, it's fine. > Perhaps Humanware will recognize that the blind market is no more > homogeneous than any other, and that different solutions work for different > people. As others have said, the size and weight of the PK is for me one of > its major advantages. > I wonder if Baum is continuing to manufacture and support the Pronto and > what, if anything, we could do with that machine and whatever software Baum > puts on it? > I imagine, for example, that if one ran the Baum machine as is, things > like Sendero gps would not work on it... > Alice > > [email protected] > > > > ___ > Replies to this message will go directly to the sender. > If your reply would be useful to the list, please send a > copy to the list as well. > > To leave the BrailleNote list, send a blank message to > [email protected] > To view the list archives or change your preferences, visit > http://list.humanware.com/mailman/listinfo/braillenote > > > ___ Replies to this message will go directly to the sender. If your reply would be useful to the list, please send a copy to the list as well. To leave the BrailleNote list, send a blank message to [email protected] To view the list archives or change your preferences, visit http://list.humanware.com/mailman/listinfo/braillenote
