From commercialization to discontinuance Optacon

fig. 3 optacon ii

the design decision reduce number of image pixels 144 100 lower cost resulted in optacon ii not being successful.

in 1990s telesensory increasingly shifted emphasis toward low-vision market , became less devoted optacon. page scanners optical character recognition had come tool of choice blind people wanting access print. page scanners less expensive , had shallower learning curve optacon. in addition, blind people read through material more page scanner optacon.

in 1996 telesensory announced no longer manufacture optacon , cease service device in 2000. many users purchased used machines , cannibalized them parts, presumably sighted, electromechanically-talented friends. in march 2005, tsi shut down. employees walked out of building , lost accrued vacation time, medical insurance, , benefits. customers not buy new machines or existing machines fixed. work done other companies develop updated version of optacon reduce cost of device , take advantage of newer technology, no device versatility of optacon had been developed of 2007.

many blind people continue use optacons day. optacon offers capabilities no other device offers including ability see printed page or computer screen appears including drawings, typefaces, , specialized text layouts.