Buying food without fear: Adrienne, who is visually impaired, identifies products with her OrCam MyEye 2.0

Adrienne Norbeck, 31 years old, had a life transformation when she discovered the OrCam MyEye 2.0. In the spring of 2015, Adrienne lost her eyesight due to diabetic retinopathy. With only light perception, she could no longer walk on her own, and because of her severe food allergies, she needed to have food labels read aloud to her so she would not make the wrong deadly choices. Since she has discovered the OrCam MyEye 2.0, she has been able to read labels and ingredients on products, she is planning to return to school to study nutrition and she can more easily enjoy her favorite pastime: baking.

Living in Woodhaven, New York, the biggest struggle she had from having visual impairment was losing her independence. She tried using many different phone apps such as KNFB reader and Tap Tap See. The KNFB reader was useful when reading documents, but it was difficult for her to use because the paper had to be lined up perfectly, which was quite tedious. After going through many of these apps without satisfying results, Adrienne and her husband found OrCam.

After having used the OrCam MyEye, Adrienne could not imagine life without it. The device has made everything in her life more convenient, and she no longer needs to use her phone anymore to understand what she is looking at. Now she is able to read the mail, recognize products in the supermarket, read bar codes and identify money.

The most important thing for her is reading the labels and ingredients on products; because of her food allergies, this is a real lifesaver. With her OrCam MyEye, she is able to read the labels and ingredients on any product. All she has to do is hold the product in front of her and the device reads to her.

Adrienne is now able to enjoy her favorite hobby of baking. She doesn’t have to question if the item in front of her is flour or sugar. She doesn’t need to stick her finger in it to see what is in her hand. Now she is even able to read print books again.

Although she is not working now, Adrienne has aspirations to go back to school and study nutrition. Because of her experience with food and her allergies, she wants to further study food science. With her OrCam MyEye 2.0, this is a real possibility for her. Once she is in school, she will be excited to use the device for her printed handouts!

Adrienne’s life has changed dramatically with her OrCam MyEye 2.0. Now she is more independent in the kitchen, she can read the mail by herself and she no longer needs to depend on someone. Adrienne can now also have privacy when reading her bills and no one can put a price on that!