OrCam MyEye helps me read independently

My name is Lynnette Tatum-Rios and I am 55 years old, living in Manhattan. I was born with congenital cataracts in both eyes, but my right eye was able to be spared and slightly corrected with glasses.  The biggest struggle I faced because of my vision loss is reading print and signs on establishments.

I have worked with lots of technology before the OrCam MyEye 2.0.  I have Kurzweil 1000 installed on my computer. As you might know, it is a scanning application with speech output. I also use my iPhone with various apps such as the KNFB Reader, Seeing AI, the Be My Eyes app and the Aira service. I myself use all of them at various times. Kurzweil works well but it requires me to be at my computer. Be My Eyes is terrific, but I don’t use it for lengthy reading projects. Aira is excellent but I need to be conscientious regarding my usage.

I heard about OrCam through Dr. Bryan Wolynski when he came to our offices at The Computer Center for Visually-Impaired People at Baruch College. At that time, it was a device that you clipped to your belt or put in your pocket. It read well and was even able to read the sign outside our office door. As a gadget gal, I was thrilled to hear of any device that would allow blind people to read in an independent manner.

After trying the OrCam MyEye 2.0, I really liked it and could see the potential for reading items and documents privately. So far, I have been using my device for reading mail, magazines, and joke books. I can also use it to learn new applications on my phone and computer, which is my hobby.

I’m an instructor for those with vision impairment and blindness. I teach Microsoft products, such as Word and PowerPoint, screen-reading skills, Internet navigation and the use of the iPhone.  With my OrCam MyEye 2.0, I can see using it to read a screen when the screen reader is unable to do so.

Before the OrCam MyEye 2.0, I was very independent, but it will be another tool added to my toolbox in my continuing quest to remain independent. I’m very grateful to have the device and to be able to demonstrate its usage to the wider community of blind/vision impaired individuals.