News: Vodacom expands speaking phone range

Vodacom has announced the availability of two new speaking phones, the Nokia N97 Mini and Nokia C5 smartphones, providing more choice to visually impaired users. These smartphones have been upgraded with the Talks software that enables text-to-speech functionality to make mobile communication more accessible to visually impaired users.

Since the launch of the speaking phones six years ago, Vodacom remains a market leader with a variety of speaking phones that translate text-to-speech to make communication much easier for blind users. These include the Nokia E52 and N86 handsets (for the review of the N86 visually impaired edition, click here).

The Nokia N97 Mini sports Ovi Maps and comes with integrated A-GPS and compass along with voice navigation. The Nokia C5 also has many features such Bluetooth, internet & e-mail, camera, radio & GPS that make richer mobile communication accessible to the visually impaired user.

“Vodacom’s key driver is to spread benefits of connectivity to all groups especially to those with specific needs. With the almost limitless array of applications, smartphones can benefit users who are visually impaired.” says Romeo Kumalo, executive commercial director at Vodacom South Africa. “It gives us great joy to be able to provide people with specific needs accessibility to mobile communications. People who are visually impaired are empowered to communicate independently using the latest mobile technology,” he said.

Tebogo, a blind Vodacom customer who provides HIV/Aids counselling services in Soweto, recently started using a speaking phone and she described the way this has improved her life as follows: “It has changed my life completely. For the first time ever I am now able to independently communicate with my customers by making appointments and building my network. I can even do cellphone banking all by myself without any assistance.”

The handsets are now available nationwide from Vodashops, Vodacom4U stores and Vodacom Direct.

For more information, customers can call the Vodacom Specific Needs Contact Centre on 12580 (free from a Vodacom cellphone), or 082 12580 from any other phone; send an SMS to 12580 (free SMS); send an email to 12580@vodacom.co.za or visit www.vodacom.co.za.

Vodacom expands speaking phone range

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