Kindle review: The Kindle as an assistive device

This isn't just your typical Kindle review because I'm a user with quadriplegia. That means I have upper extremity paralysis, which makes turning the pages on a book impossible without using a headpointer or assistive device. So my friends got together and decided that I should have a Kindle - not for the cool factor, but to see if I could read with one.

And I can. But before you run out to get one, let me describe how I use it. If you have a disability and have questions, I'll be happy to try to guide you as to whether it might work for you or not. Because, although it has great potential, the Kindle would need some tweaking before it could be sold as an assistive device and I'll explain why.

First of all, the Kindle is an ebook reader. That means its main purpose is to read books that are downloaded onto it in digital form. You download books from the amazon store or find ebooks online, some of which are available for free. (To give you an idea I have 12 books on mine and only paid for 2 - the others are on there legally and were available free in a compatible format - "prc" or "mobi-DRM free"). The books go into a Content Manager which you work by scrolling up and down your list of books via a small plastic wheel on the device, then press down on that wheel to select. If you can use a thumb you're good to go. If not, like me, you can try to use a mouthstick or other device to do this. This feature is way more difficult and frustrating than the controls that turn the pages. Turning the pages is easy - and I can even use the side of my arm- since the controls for that are very large and go down both sides of the Kindle. It's also a light touch, causing no pain in its use for me. This is a major breakthrough in technology since the Kindle is the first device, other than a computer, I've been able to use to read print on in over a decade. This is exciting because the Kindle uses E-ink which is easier on the eyes than a computer screen.

As for downloading, you can do it one of two ways. There is a USB cord that allows you to drag and drop books from your computer to the Kindle, which appears as a hard drive. Or you can use the free EVDO connection to download books wirelessly, although your connectivity may vary depending on your location. I've found the connectivity to be better when connected to the Amazon Kindle book store than the web, never once losing a connection in the Kindle store but losing a connection on the web one in four times so far, although I've only had the Kindle for five days now.

The Kindle has many features that I do not use because they are too difficult and frustrating for me. It has a search function, for example, that will let you search your Kindle content, the web and any reference book you've loaded (or a preloaded dictionary). To input characters, it has a keyboard , but it's necessarily small and a bit difficult to use with a mouthstick, depending on your level of disability. If this presents a concern to you, I don't recommend that you plan to get a Kindle to play with the other features (besides reading) . Of course if you intend to use the Kindle mostly as an ebook reader, which I do, then it's not an issue. And , for some of us who can't turn pages, buying it will still be a wise choice.

For the visually impaired, Kindle does allow you to adjust the text size and it can go to a very large size. That feature works well. It does have the ability to read books, but only in Audible format and mp3's. But it does not read text. (This is an extremely unfortunate thing since if it did have the ability to read text I could see its sales skyrocketing as not only an assistive device but a plus for seniors who would like to switch from reading text to listening to audio.) I downloaded an Audible book onto my device and it took up a great deal of the memory, however you can use a SD card with the Kindle. The controls are not only disappointingly limited for playback, including no ability to adjust speed or pitch, but are not usable unless you can see them. There is no built in auditory feedback. Although it's a nice feature to be able to put an Audible book on there, it's not something I would use the device for at this point because other devices do a much better job. (Even an iPod now has two speed settings for audio. Although that's not great, it's better than offering one playback setting which the Kindle only has. )

The Kindle also has experimental features, which have a cool and fun factor to them. There is a basic web reader. This is a frustrating experience on the whole for me since I use assistive devices to input (no voice recognition) and I lose connectivity on the web frequently. However, I have read the news on the Kindle via its web (which is free) and can adjust the text size. There is also Kindle NowNow which I tried last night. Basically you ask a question and you can get up to three answers in ten minutes from live researchers. But I'd hate to be hanging while waiting. I sent the simple question "Who has hosted Saturday Night Live the most?" at approximately 11:30 pm. EST last night and did not have an answer by 1:00 a.m. (I turned the connectivity off on the Kindle at that time when I went to bed. I was having connection problems last night so not sure how that played into all of this.) At 5:30 a.m. EST this morning I received one answer: Steve Martin (along with information from Wikipedia). So I can't tell you how the Kindle alerts you when a NowNow message comes in. The third experimental feature is playing mp3's, but those would be a memory hog so I've skipped that. I can see why some people would like to listen to music while reading however and you could put your tunes on an SD card.

One other aspect I'd like to mention are work applications for those with disabilities. You can email documents in various formats for Amazon to convert to read on your Kindle, although pdf documents don't work on it. I've used it for word documents from my job. If I could scan my work/job documents and load them onto the Kindle I would be so very happy, but the cost of paying someone to do that is too high and I can't physically do the scanning myself. But if you could, it's a feature that might be important to you. I also read books related to my profession that I would otherwise have been too tired to read since I use a headpointer all day. Although you can take notes on what you read, using the keyboard with an assistive device to do that would not be possible for me with my disability.

As for the cost factor, all I can say is that an electronic page turning device that would work for me runs in the neighborhood of four to five thousand dollars, so buying a Kindle and even some books is a no-brainer choice even if I just use the Kindle as an ebook reader.

So is the Kindle an assistive device? Well - yes and no. It has solved my problem for not being able to turn the pages, along with the ability to increase the text size which I also need which makes it an assistive device for me. But for many others, the Kindle clearly has the potential to, but would not be, an assistive device. If you added some of the features I've talked about in this review, the Kindle could be an all around solution for many people with disabilities and seniors. I'd like to see that happen because it's basic design makes it easy to use. And because I know many people who would benefit from owning one. Perhaps, now that I can read so easily, I feel the need to speak up for those who still cannot. Let's hope Amazon is listening.


[I have received no compensation from Amazon for this review.]