Cell phone can read documents for blind

The next generation of computerized aids for the blind and visually impaired will be mobile, according to Associated Press, describing a smart phone that snaps a picture of a $10 bill and a few seconds later, the phone says, "Twenty dollars."

"The Nokia cell phone is loaded with software that turns text on photographed documents into speech .It also allows users to read anything that is photographed, whether it's a restaurant menu, a phone book or a fax.
While the technology is not new, the NFB and the software's developer say the cell phone is the first to incorporate the text-to-speech ability.

The inventor plans to begin marketing the cell phone in February through K-NFB Reading Technology. The software will cost $1,595 and the cell phone is expected to cost about $500, Kurzweil said.