Taking visually impaired users into consideration, Samsung Design China  won a global award at the 2006 Industrial Design Excellence Awards (IDEA) for its "Touch Messenger" system, which allows users to send and check text messages via an ingenious two piece braille keypad cellphone. Samsung intends to commercialize the product soon. Samsung's official press release states: "The “Touch Messenger” is a product designed by Samsung Design China based in Shanghai , China , a country with about 9 million visually impaired people. The product is assessed as a successful result of Samsung's global design strategy, That is, products suited for local needs and characteristics should be designed and planned by obtaining inspiration from local markets in countries around the world.

Samsung's mobile phone for the visually impaired, “Touch Messenger,” is regarded as a demonstration of the company's future design direction, “human-oriented high-tech products.”

Further discussion on this project and a little history of the braille alphabet can be found at Coolest Gadgets and a full gallery of IDEA 2006 winners at Businessweek. I wonder though as several have said - how useful exactly would such a product be given rise of voice to text systems? Perhaps the two can co-exist. What do you think?

Via: Digg  

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