Nolan Darilek, developer of the Android screen reader Spiel, has released a release candidate version of Spiel to the Android Market.
Spiel is an alternative screen reader to TalkBack, which along with KickBack and SoundBack form the three core accessibility services that provide spoken, auditory and haptic (vibration) feedback respectively. Android allows users to switch easily between Spiel and TalkBack.
Spiel has been in beta testing for a number of months, and previously was not available through the Android Market. According to Darilek, Android owners who want to download and use the latest version of Spiel must follow a set of instructions:
- Install TalkBack and then enable it
- Uninstall the snapshot
- Install Spiel from the Android Market
- Re-enable Spiel and disable TalkBack
Unfortunately, neither the latest version of Spiel or TalkBack works well with touchscreen Android devices, which severely limits the Android device options for people who are blind or vision impaired. Spiel does work with keyboard-based devices.
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