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New 'Money Reader' iPhone App Helps Blind People Identify Cash

by Amar Toor on March 10, 2011 at 09:15 AM

looktelMany countries print their currencies in different sizes or shapes in order to help the blind and visually impaired pay for things with greater confidence. In the U.S., however, a $1 bill and a $100 bill have exactly the same dimensions, making it difficult for America's blind to tell the difference. Fortunately, though, there's a new iPhone app that can help.

With the LookTel Money Reader, blind iPhone users can simply point the device's camera at any bill, and wait for the app to recognize it. Once it does, the Money Reader will speak the value of the bill out loud. The $2 app can also identify currency in "real time," meaning that users can wave the camera in the general direction of the money, and the Money Reader will recognize each bill as it enters the frame. According to LookTel, the tool can read all $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100 bills, and doesn't even need an Internet connection to function.

For now, the app is only available for iOS, but LookTel says the Money Reader will make its way to other platforms in the near future.

Tags: apps, blind, camera, cash, currency, iphone, looktel, money, money reader, MoneyReader, smartphone, top

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