S1: Hello everyone. Welcome to Talking Tech. This edition available from
S1: August 13th, 2024. I'm Stephen Jolly, great to have you
S1: with us listening maybe through Vision Australia radio associated stations
S1: of the Radio Reading Network, formerly Rph Australia, the Community
S1: Radio Network. And there is also the podcast. Don't forget
S1: that all you need to do is search for the
S1: two words talking tech and Dan. It can all come
S1: usually on a Tuesday afternoon just after it's been produced.
S1: Another option is to ask your Siri device or smart
S1: speaker to play. Vision Australia radio talking tech podcast. Vision
S1: Australia radio talking tech podcast with me, someone who can
S1: explain all this tech stuff really well. Vision Australia's national
S1: advisor on access technology David Woodbridge. David, this week more
S1: for our low vision cohort with some further discussion on
S1: the big purple phone. And you spoke recently with someone
S1: from the family company that has developed and sells this phone.
S2: I certainly did, and I caught up with her over
S2: the weekend, so I hope folks really enjoy that. The
S2: interview that I had.
S1: So this is with Libby Henderson, who's the commercial sales
S1: director with Big purple phones, speaking recently with David Woodbridge.
S2: Hi, Libby, and welcome to the program.
S3: Thank you David, it's great to be here.
S2: So let's just get the the name out of the
S2: way first. So and describe briefly what it is. So
S2: what is the big purple phone.
S3: Yeah the big purple phone. It's a phone that we
S3: designed uh, for, for a scenario we had in my family.
S3: So my mother, during Covid had a stroke and couldn't
S3: remember how to use her phone. Uh, and she was
S3: isolated from us. We had such a terrible journey with
S3: her trying to get hold of her, and, uh, we
S3: went looking for a phone for her that would suit
S3: her and couldn't find anything, really. That was simple enough
S3: for her that she could learn quickly and use without
S3: us there to help her, and so that sent us
S3: on this journey. When I say us, myself and my
S3: husband James on this journey to create a phone and
S3: as it turns out, my background is digital design with
S3: a little bit of accessibility from my time with the
S3: Commonwealth Bank. And my husband James was with Telstra for
S3: 25 years. So between us, we had this amazing complementary
S3: skill set that we pulled together and and and designed
S3: the big purple phone. So it's a larger phone. It's
S3: it's a taller phone. So it's about as wide as it,
S3: as kind of a regular phone. Um, mobile phone. But
S3: it's but the screen real estate we get from the
S3: extra height is where we sort of get that bigger,
S3: bigger screen real estate from. It's sort of a 20
S3: by nine proportion. So it's quite tall as a phone. Um,
S3: but you can still sort of hold it comfortably in
S3: your hand because the width is kind of good. So
S3: it's bigger, it's purple. Um, it has high contrast, bigger,
S3: brighter and better and, um, and easier to use.
S2: How many icons would be on the main what we
S2: tend to in techie land called the home screen. How
S2: many icons would you be talking about on the screen?
S3: So as standard there's about ten. You can add more in,
S3: you can add more buttons in, but generally they're just
S3: the standard buttons. They're sort of phone text message camera,
S3: photo gallery. There's a brightness button, torch, weather, video calling radio.
S3: So yeah, that's kind of the the standard buttons.
S2: Okay. Now how big would the icons be? Because I
S2: know sometimes when people say, oh it's big mate. People go, yeah,
S2: it's really not that big. The icons are not really
S2: that big. Are these sort of big, big icons.
S3: Yeah, yeah. So there's two settings so you can set
S3: it to be I'm actually just pulling a ruler out
S3: and measuring it for you because I know in pixels.
S3: But that's no good to you. No it's it's about
S3: four centimetres. You can set it to even larger so
S3: you can take it six six centimetres.
S2: Oh goodness. But you could you still fit all the
S2: icons on the screen.
S3: Yeah. So when it's at the smaller size, you get
S3: sort of 2 to 3 icons on the screen as
S3: you're scrolling down. And it's a little bit like a
S3: poker machine, the way you sort of navigate it. You
S3: sort of. It sort of scrolls around, if you like. Um,
S3: when you've got it set to that six centimetre size,
S3: then you get one big one and half, half of
S3: the next one.
S2: Okay. But you can easily scroll around. So when you
S2: say scrolling around and you're dragging your finger, are you
S2: doing other weird gestures or what.
S3: Are you doing? So you're starting with your finger at
S3: the bottom of the screen and you're swiping up and
S3: that kind of, you know, makes it roll around, if
S3: you know what I mean. Swiping like that. The buttons.
S3: There are also buttons at the top and at the
S3: bottom of the phone was initially designed for people who
S3: are older. So it has sort of, um, uh, ability
S3: to tap up and down. You don't have to scroll.
S3: You can type swiping is hard for some people. Mm mm.
S2: And I believe it also comes with stylus.
S3: It does. That makes it a lot easier I think
S3: as you get older your skin gets drier. And that
S3: touch sensitivity goes um, in many cases. So yes, you
S3: can use the stylus in that case.
S2: Okay. And what does the phone feel like in your hand.
S2: I mean, I know it's based on Nokia, but does
S2: it feel like a sort of a good solid phone
S2: when you're holding your hand, it's not too slippery or
S2: it's not too big to hold in your hand and
S2: that sort of stuff.
S3: Yeah, that's a good question. It's it comes with a
S3: bumper case. So it, it has like a, a clear
S3: jelly bumper case that comes, we put it on. Um,
S3: you can take that off and then it's got more
S3: of a grip. Um, so that kind of it's sort of,
S3: it's a matte kind of feeling to the, to the case.
S3: It's 190g, so that's not too heavy considering it's a
S3: bigger phone. It's not all that heavy. It's sort of
S3: on the heavier side, but it's certainly not as heavy
S3: as an iPhone plus.
S2: And for people that use, uh, Bluetooth, uh, hearing aids,
S2: will it connect with Bluetooth hearing aids?
S3: Yeah it will. The only thing is that if your
S3: hearing aid needs an app to set the settings up,
S3: then you then it doesn't have the app so you
S3: can connect it, but it's going to be literally just
S3: a Bluetooth connection.
S2: Let's say you wanted to add more icons. So you
S2: mentioned you could actually remove or add the different icons
S2: on the screen depending on how many you really want
S2: or use. Can a support person or a family member
S2: do that And is there any other ways of actually
S2: doing it remotely? So rather than the poor person going,
S2: what are you doing to my phone? Give it back
S2: to me. Um, you can also do it remotely. So
S2: I'm assuming there's a couple of ways you can set
S2: up the phone without disturbing the user too much.
S3: That's right. Yeah. So when you first get the phone,
S3: there's a, um, sort of a registration sequence. So you
S3: tell the phone, are you going to have a carer
S3: or are you going to do this yourself? So that's
S3: the first thing. If you set it up so that
S3: you have a carer, um, that carer gets sent a
S3: text message with a um, with a link and then
S3: they can sign in and they can access via a
S3: web browser the settings for the phone. So you might
S3: decide that you want to be the person that manages
S3: the phone for yourself, in which case we send you
S3: a text message and you can log on. You can
S3: log on via the phone, or you might choose what
S3: you want to log on via a, um, a web browser.
S3: So whichever you prefer. Um, it's great because it's, it's
S3: separate from the phone. So you don't have lots of
S3: we talk about the phone being no fandangle meaning there
S3: are not lots, not a lot of little settings that
S3: you can get lost in and rabbit holes to go down.
S3: Um and so you can go into a web browser
S3: and you can make those buttons larger, you can move
S3: them from the four centimeter to the six centimeter, as
S3: we discussed before, you can set it so that it
S3: answers to speakerphone. You can disable buttons, you can add
S3: more apps. Um, so yeah, there's a lot that you
S3: can do to sort of customize the phone. Um, there's
S3: also an SOS button on the phone, which is great
S3: for some people, but for others it's they just don't
S3: need it. So you can disable it.
S2: If you got the phone and you couldn't use the
S2: remote system, can you? Can a family or support person
S2: still get to the settings of the phone by some,
S2: you know, weird and wonderful gesture?
S3: Yeah, yeah, it's actually a button. It's a big button. Yeah,
S3: it's super easy. So if you decide that you want
S3: to just have the phone manage, you manage the phone
S3: on the phone itself and you give it to give
S3: it to someone to fix or set up for you,
S3: or you want to do it yourself. Then when you
S3: go through that registration at the beginning it says, do
S3: you have a carer or are you going to use
S3: this yourself? And you say, I'm going to use this myself.
S3: And then when you get to the home screen, there's
S3: a there's a purple manage button down the bottom of that,
S3: of that menu that I talked about before. And you
S3: tap on that and then that will take you through
S3: to the settings.
S2: Okay. And is that where you say to your grandmother
S2: or your granddad, for goodness sake, do not need to
S2: worry about that button on the screen? That's my button.
S3: So we can disable that button. So if you've got
S3: a carer, um, that button, you can, you can enable
S3: it or disable it. So you can basically make it super, super,
S3: super simple. We have some people that just have the
S3: phone and the message messages button, and that's all they
S3: have on it.
S2: Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Because that's all you want. And it's,
S2: it's back to the, the weird, the weird days of, hey,
S2: people might just want to talk on the phone and
S2: text each other. Yeah, right. And, and exactly. So with
S2: talking about texting each other, um, do you put contacts
S2: in sort of just in text or is it sort
S2: of picture based? So you, you, you tap on uncle
S2: Tom and you can dial uncle Tom by just the picture.
S3: Yeah, it's the picture. So in, in every circumstance. So
S3: the usability is this you, you've got the home screen
S3: and you've got your phone button. And then you scroll
S3: down and there's your messages button. You tap on the
S3: messages button, and that takes you through to all the
S3: faces of the people who are contacts on the phone.
S3: You tap on the face of the phone, and then
S3: you have the choice to speak a message or type
S3: a message, and then you do either.
S2: All right. Now, if people are interested in getting more
S2: on the phone because I know we really haven't talked
S2: about the SOS button. I mean, you mentioned it briefly,
S2: the volume button, but the power button, but they're pretty
S2: standard buttons. So but if people wanted more information about,
S2: you know, hearing aids and other stuff that they can
S2: use if the phone itself, what's the best contact details
S2: that people can use?
S3: So the phones are available through Vision Australia stores, and
S3: we have staff from the Vision Australia stores. There's also
S3: FAQs on the Big Purple phone website, and you've got
S3: a phone number as well that we can support. The
S3: phone actually has a help button which goes through to
S3: our call centre as well, so we can help that way. Okay.
S2: And is that a video call one or is it a.
S3: It's a phone call. We can actually initiate a call
S3: a video call. But nobody wants to do that.
S2: If Well, I don't.
S3: Know. No, no, we just want to talk on the phone. No.
S2: All right. Excellent. All right, well, look, thank you for
S2: coming on, um, talking tech. And it'll be interesting to
S2: see how the phones taken up by the low vision community.
S3: Yeah. Thank you. It's my pleasure, David. And thank you for, um,
S3: for your time today.
S2: That's okay. My pleasure.
S1: David Woodbridge speaking there with Libby Henderson from big purple phones. David,
S1: speaking of smart phones, you've got some news about the
S1: Smart Vision three from Capsis. I do.
S2: And unfortunately, it's a bit of bad news. So as
S2: we all know, technology changes extremely rapidly. And I just
S2: got an email yesterday. So be Monday as we go
S2: to air on today Tuesday. And Vision Australia has confirmed
S2: with Telstra when they switch off the 3G network at
S2: the end of August. And the same with Optus, but
S2: we have not got confirmation from Optus officially and that
S2: is the fact that the smart vision three from Kapsis
S2: will not be compatible with the 4G network. The phone
S2: itself physically does not support the frequency, and if you
S2: want to know what it is, it's 700MHz, but it
S2: simply won't work. It won't work for 000 calls. It
S2: won't work for roaming and everything else. Now, Telstra said
S2: people should have already got a message about the 3G
S2: network closing down. So if you do use those phones
S2: and you're looking for another phone, then I would suggest
S2: you contact Telstra, Optus or indeed if you want an
S2: accessible phone, contact Vision Australia Vision Store and we can
S2: certainly have a talk to you. But at the end
S2: of August, the Smart Vision three will not work.
S1: Um, all other smart phones seem to be going okay though,
S1: and we've talked about this in recent times.
S2: Things like the blown Shield classic two, and there's a
S2: few other bits and bobs going on. But yes, yes,
S2: it's unfortunately it's the way that technology sometimes improves and
S2: it leaves the old tech behind.
S1: We're about two thirds of the way through the beta
S1: cycle for the new iOS iOS 18. How's it going?
S1: Because I know you'd be close to it.
S2: Yeah, it's a bit rough. So the last beta that
S2: I had, which was last week, iOS 18, unless I
S2: was running some type of media. So things like radio, music,
S2: audiobook and so on, voiceover would not work at all.
S2: So I had to sort of put up with the
S2: media in the background and listen to voiceover. So that's
S2: now been fixed in the current beta cycle. However, with
S2: the current beta cycle, AirPods and AirPods Pro and AirPods
S2: Max work perfectly well. However, if I then try and
S2: use my general Bluetooth headsets, the driver doesn't seem to
S2: kick in very well with the Bluetooth driver, so it
S2: can take sometimes up to about 30s for the Bluetooth
S2: to kick in. So I'm sort of a bit worried
S2: because this is getting really, really close to the launch
S2: date of the iPhone 16 itself, Self. So I have
S2: a funny feeling there's probably going to be a few
S2: little rust updates either now or after the actual official
S2: launch of the iPhone 16, with iOS 18.
S1: Features that you're starting to play with. We should be
S1: looking forward to.
S2: Look, the main one that I'm really, really looking forward
S2: to is the new Braille screen input, and I think
S2: we mentioned it quite a while ago when we talked
S2: about WWDC Worldwide Developers conference. And that's where you can actually,
S2: rather than just brailling on the touch screen, it turns
S2: your touch screen into a full Braille input keyboard. So
S2: all the commands you can imagine you can do on
S2: your brilliant and other devices that have got an input
S2: Braille keyboard, then you can do them on the iPhone.
S2: And that's the most outstanding feature for me is just
S2: having that increased functionality. And there's a few other things
S2: going on. But as we also know about iOS 18, mean,
S2: we're really not going to get all the Apple Intelligence
S2: features until iOS 18.1. And that sort of talked about
S2: maybe early next year.
S1: More in the coming weeks. Before we go, a reminder
S1: of where there are details of what we've been talking
S1: about in this and previous editions of the program.
S2: Indeed. So as the way you can check out my
S2: blog site, which is David, would it be dot Podbean Podbean.
S1: Com David would be our dot podbean podbean.com to write
S1: to the program.
S2: You can write to me at Vision Australia which is
S2: David Dot Woodbridge, Heartsounds at Vision australia.org.
S1: David Dot Woodbridge at Vision australia.org. This has been talking
S1: tech with me has been Vision Australia's national advisor on
S1: access technology David Woodbridge. Our guest was Libby Henderson from
S1: big purple phones I'm Stephen Jolly. Stay safe. We'll talk
S1: more tech next week. See you.