STONE DEAF PILOTS – the deaf technology blog. A blog by Kathryn Hill about deaf technology, assistive technology, and tech-related accessibility issues faced by the deaf and hard of hearing.

With the advent of QWERTY keyboards, relay services, and Instant Messenger on PDA‘s and cell phones, deaf people have been entering the cell phone market in larger numbers than before. The Danger Hiptop/TMobile Sidekick seems to be the best portable communications device for the deaf in the US market right now.

I got my first cell phone in 1995, a Motorola flip phone that I can’t remember the model number of. I had a Compact-C Portable TTY that was pretty ingenious at the time, as it was the slimmest and lightest model around and fit right in my backpack. I could use the cell phone and TTY to call a Relay operator, but my phone calls were often short, as the batteries on both devices did not last for very long, and I couldn’t always find an electrical outlet to plug the TTY into. If I didn’t have a cell signal, I would have to find a pay phone, which offered a new set of problems; pay phones don’t often have wall outlets nearby, and pay phones don’t offer a little shelf to put the TTY on while you type away. So I’d end up doing this complex balancing act where I’d position the TTY on one knee, type awkwardly with one hand, and use the other hand to hold the phone on the headset couplers as it had a tendency to slip off. What a racket!

Another issue was that cell phones did not fit the length of the TTY, so I had to move the phone back and forth along the headset couplers in tune with sending or receiving a message. Those were the days.

Then there was the problem of how to receive a call. Earlier cell phones didn’t have a vibrate mode, so if you were deaf, you would often miss a call. They didn’t have text messaging either, and when texting was finally available on American cell phones, it was initially too expensive and most people didn’t understand how to use it. Thankfully, we’ve come a long way since then.

The Sidekick fits right in the palm of my hand, and I’ve used it unplugged for 24 hours before the battery ran out. On the Sidekick, the deaf-friendly communications programs are Email, SMS/text messages, Yahoo Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger, and downloadable Relay clients. The Sidekick gives me greater freedom and connectivity than any communications device that I have used in the past; I switched over to the Sidekick after using a RIM950 Blackberry.

The email, SMS, and AOL Instant Messenger features are used the most on my device as they enable quick and portable communication from almost anywhere. AOL Instant Messenger and Yahoo Messenger recently partnered with My IP Relay, which enables deaf users to make Relay telephone calls through these instant messenger programs, either on a regular computer, or on the Sidekick (which supports both programs.) Deaf subscribers to IP Relay can also receive calls from hearing callers via IP Relay; if the appropriate instant messenger program is open, a new chat window will pop up, and the device will vibrate, thus alerting the deaf user of an incoming call. If the IM programs are not open, the hearing caller can leave a voice message which the Relay operator transcribes into text and emails to the deaf recipient.

The Sidekick has flashing lights that signal an incoming message from any commumications application, and there is also a vibrate setting. With the Sidekick, deaf people have a portable communications device that evens the playing field for them; they can make and receive calls, send and receive information, and be alerted when that information comes in.

I’m a photographer, and my time is divided between traveling to a client, shooting, and editing pictures on my computer at my office. Since the Sidekick allows me to receive email from three POP accounts, I always get my email, which is usually the preferred mode of communication with me that most people choose. While taking a break on a shoot, I can stay on top of my business by answering my email and returning phone calls on my Sidekick. When I’m in my office, I keep the Sidekick on my desk, and the vibrations alert me to incoming SMS messages. During one photo shoot, the client sent me out to scout some locations, and I was able to IM with them directly from the locations and let them know what I thought and receive their feedback on the spot. One time, I was sitting at the United gate at San Francisco International Airport waiting for a flight when the Sidekick vibrated; it was an incoming call via IP Relay from a client calling to ask if I could make some edits to the digital photographs that they sent me. I took the call, and then emailed the entire IM conversation to myself so I could have a record of the conversation and refer to the client’s checklist of needs later. The Sidekick allows people to get a hold of me immediately, and I can respond right away; no more searching for a place to plug in a TTY, or searching for a pay phone TTY, or asking a hearing person if they can make a phone call for me.

Danger, if you are reading this, please consider making the next generation Hiptop TTY-compatible so that deaf people can call 911 in an emergency. 911 call centers have TTY machines for this purpose. Relay services will not make 911 calls; if you are deaf, you can only call 911 through a TTY. If I had an emergency, I would have to use Relay or IM to contact a hearing person and have them call 911 for me. Sometimes in an emergency, you can’t afford to waste the extra minutes that it takes to connect with someone on IM or Relay, and a direct connection to the 911 call center would be greatly beneficial.