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Assistive Technology: Hearing/Auditory

Guide for assistive technology in the libraries, software available to students, and free or low cost tools

Hearing Support

Assistive Technology can be used in or out of school to help you complete tasks more quickly, easily, or independently. The tools recommended on this page are available for free or at a low cost and support hearing.

Ava

Ava is a mobile application that helps people who are deaf or hard of hearing to communicate more easily with others. The app uses advanced speech recognition technology to transcribe spoken words into text, which is then displayed on the user's smartphone screen in real-time. This allows the user to follow conversations more easily, even in noisy environments or when the speaker is at a distance.


Cost: Free or $9.95 per month for Premium

Compatibility: Online resource; iOS; Android

More information: Ava

Live Transcribe & Sound Notifications

Live Transcribe is an app that uses speech recognition technology to transcribe speech in real-time. The app is designed to help people who are deaf or hard of hearing to communicate more easily with others in their environment. Additionally, the app supports haptic feedback and visual cues to alert users of different sounds, such as alarms or doorbells.

Sound Notifications is another accessibility feature for Android devices. It is designed to help people who are deaf or hard of hearing to be aware of sounds in their environment. The feature uses machine learning to detect and identify sounds such as smoke alarms, dog barking, door knocks, and more. Once a sound is detected, the user receives a push notification with a description of the sound.


Cost: Free

Compatibility: Android

More information: Live Transcribe & Sound Notifications

Otter.ai

Otter.ai is a web-based transcription and note-taking tool that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to convert audio recordings into searchable, editable text. It can transcribe audio and video files in real-time, making it a useful tool for people who want to capture and transcribe interviews, meetings, lectures, or any other audio content.

Otter.ai's AI algorithms use natural language processing (NLP) technology to recognize and transcribe speech with high accuracy, even in noisy environments. The tool allows users to edit transcripts and add notes and comments directly in the interface.


Cost: Free or $8.33/month for Pro

Compatibility: iOS; Android

More information: Otter.ai

Have a recommendation?

If you would like to recommend assistive technology for the libraries, please contact Jessica Chrisman-DeNegri at jchrismandenegri@waubonsee.edu.