Accessibility at NSW CLIC

(review date June 2007)

Picture of the DS-50 held with thumb on one side and four fingers on the other. Screen is at the top and four arrow-type keys surrounding a circular enter key below. Record, stop and play buttons concealed by the thumb on the right side.

This is a small, feature-packed sound recorder. It is one of a wide variety of digital recorders, covering a wide range of both price and facilities. The DS-50 offers many important features and also demonstrates how accessibility can be built into a mainstream product. Its more significant features will be discussed. The DS-50 has 1Gb of memory. It is identical to the DS-40 and DS-30 except that they have 500mb and 256mb of memory respectively and, accordingly, are less expensive.

A compact voice recorder can be used in a variety of educational situations such as making a verbal note, recording lectures and listening to study material. The DS-50 is very well suited to these tasks and also serves as a very effective MP3 music and podcast player. Files recorded on the unit are in the WMA (Windows Media Audio) format. Any of five quality settings for recording, from extra high quality stereo to long play, can be selected, with available recording time correspondingly ranging from 17.5 to 275.3 hours. The top three settings, while not at broadcast quality, produce remarkably good recordings. Standard Play produces acceptable speech quality, while Long Play may be considered if space is running low. Pressing the stop button when the unit is stopped shows, among other things, amount of available space on the current recording setting.

Description

Two microphones are supplied with the DS-50. There is an in-built monaural microphone and a stereo microphone that clips into the top of the machine. If stereo recording is not required, the monaural mike produces better sound. A wide range of external microphones can also be used. A three-position control provides low, medium and high recording levels. In many settings the low level is more than adequate, but the higher settings can be helpful when recording, for example, a lecture. There are filtering facilities for both recording and playback and these can be very effective in reducing background noise.

Pressing the record button creates a new file. Pressing it during recording toggles between pausing and resuming the recording. Pressing the stop button closes the file. The DS-50 is therefore not suitable for dictating material into a single file if review of the content during recording is required. It is, however, eminently suitable for making short oral notes and for longer recordings not requiring frequent review or editing during the process.

Playback is via a small speaker on the back of the unit or through headphones connected to the stereo output jack (a set of button-type earphones is supplied). Sound quality is very good.

Files can be played at speeds ranging between 50% and 150% of normal speed without changing the pitch of the sound. While equipment offering this feature has been available for some time, its inclusion in a device of this size is most impressive. It allows study material to be played at a chosen speed within the machine’s range in any location.

File Management

Files can be transferred from the unit to a computer via the USB port for storage and/or editing. Similarly, MP3 or WMA files can be transferred to any of six folders on the unit. Individual files or a folder of files can be deleted on the machine, while more extensive manipulation is achieved from the host computer.

The included DSS Player software can be used to transfer files to and from a Windows-based computer, but this can also be done through Windows Explorer. The software also serves as a transcription program and will accept a foot pedal for this purpose. It also provides a convenient method of setting the time on the recorder and can reinstall the voice guidance files (see Accessibility below) following reformatting of its memory.

Accessibility

Controls on the DS-50 are small but, unlike the rubbery feel of buttons on much equipment these days, have a firm and positive feel. Layout is also well organised and uncluttered. With the default setting, a single press of the rewind or fast forward button jumps to the beginning of the current file or next file respectively. Pressing and holding down either button during playback moves back or forward through the file, playing snippets of the contents. Pressing and holding these buttons when the unit is stopped moves quickly through the file with no audible output. Fast wind stops when the beginning or end of the file or an index marker is reached. Up to sixteen index marks can be placed in files recorded on the DS-50, both during recording and playback. In the case of files copied to the unit, pressing the index button produces temporary marks. These remain until changing folders or connecting to a computer.

As well as providing information via the LCD display, the DS-50 includes voice guidance. This is achieved with clear, digitised speech. When browsing the folder list, the name of each folder is announced. In the settings menu, all items are announced, as are individual options within most items – the system cannot speak options involving clock times. This feature allows people who cannot read the screen to take advantage of the vast majority of the machine’s many options and facilities. It also demonstrates that including such an effective resource is not difficult to achieve in a mainstream product. Equipment such as Sound/video recorders, household appliances and many others could be made much more accessible through employing this approach.

The DS-50 is powered by two AAA batteries. Claimed recording time is approximately 30 hours. While formal measurements have not been made on the test machine, extensive use over two months with the original alkaline batteries demonstrated very good battery life.

Specifications