Category: Safe Haven
Hi all. Up until a little over a year ago I only used talking watches, and then a year or so ago I decided to try a braille watch. Now I will never turn back. I absolutely love my braille watch. I love the freedom of being able to check the time whenever I like without disturbing people. They are a little expensive, but I think its worth the price. And I think in general braille watches look a little nicer too.
I was just curious if you guys had an opinion on the subject. Share your experiences if you like too.
Hi Trinity,
Well, I've had both, and I for the most part prefer my talking watch. It's easier to tell the time more to the exact minute, and braille watches have totally sky rocketed, as far as price goes. If I shared a room with other people, I'd probably feel different, but I have a room to my self, and my moms' bedroom is on the other side of the house, so I don't have to worry about disturbing her. I think there are advantages and disadvantages and advantages to both. Unfortunately, talking watches batteries run down, then we have to order another one out of a catalog, then on the other hand, braille watches get dust in them, and need cleaning, and that can be expensive. I think it depends on the situation you have.
Nice to meet you, and welcome to the safe haven board.
wonderwoman
Yeah I've seen my exboyfriend use both. And I believe it's nothing but raised bumps on numbers: 3, 6, and 12 then tinyer bumps in between. I might be getting one in a year or so because I can barely see a large print watch and they look soo bulky. So I'm pretty good at telling time by looking at the hands, not the hands and sqinting at numbers. So it shouldn't be all that difficult. Talking watches. I had one, and the year after I destroyed it with a baseball bat. Because those suckers are way too noisey, and if you bump your bag on something (if the thing is in it as my strap broke.) it'll tell the time. And it can get extremly annoying.
I use talking watches these days, although I had a couple Braille ones when I was a kid because there were no talking ones. I really can't afford a Braille watch if I wanted one, but I don't mind talking ones. You can get a few that are quiet and you can always cover the speaker if it's mounted on top of the watch to cut down on noise. I think the problem I had with Braille watches was that since you have to open the watch to check it, you expose the mechanism to all kinds of junk. I know my second watch just totally quit working afte a while, probably due ot a build-up of whatever in the mechanism. These were wind-up-type watches. They actually do have some talkign watches which are supposed to be stylish. They're pricey, but most likely worth it. I prefer just a simple black plastic watch myself. Hahahaha. And yes, you can even find a few that don't clang everytime you press a button and don't have that rooster in them. Hehehehe!
I prefer talkign watches. I've never owned a braille one, but I've seen them, and i can hardly read them at all. They seem pretty hard to get used to to me. Plus, I'm somewhat of a rough person. I mean, I think if I had a braille watch, I'd break it, because I might bump it into things, and they're very delicate I've heard. I just cover the speaker on my talking watch, and I don't find it very annoyinkg. But these days, I mostly use my BrailleNote to check the time anyway, so watches will probably be out of style soon lol.
Caitlin
Yeah the rooster was the annoying one. lol when I took my baseball bat to it the rooster wouldn't shut the hell up. All it kept doing was clack a do doodle do. then slower, and slower, and slower and the slowest then cut off on the do. lol. Then I started using the clcok on the TNS. And now the pacmate has it's own clock, with alarms. So I go by that now.
talking or braille watch? hmm used to use talking watch in couples years back. from clasic black watch to more stilish one i've use before. nowadays i try on braille watch i found that is better for me to use the braille watch. i won't disturb other when i need to know the time. yes, braille watch is more expencive compare to talking watch but is wordy.
I prefer braille watches because I've found if one person audibly checks the time everyone else around you has to do it too. I also like braille watches because I don't break them as easily. I got talking watches when I was a bit younger, and in 2 years I went through something like 4 or 5 of them... Not a good rate, I know. *LOL* Also, I know of a place where one can get braille watches for under $50.00 If anyone wants the address let me know. I don't know how the buying there goes because it's the site our state uses, and I was simply told go and look for what I wanted, so, I did.
I agree the braille version is much better except in cold weather when your fingers are numb,like mine were today.
Or covered in food ect then a voice would be more useful,but I adore this watch and it was a gift.smile
............................................................
My partner and I were watching a fantastic production of Puccini's Madame Butterfly and i wanted to check the time as the underground stops at 11.00pm, so i just felt the dial while trying not to cry as Butterfly raised the dagger to commit hari kiri.
Independent living aids has some of them for less than $50. Thats how much my first one cost. I just recently bought a seiko because I liked the design better, but the ila one worked just fine until then.
Braille watches for me any time! I can't stand talking watches, they anoy me, all those stupid voices telling you what time is, and like toehrs said, the fact that everyone else hears it..no matter even when you cover the speaker or whatever others could hear it, especially if I'm at a meeting at work or something like that that is quiet inviroment it would be heard. I'd disagree that braille watches are easily damadged or that they don't last long, I've had this thing for last 4 years and it's still working perfectly fine.
BTW..Goblin, underground over there stops at 11? And I thought London was bad with it's 12:30/1 finish.
Yep We are a rowdy lot in Glasgow.smile
The pubs close and all hell breaks loose, at the weekend its 11.35 dead on though there are always delays ect.
I would greatly prefer a talking watch in all situations, but that is just me.
I saw somewhere that they have a vibrating watch out. I'd like to get that, the talking annoys me a little bit, but I also can't stand neither the price tag nor the fact that the braille watches don't last that long, due to the constant exposure to dirt and temperature changes + they are much much more inaccurate, at least the ones I've owned. You can replace a battery in a talking watch at any jewelry store for $7 and the watch itself with a nice wrist band is probably around $25 to $45. The only vibrating watch for the blind I've managed to find is $250 so I won't be able to afford it just yet but it's something I'd definitely like to get.
cheers
-B
I would rather have a Braille watch but I can't ever get mine to open easily and I've already bought two different models. So for now just use the trusty old notetaker.
The first talking watch I had, when the battery started going, mom went to a walmart store, or where ever they sell batteries, and the battery she bought only lasted a couple of days. The one thing I'd wish they'd dois make the buckles on them more durable. One talking watch I had, the strap broke, and the last the little buckle you put in the holes broke. I'm still able to wear it though. The strap is still good, and I can push it in the large holder where the strap goes.
wonderwoman
Many of these watches are made cheaply, with plastic bands and buckles and such. That's about what you get for ten bucks, and if you went to Radio Shack you paid too much. Hahahahahaha!
The first talking watch mom got me was from the qvc home shopping channel, then they didn't sell them anymore, now she orders them from a health catalog.
wonderwoman
I've used both and prefer braille. The battery life in a talking watch isn't worth crap. Even though on my watch there's only a dot on every 5 minutes I can still kinda judge the minutes by the way the hands are between the 5 minute dots.
Troy
Hi there. Hmmm. good topic. Well, I preffer braille watches since it doen'st disrupt my classes or some iep meetings or any other places where you need to be quiet. Even if you press or push your hand onto the speaker it still is audible. but the disadvantage of a braille watch if that you don't have a clock alarmto wake you up in the mornings. Although I used to have a braille watch I am now relying on my notetaker since I plan to buy one as soon as I can, but that crapy store doesn't have a leather band braille watch for men, only for women. And one thing I don't like from the elastic ones is that the glass can hardly be slipped and it sometimes pinches. One of my teachers bought me one braille watch that had a leather band and the glass could be easily slipped, thats the only braille watch I hae been using, but I had to give it back to her. I am trying to contact independent living aids to purchase one but I don't know if they have a check order available. Oh, and yes, I have broken a lot of annoying talking watches... lol. For now, lets say, my only watch is the 1800-555tell line and my braille 'n speak.
hi lou,
well I guess if you can afford it, the best alternative would be to have both. The battery life is good with the battery thats in them, but if you try to replace the battery from the store, it'll only last a couple of days, at least that's been my experience. If I want to get up at a certain time, I set it to the rooster, it's good and loud, lol
wonderwoman
I will have to agree with all who said braille watches are their choice. I've had the same braille watch for three or four years. I only have to replace the battery about once a year or so. So, to make a long story short, I much prefer a braille watch.
REgards,
The Ice Master
well cell phones are also pretty loud ha ha, I canot set the alarm of mine back so have to wake up at like 7 to turn it of! lol
Hi, well, i definitely like Braille watches. Every talking watch i ever had had something wrong with it. Seriously, either the alarm went off every 15 minutes even if i set it not to, or it would just start saying the time for no reason. I used to wear one to school, and because most of the time they were malfunctioning, people stared at me, so one day, when i couldn't stand them yelling at me to turn it off for one more day, i took it and threw it out the window, right in front of everybody, and was like, "Are you happy?!"
You didn't! Lol! Hahahahahahhahahaaha! Well as i said, my BN is basically my watch. I think talking watches can be annoyingly loud and disruptive, but the bralle watches arent' very durable and are hard to read, so I've heard. But maybe I'll try a braille watch someday. Then I can really have an opinion about it.
Caitlin
I've had the same braille watch for 3 years and nock on wood it still has its orriginal battery. Note that I have a pocket watch, not a rist one. I get the batteries replaced at a jewler and the batteries even from them in my braille watches I've had last a long time. I've even accidently have taken them through the washing machine and believe it or not they survived. Note that I also drop mine all the time including this one I have now and it's still kicken. I doubt that you could give a talking one that abuse and it still work. A vibrating watch? Never heard of them. They sound interesting though. Does anyone have any info about one?
Troy
Oh yes I did! They were making me angry, and the window of the classroom just happened to be open...it was just so convenient! Lol!
well it also depends the size of the braille watch, but they are not hard to read once you get use to it
well the last braille watch I had, the dots stood out more, and there were 3 dots on the 12, and 2 dots on the 3, 6, and 9, so that made it much easier. I think over time, the dots fade with age.
wonderwoman
The dots fade overtime? I didn't know this!
Caitlin
Hi Caitlin,
Yes, I think after a braille watch gets so old, the dots just gradually fade, I guess from feeling of them so much.
wonderwoman
I have used a Braille watch for forever. Used a talking watch until the second grade. I hate them, now.... I find them annoying honestly. I wish they made Braille clocks, but they don't. Would be nice if they did.
I love my Braille watch, and have had no problems with it!
In Him,
Dixie
yeah talking watches in my opinion are quite annoying
I am a huge fan of talking watches. I must say though, that the ones with the roosters in them are pretty annoying. I have looked at braille watches, but I would never be able to read them. If they were digital, I would deffinitly go for not! I am like katelynn though, and I would break them too easy. I am kinda a rough person to! Frig, I go through like 2 talking watches a year! Sad isn't it? Well talk to ya all later!
I agree with Japanimangel lol!
Caitlin
P.S. Yeah, I can understand that worn out braille dot thing. My BrailleNote's keys have smooth parts worn into them from the sports where i tend to push on the keys.
Well, the thing is, with most talking watches, they're running as soon as you get them, so there's no way of knowing how long the thing has been on the shelf or in storage until you got it. I know there are some items with batteries built in where you have to pull a little plastic tab out of the thing to cause the battery to connect to the battery contacts. But in talking watches the battery gets installed in the factory and it's just running from day one. They claim the lithium batteries will give you two or three years of life, but I'm not sure how they calculate things in like how often you use the alarm or hourly chime or just hit hte button. I swear, these lithium batteries beat the button cells that came in the first talking watches. A set of four of those would only last some three or four months!
I actually bought a talking watch last summer which did have the little tabe on the battery to prevent it from running. I'm actually really impressed with this watch. It doesn't have the rooster, and it doesn't bong when you press the buttons. It has a male voice, and lots of features. It says the time, the date, and it has both a stop watch and count down timer. Also you can zero the seconds which is cool.
Is it a rectangular one with a bar on top to get hte time and adjust other functions? I've got one with those same features that Radio Shack used to sell. Luckily it can be had elsewhere without the Shack's logo on it.
Ooh sounds cool. Are their watches with digital braille displays? That would be most awesome. Someone should make that. Although I guess it woudl be kind of big, but they could eliminate numbersigns and do a single little dot instead of a colon?
Caitlin
I'm not sure if this watch is the same as the radio shack ones or not, as I haven't seen those in a while. It is kind of rectangular shaped. It does have a bar on the top, a small screen and the speaker. There are two buttons on the right, and one on the left. The one on the left does the same thing as the bar, so really there are only three different buttons.
Sounds stylish and simple. I don't like watches that are too complicated. What really annoys me is how talking watches for the blind come with print instructions. I mean, hello? What if you're a blind person living alone and you need to figure outh ow your watch works? Very strange.
Caitlin
Well this particular watch you wouldn't have any trouble setting, as it announces everything.
The talking watches I've had always announces the hour, but it can still be hard to make sure you have it set right, because if you don't set the little wheel to time, and you have it on time set, the time on it will start going backwards instead of forward. It can be hard to reset, like when the time changes back and forth from daylight saving time. I don't think I'd want a digital watch, braille or talking, it might be more complicated.
wonderwoman
Sounds similar to ming then. That's a nice watch.
That does sound like a cool watch.
Troy
I hate the watchjes with the little wheels! They confuse me! Buttons are great because it's sooo much easier to navigate between modes. I got a French watch, because I'm taking French and It hought it would be cool to have. I love it, except for the wheel is very inconvenient and the alarm is always going off. Plus, somehow, the watch keeps resetting to midnight, and the batteries are constantly fluctuating. I don't know if it's a faulty watch, or if that watch in general is bad.
Caitlin
well mine has 3 buttons, and the little wheel thing, which you only use to set the alarm, or the time. I have to stick the edge of a finger in a little niche, and push that wheel just right. If I have one of the buttons set for it, it will go off and announce the time every hour. I hope that French watch says the time in English, lol, or you know french good enough to understand the time in French, hahaha.
wonderwoman
Yeah, it's possible htato ne watch was just faulty. Maybe i should return it? But I don't liek the wheel, it hurts my finger after awhile.
Caitlin
I've mostly used the braille watch and I like it a lot, mostly because it's so convenient and quiet. At a rehab program I went to once, a lot of people had talking watches and they would go off all the time. How annoying.
Yeah, a braille digital one would be really cool. I use the one on the braille note. Don't bother with ones unless I really have to. I got a watch that's atomic, and it's talking. It's great! Well, it's still running up on my shelf, but I don't use it much.
I prefer braille watches, because that way, if you're in a class, meeting, etc, you don't interrupt the class or meeting. And plus, they're a lot quieter.
I've had my braille watch, (a gift from my first vision teacher), for the last ten years. Apart from three battery changes, it still works as well as when I first received it, and i would never use anything else.
If you're going to get a talking watch and using it in an office environment, make sure it souns decent and can blend in well with the office environment. I've recently been working at the Chicago Lighthouse with a bunch of people wearing talking watches that make me want to hurl! It's like every hour on the hour, all conversation stops, because it's hard to hear your fellow employees when you're forced to listen to some annoying, six-year-old girl saying "it's 1 o'clock P.M." Braille watches are excellent. They are not always accurate to the minute, but they work better in workplace situations.
You can turn the stupid hourly thing off. I think braille watches are much better, because they last longer and if I wanted an alarm, I prefer a clock for that. Some talking watches are so strange though, I mean, what is the point of being told the temperature when you only want to know what time it is? At least with braille watches, you can look at it under the table without interupting anyone else in classes.