[Tektalkdiscussion] Fw: Evaluation update

[Bob Acosta]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Frank Cuta" <cuta at bentonrea.com>
To: <ptr1-users at freelists.org>
Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2009 9:37 PM
Subject: Evaluation update


>
> Now, after 4 weeks of use and comments from other users, I have some
> additions and corrections to make to my previous  appraisel of the PT
> Pocket.
>
> * Editing is not limited to adding & removing heading marks.  You can
> delete    individdual  titles or individual sections or any  sequential
> group of sections within a dasy recorded file.
>
> * movement by time starts at 5 seconds and ramps up as you hold down the
> advance butten.  (I had reported that it was initially 10 seconds)
>
> * I confused some readers with my discussion of the need for an
> accessible  quick start guide.  The manual does come on CD in both word
> and plain text format -- you just need a computer to read it unless you
> already know how to startup and begin using the PT Pocket.
>
> * As far as I know there are as yet no user keys available to make
> possible the playback of protected reading materials from either the
> Library of congress or from Recordings for the Blind.
>
> * I have performed extensive tests with the audio inputs and outputs and
> find  the associated electronics  to be either comperable or superior to
> those in both of the previous Plextalk models.  Music  reproduction is
> excellent.
>
> * the PT Pocket permits you to choose to manually control recording
> level even when using the internal microphone.  (on previous models
> manual recording level was restricted to use with external inputs.
>
> * time compression during playback is really not functional for much of
> the externally provided material  that I have tested.  However I have
> taken the speed setting all of the way up to level 8 when obtaining
> internal information (the 5   key on the keypad)  with  very
> satisfactory results.
>
>
> Previous  evaluation:
>
> Well I have had my Pocket a week now and it is one beautiful little
> marvel.  Here  is a preliminary short appraisal.  First, let me mention
> a couple of other products that you are more familiar with -- the
> Plextalk PTR 2 and the Humanware Stream.  I heard that as well as being
> a player the Pocket  was going to incorporate most of the   more
> powerful recording capability of the PTR 2.  In short , it does.  And
> the package is smaller in all 3 dimensions than the Stream.  It feels
> silky and extremely sensual just to hold this  diminutive little item
> in your hand.
>
> It is a powerful recorder with all of the same recording modes that you
> are used to on the PTR2.  You can enable or disable auto recording level
> and while recording you can choose to enable monitoring of the signal or
> audible level annunciation on the fly.  You can also add headings on the
> fly or after the fact.  While recording you can monitor  battery level,
> confirm that you are recording (not paused) and obtain time recorded and
> time remaining information.    Editing is very limited, basically to
> adding and removing heading marks .  However, it features two powerful
> new processing options that should compliment its ability to move files
> from SD to thumb drive and from thumb drive to SD.  These permit you to
> process files that you create so they will play on other players and to
> process material from other recorders  for editing on the pocket.    I
> have yet to explore  these features but they look promising.
>
> The unit has Only a single input jack but it is switchible  for either
> microphone or line level.  I have always been annoyed by the input
> characteristics  of the preamp and built  in microphone on my PTR 2.  No
> such problem exists on the pocket.  In fact I love the built in
> microphone.
>
> Playback on the Pocket can be navigated by character, word, phrase
> paragraph, book mark, heading levels, time  and a new method by
> percentage of the total length.  Of course which of these options is
> available to you is predetermined   by the format of the file you are
> reading.   The pocket  features both  a built in male and female text to
> speech voice.  The  female is the default and it is excellent.
>
> The buttons on the Pocket are  not too small  -- its been cold out and I
> have been able to operate it while wearing leather gloves.  Speaking of
> buttons and switches it has 24 just 5 less than the PTR 2.  Even so an
> operation like adding  a heading mark to an existing file which has a
> dedicated key on the PTR 2 takes exactly the same number of keystrokes
> on the Pocket even though the option is selected off a menu.  This is
> great engineering!
>
> Time to list  desired improvements.  The most obvious is the lack of a
> case.  It comes with a pouch but  it really needs a skin  to protect it
> while it is being used.   Also, when you  receive it you get only a
> print quick start
>  guide and a CD.  Its up to you as a  totally blind person to struggle
> through getting started.  And if you do not have a computer you are kind
> of stuck.  Of course the lack of a  box running Microsoft's finest is
> not one of my personal deficiencies  but I  resisted reading the manual
> on the computer -- I was too eager to start using the pocket.   As soon
> as I found someone to assist me with the quick start guide I copied the
> manual from the CD to a thumb drive and from the thumb drive to the
> pockets SD card.  A Braille quick start guide or cassette guide like the
> one I received with my PTR 2 from IRTI would be a great improvement.   A
> feature that I appreciated   in  version 2  of the PTR  software was an
> annunciation of available recording time that changed respectively as
> you cycled through the various recording qualities/modes.  On the Pocket
> this has been replaced with the respective bandwidth spec.  This is much
> less functional and of little use to  the average user.  Navigation by
> time on the PTR2 can be set to 1 minute and ten minute increments which
> I have grown to love.  On the Pocket it can not be fixed at a specific
> value  and instead changes on the fly but always starts at ten seconds
> and increases as you hold down the control.  I find this a little
> cumbersome.  Lastly the Pocket lacks the ability to  create page marks.
> I actually regularly use this feature on my PTR 2.  Not for page
> numbering but as another powerful way of marking information for future
> reference.  It is a reference mark that is saved when you backup.
>
>
> Price $360 or a little less.
>
> Frank cuta
>
>
>
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