Double Tap

HapWare's Aleye wristband, named one of Time Magazine's Best Inventions of 2026, turns smiles, waves and handshakes into vibrations that blind users can feel. CEO Jack Walters explains what has changed, along with pricing, pre-orders and privacy. Steven Scott and Shaun Preece also take on the growing push to ban smart glasses.
The show starts with the other assistive tech on Time's list, the Mangoslab Nemonic Dot braille label printer. That leads to a moan about braille labelling. The electronic options, like the 6dot label maker, cost well over $1,000, and the old manual embossers take more hand strength than Steven has.
Steven was back on BBC In Touch, and he's tired of hearing that Meta smart glasses should be banned from pubs, pools and even whole countries. He points out that privacy and decency laws already cover misuse, as they did with phones. Shaun pushes back on calling the glasses life-changing, and they get into what actually counts as essential for blind people.
Jack Walters, CEO and co-founder of HapWare, tells Shaun how Aleye has grown beyond facial expressions. It now reads text and spots objects without being asked, such as the aisle you're standing in. It works with any Meta glasses or your phone camera, and you don't need Meta's live AI. Jack talks about learning the haptic patterns, how much beta testers wanted to know, and the first watch-sized standalone prototype.
Pre-orders are open until 31 December with a $59 deposit toward a $359 price. The first batch is 500 units, aimed at a launch around May 2027. The subscription is $20 a month or $199 a year. Jack also covers SOC 2 security, opting in to share data, and shipping to the UK, Canada and Australia after the US.
Chapters
0:00 – Intro: Time Magazine's Best Inventions of 2026
1:52 – Nemonic Dot and the cost of braille labels
7:43 – BBC In Touch and the smart glasses ban debate
20:50 – Jack Walters from HapWare joins
23:45 – How Aleye turns visual cues into haptics
26:36 – Unprompted text and object detection
32:33 – Learning the haptic patterns
37:00 – Beta feedback and the first standalone prototype
41:29 – Time award impact, pre-orders, pricing and privacy
51:39 – Wrap-up and your feedback
Relevant Links
HapWare: https://hapware.com
HapWare Aleye pre-order: https://hapware.com/pre-order
Mangoslab Nemonic Dot: https://mangoslab.com/NEMONIC-DOT-printer
Aira: https://aira.io
Be My Eyes: https://www.bemyeyes.com

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About Double Tap
Hosted by the insightful duo, Steven Scott and Shaun Preece, Double Tap is a treasure trove of information for anyone who's blind or partially sighted and has a passion for tech. Steven and Shaun not only demystify tech, but they also regularly feature interviews and welcome guests from the community, fostering an interactive and engaging environment. Tune in every day of the week, and you'll discover how technology can seamlessly integrate into your life, enhancing daily tasks and experiences, even if your sight is limited.
"Double Tap" is a registered trademark of Double Tap Productions Inc.

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TurnOver, a free and open source screen reader for the Mac, has Steven Scott and Shaun Preece rethinking the Mac. Glidance CEO Amos Miller also shares what more than 30 pilot users have learned from Glide in the real world, and when everyone else can expect theirs.
Listener Barry starts with his first 10 days on TurnOver. You can use NVDA or JAWS keys on a Mac, open its menu with Control Command Comma, and if TurnOver crashes, VoiceOver comes back on automatically. Steven explains why moving around with Tab and Shift Tab makes WhatsApp and Messages much quicker. He also worries that lots of open source forks could thin out the project, and he advises cautious users to wait while it's this early.
Amos Miller tells Shaun that Glide users walked their two and a half millionth step in mid-October. He's open about what still needs work: keeping a line on the sidewalk, walking along a road beside a grass verge, and lining up for road crossings. He also explains why new users should practise on a long, clear, straight stretch before taking Glide anywhere else.
The team has sped up work on the Glide agent, which adds scene description and lets you say "guide me to" the blue door, the bus stop or the person with the dog. Amos says the hardware design is now settled and explains why faster, smaller AI models matter for a physical guide.
Pre-orders won't ship before Christmas as planned. Amos expects the main software fixes around January or February, and a final round of hardware fixes pushes deliveries into early 2027. Meanwhile, more people are joining the pilot.
Chapters
0:00 – Welcome and an Al Pacino impression
5:28 – Barry tries TurnOver for Mac
9:04 – TurnOver, open source forks and the Apple question
20:54 – Amos Miller on Glide's real-world pilot
24:51 – Pilot lessons and current limitations
29:25 – The Glide agent: scene description and guided navigation
40:51 – Why the Glide hardware is settled
44:01 – How AI progress shaped Glide
47:27 – New release timeline and Amos's confidence
54:08 – Takeaways and tomorrow's HapWare interview
Relevant Links
Glidance: https://www.glidance.io
TurnOver: https://doll-eye.github.io/turnover-updates/
TurnOver on GitHub: https://github.com/TurnOver-For-Mac/turnover
HapWare: https://hapware.com

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About Double Tap
Hosted by the insightful duo, Steven Scott and Shaun Preece, Double Tap is a treasure trove of information for anyone who's blind or partially sighted and has a passion for tech. Steven and Shaun not only demystify tech, but they also regularly feature interviews and welcome guests from the community, fostering an interactive and engaging environment. Tune in every day of the week, and you'll discover how technology can seamlessly integrate into your life, enhancing daily tasks and experiences, even if your sight is limited.
"Double Tap" is a registered trademark of Double Tap Productions Inc.

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Sam Seavey from The Blind Life joins Steven Scott and Shaun Preece to talk about making YouTube content with low vision, accessible Sony cameras, the Tovala smart oven, and whether it matters if you call yourself blind or low vision.
The show opens with Shaun's run of Suno songs. Then the hosts get into the news that Nvidia is investigating CEO Jensen Huang over his affair with a suspected Chinese spy, and what an AI bubble bursting could mean, including for Europe.
Sam Seavey has been one of the most requested guests, and he talks about his story: Stargardt's disease, life in Kentucky, and how videos about Android phones turned into The Blind Life. He records, edits and uploads everything himself. He explains how a fixed studio setup and the built-in screen readers on Sony Alpha cameras make that possible. He also reviews a 27-inch Android tablet and talks about the flood of new apps from AI-assisted developers.
The conversation then turns to labels. Sam explains why he calls himself blind, why so many people avoid using a cane, and how the low vision versus blind debate plays out inside the community. He also gives his hands-on take on the Tovala smart oven and how accessible it is.
To close, Steven and Shaun reflect on the conversation and look at dual monitor support coming to Windows Magnifier.
Chapters
0:00 – Intro and a weekend of Suno songs
3:06 – Nvidia, Jensen Huang and the AI bubble
10:26 – Sam Seavey joins Double Tap
13:25 – A 27-inch Android tablet
17:03 – AI-built apps and accessibility
22:03 – Who is Sam Seavey?
28:29 – Creating content solo and Sony's accessible cameras
36:16 – Advocacy, labels and using your cane
47:06 – The Tovala smart oven
52:13 – Wrap-up and Windows Magnifier updates
Relevant Links
The Blind Life: https://www.theblindlife.net
Tovala Accessibility: https://www.tovala.com/accessibility
Aira: https://aira.io
Suno: https://suno.com

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About Double Tap
Hosted by the insightful duo, Steven Scott and Shaun Preece, Double Tap is a treasure trove of information for anyone who's blind or partially sighted and has a passion for tech. Steven and Shaun not only demystify tech, but they also regularly feature interviews and welcome guests from the community, fostering an interactive and engaging environment. Tune in every day of the week, and you'll discover how technology can seamlessly integrate into your life, enhancing daily tasks and experiences, even if your sight is limited.
"Double Tap" is a registered trademark of Double Tap Productions Inc.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Can VoiceOver on the Mac be made friendlier for blind users coming over from Windows? Steven Scott opens up the MacBook Neo, fights with the FaceTime app and finds a VoiceOver setting that changes how macOS navigation works. Shaun Preece pushes back, and the pair look at TurnOver, a new open source screen reader for the Mac.
Steven explains the Announce Groups and No Groups options under Navigation in VoiceOver settings (VO-F8). They let you move around without interacting with every group, and they make it easier to get into web content in Safari and Chrome. The hosts also cover single letter Quick Nav, the rotor and the actions menu, and ask whether VoiceOver's many settings work for it or against it.
TurnOver, a free screen reader that runs alongside VoiceOver, gets the hosts thinking about community-built tools for the Mac and whether Apple's accessibility APIs will eventually get in the way.
In the listener mail, James in Missouri argues that the iPhone and braille displays should come with manuals. That leads to a talk about onboarding, a "granny test" for tech companies, and young children using smartphones. Peter explains how Meta's walking directions on Ray-Ban glasses work alongside Soundscape Community. Siobhan asks where the spatial audio setting is. David needs GPS for rural areas with no signal, which brings up BlindSquare, Soundscape and the HumanWare StellarTrek.
Chapters
0:00 – Welcome
0:34 – MacBook Neo, macOS and FaceTime frustrations
7:35 – VoiceOver Announce Groups and navigation settings
18:52 – TurnOver, a community screen reader for the Mac
27:10 – James on manuals and onboarding
36:20 – Kids, smartphones and TikTok
41:08 – Peter on Meta navigation and Soundscape Community
44:43 – Siobhan asks about spatial audio
47:03 – David asks about offline GPS and the StellarTrek
53:48 – Double Tap app, JAWS 2027 and wrap-up
Relevant Links
Double Tap: https://doubletaponair.com
MacBook Neo: https://www.apple.com/macbook-neo/
TurnOver: https://github.com/TurnOver-For-Mac/turnover
Soundscape Community: https://soundscape.services/
BlindSquare: https://www.blindsquare.com/
HumanWare StellarTrek: https://www.humanware.com/support/stellartrek/
JAWS, ZoomText and Fusion 2027: https://training.vispero.com/download-jaws-zoomtext-and-fusion-2027/

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About Double Tap
Hosted by the insightful duo, Steven Scott and Shaun Preece, Double Tap is a treasure trove of information for anyone who's blind or partially sighted and has a passion for tech. Steven and Shaun not only demystify tech, but they also regularly feature interviews and welcome guests from the community, fostering an interactive and engaging environment. Tune in every day of the week, and you'll discover how technology can seamlessly integrate into your life, enhancing daily tasks and experiences, even if your sight is limited.
"Double Tap" is a registered trademark of Double Tap Productions Inc.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Does reading braille define literacy for blind people? Steven Scott and Shaun Preece work through listener feedback on learning braille later in life, what it means to be literate, and AI assistants like Siri, Gemini and Meta's Muse that still trip over plain requests.
Larry, 74 and learning braille through Hadley, asks whether Olly Richards' language immersion method could work for braille. That leads into fatigue, the efficiency gap between braille and audio, and the move from magnification to a screen reader. Kevin pushes back on a Zero Project guest's claim that blind people who don't read braille aren't literate. Steven explains why he is pro-braille and still argues that price and access to teaching are the real problems.
Ron Peterson introduces STEP Navigation, a free indoor navigation app from Professor Paul Ruvolo, who also made Clew. It has a Start Outside feature and AI scene descriptions. Negative Julian finally gets Gemini to place phone calls, but only when he says "call" and keeps digits out of contact names. Callum asks Siri for a hospital department's number and ends up being put through to 999.
Allison uses Meta's Muse agent to track US policy changes and gets summaries with sources by email. The hosts talk about AI becoming a real productivity tool, Grok, and Europe and the UK waiting for Meta features. Chad Rohr shares his first iPhone Shortcuts, including Blind Mode, Sighted Mode and a Log a Pain Point note. Steven then gives an update on living with the iPhone Duo.
Chapters
0:00 – Intro
0:52 – Larry on learning braille later in life
8:33 – Kevin on braille, literacy and the Zero Project debate
20:15 – Ron on the STEP Navigation indoor navigation app
22:52 – Negative Julian on Gemini phone calls and smart speaker frustrations
32:22 – Callum on Siri calling emergency services
40:04 – Allison on Meta's Muse AI agent
46:56 – Chad's iPhone Shortcuts for VoiceOver users
50:47 – Living with the iPhone Duo
55:05 – Wrap up
Relevant Links
Hadley: https://hadleyhelps.org
At Your Fingertips - Braille Then and Now: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/at-your-fingertips-braille-then-and-now/id1841245814
Zero Project India: https://zeroproject.org/about/zero-project-india
STEP Navigation: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/step-navigation/id6448701994
Meta Muse: https://about.fb.com/news/2026/09/introducing-muse-personal-ai-agent/

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Follow on:
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Subscribe to the Podcast:
Apple: https://www.doubletaponair.com/apple
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RSS: https://www.doubletaponair.com/podcast
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About Double Tap
Hosted by the insightful duo, Steven Scott and Shaun Preece, Double Tap is a treasure trove of information for anyone who's blind or partially sighted and has a passion for tech. Steven and Shaun not only demystify tech, but they also regularly feature interviews and welcome guests from the community, fostering an interactive and engaging environment. Tune in every day of the week, and you'll discover how technology can seamlessly integrate into your life, enhancing daily tasks and experiences, even if your sight is limited.
"Double Tap" is a registered trademark of Double Tap Productions Inc.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.