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I can't answer about how speech accessable the new notebooks are but I would
like to comment on accessibility from the sense of touch side.  I just
bought a Dell notebook and without even turning it on I discovered that the
bumps on the edge of the F and  J keys are almost nonexistent, the keyboard
does not feel anything like regular keyboard keys or even older laptop keys.
There is no separation between the number keys row and the Function keys.
There is hardly any separation between the flat toped keys themselves making
it difficult to touch type especially if you have little sense of touch in
your hands.  Also there is a large mouse touch pad under the space bar that
is impossible not to touch, causing Jaws to jump to another location.  I
understand the mouse pad can be disabled but may require sighted help to do
so.  Also I could not feel the button to open the DVD drive door even when
a sighted friend put my finger on it since it is flush with the side of the
computer.
  I'm returning the notebook I bought as unsuitable for a blind user and
suggest buying  from a local dealer where you can feel the keyboard before
buying instead of buying mail order.


   Stu Turk, Pittsburgh PA   USA
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----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Renee Allen" <[log in to unmask]>


I am looking to purchase a Lap Top computer for myself, and would appreciate
any information on which one might be mor accessible and speech friendly
using the latest version of JAWS


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