product analyzed

TALK app

TALK app

icon that can be read "all" within a rectangular speech bubble preceded by a 'T' and followed by a 'k' forming "TALLK" on a starry background
Overall rating:
4/5
Technology:

Categories assigned to this product within the main category Technology.

Needs:

Categories assigned to this product within the main category Needs.

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Below is the video of the review.

What does it consist of:

TALLK is an application developed to facilitate interaction with Samsung tablets by especially ALS patients, people with reduced mobility or speech difficulties, as it uses eye-tracking technology that allows the tablet in question to be operated only with the movement of the user's eyes.

It has been the first application based on communication support with "Eye tracking" technology from the Spanish Startup Irisbond that works on Samsung Galaxy Tab tablets and compatible devices in Spain.

This app is included in Samsung Spain's "Technology with Purpose" project to put technology at the service of people. Specifically, this application has been developed together with the Luzón Foundation, an organization deeply involved in improving the quality of life and independence of people with ALS and their families.

Forms of acquisition:

Tallk is a completely free app that can be downloaded from the Play Store and from the Galaxy Store, for users in Spain. galaxy store logo    

Technical assessment:

Author: Julian Maria Morejon Carmona

Date: June 2021

Thanks to this application, users will be able to use their eyes to write using a predictive virtual keyboard and a personal collection of quick-use phrases to later verbalize what they have written in a simple way.

In this review we will do an analysis of the app for the Samsung Galaxy Tab A Tablet with Android, using Android version 8.0 in the analysis.

Operation

The app processes the pupils and certain characteristic points of the face with a series of algorithms and artificial intelligence that allow the software to translate the movement captured through the tablet's own camera in motion within the device's screen.

In this way, a virtual keyboard and a history of previously used common phrases can be accessed to allow the user to convert the desired text to speech quickly and easily.

keyboard with large sections and icons, grouping symbols and with word predictionApp control icons and uppercase phrases grouped in large boxes.

In addition, it is important to mention that the keyboard also allows us to interact with the virtual voice assistant based on Samsung artificial intelligence, Bixby, so that we can solve different requests, as well as control different home devices that we have connected with Smart Things, such as It can be the television, appliances or even household sensors.

summarize each utility with one sentence; keyboard and bixby, phrase bank, history and calibrationdelete last character, delete last word, save, bixby wizard on / off and "speech" icon explained by text

While waiting to be adapted for other tablets, it can be used only in the following models:

  • Galaxy Tab A (10.5 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G, 2018)

  • Galaxy Tab A (8.0 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G, 2019)

  • Galaxy Tab A (10.1 ″, 32GB, Wi-Fi and LTE, 2019)

  • Galaxy Tab S3 (9.7 ″, Wi-Fi and LTE)

  • Galaxy Tab S4 (10.5 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G)

  • Galaxy Tab S5e (10.5 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G)

  • Galaxy Tab S6 (10.5 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G)

  • Galaxy Tab Active 2 (8 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G)

  • Galaxy Tab Active Pro (10.1 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G)

  • Galaxy Tab S6 Lite (10.4 ″, Wi-Fi and 4G)

For the application to be compatible with tablets from other brands, Samsung must make specific adjustments that it has not ruled out making in the future since they insist that their "Technology with Purpose" program aims to put technology at the service of as many as possible of people and thus be able to improve their quality of life.

app logo top left, top right icon to pause look use, bottom the configuration and information icons and in the center of the screen the largest icons are of the four functionalitiesmenu icons, close application, delete message and pause the use of the gaze explained by text

After a fairly intensive use of the app, it should be noted that the functionality has turned out much better than we expected, the gaze tracking is really good as long as we have good lighting where we are using the Tablet and there are no reflections on the screen in the camera area.

Although there can sometimes be slight difficulties in gaze tracking due to movement not being captured well, these moments are very rare, and the overall performance of the app is very remarkable.

An information screen on how to position the tablet in relation to the user's eyes, must be at the same eye level and about 40 centimeters away.on the left an image with targets in the five corners and in the center and on the right the calibration instructions, look at the targets as they are displayed and keep a fixed posturechoose a lighted room, from behind the tablet illuminating the user's face, with a uniform background that contrasts with the user's silhouette, the use of a suitable support is recommended and it is recommended to avoid glare or occlusions on the eyes caused by glasses or other elementson the right an image of the camera with the superimposition of a yellow stripe to position the eyes and on the left the calibration instructionstwo boxes, on the left to improve calibration and on the right to start

Finally, it should be mentioned that having a history of saved phrases is a really interesting idea, it provides great extra value and makes it very convenient to quickly access frequently used phrases, without forgetting the option that it can be pause gaze tracking at any time, which is very convenient at times.

Accessibility

Although the app has been developed for a specific group as its main objective, it is convenient to comment on whether its use meets the accessibility needs for said group.

Therefore, after analyzing the app, it has been concluded that it is very accessible to its target audience and is very well thought out so that it is easy and agile to use with a really simple design, so the end result is truly remarkable.

Highlights

Functionality: the application's functionality is very useful for the target audience's day-to-day life, the efforts of the developers to get an app that helps people is appreciated from the first moment.

Accessibility: taking into account that it has a very specific audience of users, the accessibility for that group is very high, which allows them to use the app without much problem and in a comfortable way.

Improvement points

Performance: if the user's Tablet has many apps installed or open at the same time and we run the app, the performance of the application drops appreciably, so further optimization or a warning to close apps in the background it would help the end user.

 

Technical evaluation scores.

Design and manufacturing:
4/5
This section refers to the physical aspects and details of the manufacturing of the technological product
Technical benefits:
5/5
Description of the quality of the technical specifications of the technological solution
User experience:
4/5
This criterion is linked to the user's assessment when relating to the technical product or application.
Accessibility:
4/5
It is the degree to which people can use or access a product, technological solution or service, regardless of their technical, cognitive or physical abilities

Social valuation:

Social valuation scores.

Impact and utility:
This item has not been rated/5
Describes to what extent the functionalities of the product are useful and impact on improving the life of the user
Design and Ergonomics:
This item has not been rated/5
Assessment of how the design of the technological solution adapts to the person to achieve greater comfort and efficiency when using it
Usability and accessibility:
This item has not been rated/5
Possibility of the device to be used, understood and taken advantage of under equal conditions for anyone
Ease of acquisition:
This item has not been rated/5
It refers to the possibilities of accessing and acquiring a technological solution by the user.

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