all categories Deals, Sales, and News

The deadline is fast approaching for nominations for the first ever Blind Bargains Access Awards. You can submit nominations for any or all of the ten categories ranging from best new product or innovation to best website for the blind (Blind Bargains isn't eligible). Nomination submissions are due on January 14 at 5 PM Eastern.

It's not often we see an Ohtsuki Braille Embosser on EBay like this one, currently at $107.50. This machine was quite a bit ahead of its time and one of the first machines to produce both print and braille, a tremendous feat for the 1980's. It's being sold as is and shipping is $65. Auction ends January 12.

Most tech companies are happy with one blog. But now, Code Factory has upped the stakes by launching two. One focuses on messages from the company's CEO while the other will feature messages from the rest of the Code Factory staff. Both are pretty bare for now, but what do you expect, they're brand new.

Independent Living Aids has the Jot-a-Dot Pocket Brailler for $275. That's $70 off list and the lowest price we've seen for this writing tool. It allows you to write braille notes up to 20 cells per line on index cards, 4 by 6 paper, or other small-form sizes. Flip over part of the unit to read what you just wrote, and take this portable notetaker with you on the go. Deal ends January 31.

Simon's one of the world's simplest games and also one of the most accessible by design. Because of this, we've added a Simon category to the games section of the Auction Gateway. There's a few listings that don't exactly fit, but there's also quite a few versions of the classic game as well.

For a reader, Bargain Bob has found braille bingo cards for $9.95 at Independent Living Aids. Add about $7 for shipping. These cards include both large print and braille numbers. Also on this page is a set of 75 brailled numbers used for bingo callers for $14.95.

An EBay seller has listed a working Vera Reading Machine with a starting bid of $199. Made by Freedom Scientific, this device originally sold for $3,000 and is a stand-alone reading machine. Auction ends January 4.

You can now subscribe to our RSS feed directly from Internet Explorer 7 or Firefox. In Firefox, for example, use the subscribe to this page option from the bookmarks menu. Thanks to Wayne Merritt for the tip.

An EBay seller has listed a copy of Kurzweil 1000 Version 11 with a current bid of $123.50 plus $15 for shipping. New copies cost $995, and this is the latest version. Auction ends January 5.

It's not often that we see one of these, but an EBay seller has listed a Trekker GPS system with a starting bid of $500. That's less than half the retail price. This model runs on the Dell Axim PDA and includes several accessories. We are unsure as to the version of the Trekker software, however. Auction ends January 3.

For the United States, Turbo Tax has launched their annual tax preparation software, and once again, you can file your Federal return for free. Other options that may give you a higher return are also available from this page. Tax day isn't until April 15, but you might as well pick up that refund now. It's your money.

Here's one for our overseas readers. Traveleyes, a UK-based company specializing in travel excursions for the blind and visually impaired, offers an 11-day, 10-night Cuban vacation for 1,049 pounds (about $2,000). To get this rate, mention Blindbargains2008 when booking, saving you 100 pounds. The trip is April 16-26, 2008 and includes your flight, lodging, and most meals. A detailed itinerary is available from the link on this post.

Enhanced Vision offers the Max Color Digital Magnifier for $99 with the purchase of a Merlin LCD CCTV. That's $350 off the retail price for this unit. Resembling the size of a computer mouse, the Max reading aid connects directly to your TV or monitor in seconds and enlarges print on any surface curved or straight. No end date is given for the deal. note: If you can't find this deal on the website, contact them and ask for Justin Moore.

Independent Living Aids has the Surfboard voice-activated remote control, also called the Accenda-3, for $49.95. This is $15 off the normal price. With about $9 for shipping, it's the lowest price we could find for this item.. The Surfboard allows you to control your TV, VCR, DVD player, or other device using built-in voice commands or commands that you customize.

Humanware has released version 1.0 of their Stream Companion software which works with the Victor Reader Stream. It offers a streamlined interface for transferring and sorting media as well as a tool for converting voice notes recorded on the stream into .WAV format.

From all of us at Blind Bargains, have a Merry Christmas, a Happy New Year, and a festive holiday season. We'll be celebrating along with you over the holidays, so updates will be a bit less frequent. Thanks for a great year, and we wish you the best for 2008!

Dean Martineau has put together a loaded Top Tech Tidbits for this week. Read to learn about some great articles from Fred's Head, some vista tips, and the latest technology news. Tidbits is published most Thursdays.

With the Victor Reader Stream adding support for Audible books, we thought we'd mention their current special. Audible.com offers three months of their gold audiobook service for $7.49 per month, which is half off. Audible gives you credits each month which you can use to download audio books and other content. In addition to the stream, many mainstream devices such as the Creative Zen Stone as well as most computers can play the files.

An EBay seller has listed a Romeo Braille Embosser, model RB40, with a current bid of $142.51. Shipping adds about $40. We love how the description focuses on the value of the case more than the embosser, but our readers know otherwise. It's a single-sided embosser that prints up to 40 characters per second. Auction ends December 23.

Adaptive Information Systems has the new executive case for the Victor Reader Stream for $34. Shipping adds about $5, or get it shipped for free when ordering it with a Victor Reader Stream at $299. That's about $2 off retail and the lowest price we could find. This case offers better protection and more storage compartments than the standard case that comes with the unit.