Contributed by Joel Zimba, Special Projects Coordinator, MDTAP
The PenFriend, which has been with us for several years, has had an update. The all new PenFriend2 is smaller and easier to operate.
I bought mine from www.maxiaids.com, which had the lowest price at the time, but amazon.com lists them for $129 as of the time of this writing.
Inside the box, you will find the PenFriend2 itself, along with several paper labels and 3 magnet labels. The latter attach to cans, or as the instructions quaintly call them, “tins.” As always additional labels of all kinds can be ordered in sequentially labeled packs.
The four labels attached to the PenFriend2 package will describe the basic operation of the device. In less than five minutes after opening the box, I was able to record and play back my first label.
As background, the PenFriend2, is an audio labeling system, which records audio messages. These messages are keyed to proprietary PenFriend labels which can be attached to anything from household items, clothing or Magic The Gathering cards. Hint—if you are intent on doing this last one, the built-in audio jack might come in handy during game play.
While organization at home or work is an obvious use of the PenFriend2, there are apparently picture books which come with PenFriend-based audio description. Other creative uses include describing displays in museums or information on maps. The low cost and ease of use make the PenFriend2 great for experimentation.
