Bring your karma
Join the waitlist today
HUMBLECAT.ORG

Blind and Visually Impaired Community

Full History - 2021 - 03 - 04 - ID#lxj68v
9
Can anyone recommend some good magnifying glasses for general indoor use? (self.Blind)
submitted by exfernal
I have very low visual acuity (20/200) due to achromatopsia but do have some usable vision.

I really struggle to look at computer and TV screens without having my face practically pressed up against them which is not exactly comfortable. I was wondering if anyone here might be able to point me towards some magnifying glasses that might help with this a little? I've tried searching for them on the internet but haven't managed to find all that much to be honest.

Any suggestions would be most welcome, thank you!
macmutant 2 points 2y ago
I have a similar amount of vision. Depending on what I'm magnifying, I use different solutions. For general around the house or at work, I use a paperweight magnifier, which is basically a solid piece of optical glass with a flat bottom and dome top. It provides 5x magnification, and though it distorts the image quite a bit, I've used them for so long that I can usually get good performance. Sometimes I have to hold the magnifier away above the item I'm magnifying, and maybe tilt it to get the light to reflect just right. Good lighting helps a lot.

If I'm reading product instructions or if I can't get enough magnification with the optical glass solution, or if I just need spot magnification on the go, I use the magnifier built into the iPhone. This has been a great solution for me, since it has allowed me to carry just my phone a lot of the time. No need for a separate magnifier if I'm just taking the wife to dinner. Another great thing about the iPhone, if you use it with a Mac. From the Mac, you can tell most text editing programs to import from an iPhone scan. When you select that option, the iPhone will automatically bring up the scanning interface. You just have to hold the iPhone over the document and press the scan button. Once you complete the scan, the document will be instantly available in the Mac text editor. It won't be readable by a screen reader, because it's an image scan, but will be usable with magnification. I use this solution a lot for product instructions, because they're often printed on small paper in tiny print that even sighted people have a hard time reading.

Sorry for the long response. I hope this helps, and that you find a solution that works well for you.
LightHouse-SF 2 points 2y ago
LightHouse has an online store called $1. Our staff is highly knowledgeable, some of whom are visually impaired as well so they will give you product info as well as first hand knowledge. We offer a variety of magnifiers. You can try checking it out online, and if you have questions you can call into the store at (888) 400-8933 to talk with our staff. Hope this is helpful!
MostlyBlindGamer 2 points 2y ago
For computers I use screen magnification. All operating systems have built-in options for that. If you're on Windows just hold down the Windows key and press the + hey.

I have a few different jeweler's loupes (30x magnification) that I got on eBay for general use and a head mounted magnifier I got from iFixit for any tinkering I need to do.
vwlsmssng 1 points 2y ago
Do you mean telescope glasses for watching TV?

https://www.eschenbach.com/products/telescopes-galilean-maxtv.asp
QuentinJamesP89 2 points 2y ago
I've been wanting to get something like this for a long time for reading sheet music for the piano. They can be outrageously expensive, though, so I'm trying to work with state rehab services to help (an arduous process). Perhaps if you qualify you could look into that.
This nonprofit website is run by volunteers.
Please contribute if you can. Thank you!
Our mission is to provide everyone with access to large-
scale community websites for the good of humanity.
Without ads, without tracking, without greed.
©2023 HumbleCat Inc   •   HumbleCat is a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Michigan, USA.