Navigate the Web With Your Voice
Freedom Box
The FreedomBox allows users to browse the Internet via voice commands. Users can interact with the product using a keyboard or by speaking commands into a microphone and listening to the audio feedback, navigating to a Web site by spelling the site's address, and then listening to the content on the page, or activating any link by speaking it into the microphone.
Only members of the FreedomBox Network, the portal that connects FreedomBox to the Internet, can use the product. The network offers such services as e-mail, shopping, news, chat, weather and financial information. Two types of memberships are available depending on whether or not you have an Internet service provider (ISP). If you already have an ISP, you can have unlimited access to the FreedomBox Network for $9.95 per month or $99 per year plus tax where applicable. Otherwise, the cost for access to the Internet and the FreedomBox Network is $21.95 per month or $229 per year plus tax where applicable.
FreedomBox comes in four different formats:
- The FreedomBox Standalone unit is a 6"x5"x2" device that weighs less than 2 pounds and connects to the Internet via a phone line or Ethernet connection. It has 20 GB of storage space and includes a microphone and a full PC keyboard (a smaller keypad is also available). Users can either use the keyboard or speak into the microphone to execute functions. Unfortunately, the device does not have a battery, and needs to be plugged in for power. Price: $999.
- The FreedomBox software transforms any PC into a FreedomBox. Minimum system requirements: 366 MHz processor; 128 MB of RAM; 600 MB of free hard disk space; a multi-channel sound card; Windows 98 or later; Windows Media Player 6.1 or later. The product has two different text-to-speech software choices: DECtalk (Free) or AT&T Labs Natural Voices ($99).
- The FreedomBox Lifestyle is similar to the FreedomBox Standalone unit in size and weight. However, it combines FreedomBox functionality with many of the features of a regular PC and runs a wide range of productivity and general business applications. The base model, priced at $1,499, comes with an Intel Pentium III processor running at 700 MHz, 256 MB of RAM, full motion video accelerator with 4 MB of shared video memory, a 10 GB hard drive, 16-bit sound card (Sound Blaster and Adlib compatible) with full-duplex 3D stereo sound and built in speaker (you also receive a headset as part of the FreedomBox configuration), a 24x CD-ROM, 10/100 base-T Ethernet port (RJ-45 - DSL ready), a 56K V.90 modem (RJ-11) and Windows XP Home Edition. The FreedomBox Lifestyle is currently compatible with Windows 98, ME, 2000 and NT only. It has a serial port and a parallel port, in addition to two USB sockets for connection to a video monitor, keyboard, mouse, printers, scanners and other USB devices. Upgrades are available to 1GHz processor, 20 GB hard drive, 8x CD-RW and DVD-ROM.
- The Key to Freedom is a memory module the size of a key and is based on CyberKey technology. It plugs into a USB port on any Windows-based computer and transforms it into a FreedomBox. The module has a storage capacity that ranges from 128 MB to 1GB, and allows users to load personal files from one computer to be accessed later from any other computer (or PDA) with a USB port. The Key to Freedom also comes with 128-bit encryption software to ensure data security. It doesn't require any special drivers as long as the computer's operating system is later than Windows 98. Appropriate drivers can be downloaded from the FreedomBox Web site. Currently, the 128 MB Key to Freedom is priced at $149, the 256 MB version at $249.