Victor Reader Stream (New Generation)

My husband, who is visually impaired, had a large reader which required an electric outlet and was too large to carry and use at any appointments. The Victor reader is much easier to carry and use. Now he can put it in a shirt or jacket pocket, not have to find an electric outlet, and listen to his books while waiting for his various appointments. This is valuable for both of us since he does not get impatient while waiting. Therefore, I can also relax!

This product is a real prize for those of impaired or no vision. It's a powerful little gadget that gives those people more access to more of the world. The quality of the product plus what it will do makes it a bargain! The Humanware Companion software for pc that interfaces with the unit is great and it's free!

First off, I *love* my Victor Reader Stream. It is hands down the best handy tool for the blind/low vision community as far as carrying audio books, music, podcasts, text files, and audio notes, at least in my opinion. The navigation features can be a little hard to figure out at first, so it's probably not the best tool for young children or older adults who aren't familiar with technology. But the additional power you get by being able to sort files into folders and navigate relatively complicated data structures is totally worth it, so long as you are able to get over the hump. I have an iPhone with voice over, too, but it's just not that convenient for listening to things while you are walking around the house, on the go, or falling asleep at night. I use my Victor Reader every day, and I pretty much never leave the home without it.My one concern, and others have touched on this in the reviews, is that the quality of the manufactured product may be going down somewhat. This is why I took off a star. I got my first VR Stream over a decade ago; it was the original model, and after 4 years, the external audio failed. I still keep the original around and use it from time to time, and it is still going strong. In 2014, I got the new model of the VR Stream,which had a lot of very nice upgrades from the original; this one lasted for 5 years before just bricking on me. Given how much I used it, that was more than the lifespan I would have expected. However, I just replaced the VR Stream that I purchased in 2019 after 2.4 years of use, which seems too soon to me. For reasons I don't understand, several keys on that model seem to have just gone haywire.I just got my fourth VR Stream this week, and I've got my fingers crossed that it will last at least 3 years...

Excellent device of persons who are blind or otherwise visually impaired for reading books, listening to radio, music, and much more digital sound. Works very well for downloading books for the blind from the Library of Congress through BARD as well as local libraries.

Too difficult to use. No instructions. Has potential to be a great product if instructions were included.

Major fail. Device is very difficult to get setup unless you are very technically savy. It is not designed for elderly, much too complex.Return policy of 30 days, by Hearmore, was not obvious. Amazon will not cooperate with retuning and seller won’t cooperate. It was less than 60 days when I realized we needed to return. Not at all satisfied.

See title.

Functionally, the Stream really works for me – it's loud enough, the navigation is straightforward and is pleasant to use for the 5.books I read each week.The Stream I am now using is my fifth (2 first generation, 3 new generation.) In that, friends, is the rub.The Victor Reader Stream is singularly unreliable!! Not only is it unreliable, but the manufacturer is arrogant, unhelpful and thoroughly unpleasant to do business with. For example, last week it quit in the middle of the firmware update. I called Humanware Technical Support and went through the troubleshooting process with them – the troubleshooting totally failed in the device is the fifth DOA. They generously (?) Offered to fix it for $96. From past experience I know that this process takes from 2 to 4 weeks and at that they may not (at their sole discretion) may still not fixed it.As a consequence of what I perceive to be their total disregard for reasonable customer service I have spent my last penny on Humanware products.But for the functional excellence. I would have given this product one star.