Augmentative and Alternative Communication – AAC apps

After spending time in the iTunes store and reviewing the many apps that are available in the Education category and other categories as well, I selected the following 5 apps below which can address Augmentative and Alternative Communication needs of persons who are non-verbal or need assistance with verbal communication.

	Speech Button iPhone, iPod & iPad	Free Version and Paid $3.99	Designed by an SLP and school psychologist as an ACC AT to assist those with speech difficulties and non-verbal persons. The free version has 4 words that are spoken with the touch of an onscreen button -y es, no, more please, all done - while the paid version has 25 words. Very simplified compared to Proloquo2Go but can be used as a springboard to a more complex picture/text to speech App. web page describing app
	Discover MyVoice for iOS iPhone, iPod & iPad & Android	$49.99	An ACC app that is for persons who are non-verbal and of low cognitive ability. It is easy to set up, lets one record a voice or the device can read the message and personal pictures can be added to comprise a virtual picture board. Similiar to Proloquo2Go categories are added and the device will say a phrase or the item’s name. This app is promoting itself as being better than a paper picture board, and indeed it is. For the price, I believe it is a very beneficial ACC app. tutorial for app
	AAC Speech Buddy iPhone, iPod & iPad & Android	$39.99	This AAC app is designed to create customized, personalized speech communication sets; can add own pictures or use one of 2000 built -in images, 12 text to speech voices or use one of 12 built-in voices. Screen looks very similar to Proloquo2Go but again, the price is lower therefore a good value for the price. web page for SpeechBuddy
	Assistive Chat iPhone, iPod & iPad	$24.99	Assistive Chat is a predictive speech to voice typing app. The typed letter opens up a list of words to choose from or the words can be displayed prior to typing a keystroke.The typed sentences are then remembered in a list so that when touched they are voiced out loud by a selection of built-in voices. There are free software programs for the computer, such as MyStudyBar that have predictive text to speech but this app is portable on a device and a fairly good value for the cost. httpweb page for Assistive Chat
	I Click I Talk Compact iPad	$ .99	A very inexpensive AAC app that was created by an SLP and a computer scientist. The app comes with 70 images and preloaded audio files with the ability to record one’s own voice and add personal pictures or use the app’s ability to download free (1000) cartoon-like images. Text can be inserted below any image with the ability to create a maximum of 4 categories and 8 images for each category. Certainly a great price for AT persons who are non-verbal and need a visual portable layout on a device such as an iPad. web page review for I Click I Talk