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Volume 15, No. 3, Fall 2007 |
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The AT Bargain Basement
Marvin Williams, AT Specialist
New Castle County ATRC
Hello true believers, and welcome to another installment of the AT Bargain Basement. I am Marvin Williams, your host for this inexpensive assistive technology extravaganza. To all of you regular Basement readers, welcome back! If this is your first time joining us, welcome! What took you so long? No matter, there are plenty of bargains to go around. Here's how things work. I bring you as much AT priced under $100 as I can find. You are more than welcome to participate in the parade of bargains by sending along any that you may find so that I can report them here to the rest of the group. With that being said, let's get to the bargains!
My first bargain for you is the ACM Wallet. It is a handy credit card holder that can make it much easier for someone who normally has problems getting out a credit card or drivers license to remove it with ease. To take out a card, you simply push the button corresponding to the card forward and the card slides with it. It comes in a six card version ($39.99) and a 12 card version ($59.99). It is available directly from the company at www.acmwallet.com. So now instead of fighting those cards, they can be a button press, or rather slide, away!
My next bargain is a peddling exerciser. While riding a bicycle can be a great source of aerobic exercise, it is not always convenient or safe for everyone. People who have balance issues may not be able to safely ride a bicycle, and unless you live where you can safely ride without worrying about traffic or road conditions, cycling may be out for you. Enter the pedal exerciser. These little things are great in that they are relatively low-cost (under $20 in some cases), lightweight (about five lbs.), and really portable and easy-to-use. All you do is place it on the floor near wherever you're sitting, place your feet on the pedals and in the straps, and start pedaling! These units are also great for those who need exercise but cannot use their legs to get that aerobic boost. Simply place the exerciser on a sturdy table, grab the pedals, and start pedaling with your hands! The prices on these things are all over the place. The manufacturer's suggested retail is around $55. However, I have seen them priced as low as $16.95. There are also various manufacturers for these pedal exercisers. Some have resistance settings while others do not. What they all have in common is that they are all bargains and all readily available from a number of sources. Wal-Mart online carries the Carex model for $39.76 and Dick's Sporting Goods carries two of the models made by Stamina Instride for $29.99 and $49.99. The $16.95 model is a Drive Standard available from www.allegromedical.com. As usual, if you are not one to shop on the Internet but can do catalog ordering, feel free to contact me at the New Castle County ATRC for information so that you can call a company to order one.
Next up are stick-on LED lights. These handy little lights, sometimes called puck lights since they resemble hockey pucks, are low-cost, lightweight, and can be placed almost anywhere. Many have adhesive backing so all you have to do is peel the backing and stick it up wherever you want it. The nice thing about these lights is that they don't require the ability to operate a switch to turn them on or off. If you can press the light, you can operate it. It's as simple as that. You can get a five pack at Home Depot for under $20. Now, the light given off by each unit is not as bright as an individual lamp, but it may be just enough to act as a night light or to light a small dark room if regular lighting is not available or easily accessible. If you need more light, you may want to consider a plug-in light. However, do keep in mind that you may need access to an outlet and the ability to operate a smaller switch. You can find both the puck lights and their larger alternatives at Home Depot, Lowe's, Wal-Mart, and Target, among other places.
My final bargain in this edition of the AT Bargain Basement is one I've brought to you before: the Wordlock. This combination lock is different from regular combination locks in that the combination is a word of the user's choosing instead of a series of numbers that might not have any meaning at all to the user. This is a great little lock for those with memory problems or anyone who has problems remembering seemingly random information. Lowe's has the Master Lock version available for about $7.50. The original Wordlock is also available in a few different styles. The big difference between the Master Lock version and the Wordlock is the Master Lock incorporates numbers in the combination while the Wordlock does not. Other than that, the locks are not that different.
And that will do it for another edition of the AT Bargain Basement. Come back next time for even more bargains. If you find any of your own bargains, please feel free to send them in so that we can all share in the bargain goodness! So until next time, remember, just because it's a bargain, doesn't mean it's cheap!
