Comprehensive AAC and environmental control software for Windows, supporting eye gaze, switch, touch, and pointer access. Around £550 with a 60-day free trial.
Grid 3 is different from everything else in this directory. It's AAC — augmentative and alternative communication — software for people who cannot speak, or cannot speak reliably. Rather than turning your voice into text, it gives you a voice: symbol and text grids you navigate by eye gaze, switch, touch, or pointer, which then speak for you. It also handles environmental control and full computer access, so one system covers communicating, operating the computer, and controlling the room.
At a glance
Vendor
Smartbox Assistive Technology
Platform
Windows 10 and later
Pricing
Around £550 (£660 inc. VAT) from UK retailers; varies by region and reseller
Access method flexibility is the whole point. Eye gaze, switch scanning, touch, and pointer, all first-class. For someone whose physical capabilities change over time — with a progressive condition, for instance — being able to change access method without changing software is genuinely important.
Ready-made vocabularies. Alpha Core, Fast Talker, and Text Talker cover different ages, literacy levels, and communication styles. Building an AAC vocabulary from scratch is enormous work, and starting from a good one matters.
More than communication. Environmental control and computer access in the same system, so one interface covers speaking, using a PC, and operating lights and doors.
A 60-day free trial. Exceptionally generous, and appropriate: evaluating AAC software properly takes weeks with a speech and language therapist, not an afternoon.
Established in AAC. Widely used and well supported by clinicians, which matters when provision usually runs through a therapist.
Where it falls short
£550 is a substantial outlay, and that's software only — eye gaze hardware costs considerably more again. Funding usually comes through health services, charities, or education budgets rather than out of pocket, and that process can be slow.
Windows only. Ties you to a Windows device, which constrains hardware choice for a system someone may depend on constantly.
Regional pricing is inconsistent. The £550 figure is UK retail. Pricing varies by country and reseller, and there's no clear global list price.
Setup needs expertise. Configuring vocabularies and access methods well is specialist work, normally done with a speech and language therapist. This is not install-and-go.
Not a dictation tool. If you can speak and want speech-to-text, this is emphatically the wrong product — almost any other entry here fits better.
Pricing
Around £550, or £660 including VAT, from UK retailers, varying by region and reseller. A 60-day free trial runs on any Windows PC or tablet.
Who it's for
People who cannot rely on speech to communicate — cerebral palsy, motor neurone disease, stroke, autism — and the therapists and families supporting them. It's a different category of tool from the rest of this directory. If you're here because you can speak but can't type, Apple Voice Control or Talon are what you want. If you can speak but your speech is hard for machines and people to understand, look at Voiceitt.
Last verified: 10 August 2026. Pricing is UK retail and varies by region; contact a reseller.
Similar to Grid 3
Grid 3: AAC software for people who communicate by eye gaze, switch, or touch – Dictation Database
Free, offline, full device control — and natural language is coming
Accessibility
Apple's built-in voice control for Mac, iPhone, and iPad. Works fully offline, costs nothing, and gains natural language input via Apple Intelligence in 2026.
