Communication aids help people to communicate with people around them in various ways. They use different levels of technology to produce communication. In the simplest form this can be the use of photos, pictures and symbols which can be placed in books or charts and pointed to by the user. These are usually referred to as no-tech aids because they are non-electronic

Communication aids that produce a sound ('voice') are often referred to as Voice Output Communication Aids (VOCAs). These are structured into three main categories; low, mid (or medium) and high-tech. Definitions of these vary largely according to where you are reading, but the basic premise is that they all require a source of power (battery or electrical) and the more complicated a device the higher the technology level and programming/training required to use them. The cost of the devices also tends to follow this logic; the more technology the higher the price.

Low-tech aids are generally very simple in operation, such as the pressing of a button which plays a recorded or synthesised message. Examples of these are the Big Mack, the 4talk4,

Mid-tech aids require an element of user set-up and can often be text-based, where the user has a keyboard to type messages which are then turned into voice output, or a device that has more than one 'level' of options per button. High tech aids are sophisticated pieces of technology incorporating such elements as touch screen usage. These devices can be extensively programmed to grow and develop with users changing needs.

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