Tool Type
Who Uses It?
Difficulty
Accessibility Info
NotebookLM has several accessibility issues that students and teachers should know about before using it. Many parts of the tool do not work if you only use a keyboard, which means users cannot reach certain buttons on pages like Chat, Mindmap, and Studio without a mouse. Also, keyboard focus does not always move correctly inside pop-up windows on the Mindmap page, making it hard to find your way around. Screen reader users will face challenges because images on the Mindmap page lack text descriptions and some page titles do not clearly explain what the page is for. Additionally, many headings are not labeled correctly in the code, and text colors often do not have enough contrast, making them hard to read for people with low vision. If you zoom in to 200%, some information gets cut off or overlaps on pages like Chat and Mindmap.
Another major issue is that audio files created in the Studio section do not have written transcripts, so people who are deaf or hard of hearing cannot access that information. Users who use voice commands might also have trouble because some buttons are not named in a way that computers can recognize. For documents in different languages, screen readers may mispronounce words because the tool does not always label different languages correctly. Finally, the tool often fails to announce important status updates or error messages automatically, which means screen reader users might miss key information while they work.
Tool Description
Google offers a smart research tool that acts as a "thinking partner" to help users handle lots of information. It is designed to use your own files, like PDFs, websites, and videos, to give you answers you can trust. One of its best features is that it shows you exactly where its information comes from by providing quotes and citations from your sources. It can also explain hard ideas in simple ways and help you create study aids like flashcards or presentation outlines. Additionally, the Audio Overview feature can turn your notes into a podcast-style talk so you can listen and learn on the go. Overall, NotebookLM serves as a digital assistant for synthesizing and managing academic research.
Cost/Licenses
How to Get or Use This Tool
Access NotebookLM’s website and select Try NotebookLM and sign in with your school email account.
Platforms
Tool Resources
Pros
- It only uses the sources you load into the notebook. Accuracy of responses is based on the accuracy of your sources.
- Useful study aid to quickly generate and change the format of content, including interactive quizzing, flashcards, and more.
- Provides links to the source material to show the sources of quotes and information it provides in it’s repsonses.
- Limited to no training of AI with user data. School accounts should not be used for training at all, but precautions should still be taken.
Cons
- The accessibility of the tool is more limited and may not be suitable for the students' required use in class.
- Unsuitable for sensitive data, even if chats are not used to train models.