GoTalk® Start
Communication App
$19.99 · In‑App Purchases
Attainment has been making augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) tools for 25 years. Our experience is front and center in GoTalk Start, a flexible, easy-to-use, yet powerful communication app for people who have difficulty speaking.
As the name implies, GoTalk Start is a great way to start using your iPad for AAC. Built on the framework of Attainment’s full-featured GoTalk NOW, GoTalk Start has all the essentials of an effective AAC app, like adjustable page layouts, customizable navigation, recorded and text-to-speech capabilities, and an included symbol set. Choose from over 60 ready-to-use, high quality text-to-speech voices in 30 languages! So why is GoTalk Start less expensive than GoTalk NOW? Because GoTalk Start is limited to five Communication Pages and doesn’t offer the sharing capabilities of GoTalk NOW. If you need more Communication Pages or the ability to share, simply upgrade your GoTalk Start to full GoTalk NOW Features via an in-app purchase.
The new Start offers three styles of communication pages: Standard, Express, and Scene. In Standard pages, the action occurs when the location is pressed. In Express pages, recorded or text-to-speech messages build in a speech bar and play in sequence when the bar is pressed. Scene pages are built around a single photo or image. When you arrange invisible hotspots over people or objects in the photo, the hotspots play speech, music, or videos! Feel free to mix and match pages within a communication book.
Create a communication book with unique settings and up to 5 pages in length. Envision the impact of blending video, music, and jump to actions among your pages. How cool is it to have access to 30 different text-to-speech voices, in a variety of different languages! Plus, GoTalk Start is a full-feature scanning app!
Features:
• Choose 1, 2, 4, 9, 16, or 25 locations per page.
• Ability to create multiple books with unlimited pages via in-app purchase.
• Use images from your iPad camera, photo library, or the Imagine Symbol set.
• Search the Internet in-app for the perfect image or icon.
• Purchase SymbolStix or Widgit Symbols libraries in-app.
• Crop, scale, or rotate an image using your fingers.
• Combine multiple images in a single communication location.
• Color pages, borders, and text with any hue.
• Move and size text with your fingers so it feels just right.
• Record your voice or use our free text-to-speech voice.
• Access 30 different text-to-speech voices, in an assortment of different languages.
• Add spoken labels (auditory cues) to any button. Great for scanning, guiding visually impaired users, and identifying any new or difficult vocabulary.
• Trim videos in-app, and play them from any communication location.
• Select our alternate video interface to pause or exit the video easily.
• Link songs from your playlist to any communication location and control them with Pause/Play, Next, and Previous.
• Include a core vocabulary button for extra quick access to important messages.
• Create multimedia social stories and step-by-step instruction layouts by linking pages with an after action.
•In-app purchase allows for back up of communication books via Dropbox or to any Mac or PC for safekeeping.
• Store and share interactive templates (each including speech, video, text, and jump to links) on our online gallery via in-app purchase.
• Download and edit premade templates from Attainment’s collection on the public gallery available via in-app purchase.
• Print and save communication book layouts via PDFs.
• Access Start with single or two-switch scanning.
GoTalk Start participates in Apple's Volume Purchasing Program for Education in the United States.
Attainment is well known for top-notch customer service. Email us with questions or comments and check our website for free webinars. And yes, we're happy to talk to you on the telephone!
more Upgraded Go talk Start but it will not update to my computer itunes so I can not update my special needs daughters iPad. Pointless! I can not evenre download it from itunes, blocked out. Frustrating!
Upgraded Go talk Start but it will not update to my computer itunes so I can not update my special needs daughters iPad. Pointless! I can not evenre download it from itunes, blocked out. Frustrating!
Very clear speech and great selection of standard pictures to supplement photos. I find it very easy to create the board. I have tried other speech programs and they can be complicated to program and use by handicapped person. We also have a Go Talk 20 for use at my daughters group home. That is very easy to set up and use also. Thank You
Very clear speech and great selection of standard pictures to supplement photos. I find it very easy to create the board. I have tried other speech programs and they can be complicated to program and use by handicapped person. We also have a Go Talk 20 for use at my daughters group home. That is very easy to set up and use also. Thank You
• Fixed a bug that was causing some communication books not to save properly
7.0.6 Oct 19
• New Quick Start guide is added to the Help section
• After Action for Jump To is restored in the Quick Editor
• Improved Scanning stability, including after playing a video
• Sound it Out buttons work correctly on Express Pages
• SF symbols now save with transparent background
• When in Hebrew, the swipe navigation direction is consistent
• Stability improvements throughout
7.0.5 Oct 1
• Fixed a bug that caused some text-to-speech voices to reset after restarting the app.
7.0.4 Aug 12
• An updated User Guide is available in the Help section
• Bug fixes and improvements throughout
7.0.3 Aug 5
7.0.1:
• A brand-new Color Picker, one picker, everywhere. Two simple tabs: Swatches and Spectrum. If you used the old swatch picker, everything is right where you expect it.
• New "49 Core Words Enhanced" book added to Downloads.
• Image Library Manager gains Move to Top / Move to Bottom for quick reordering.
• Support for opening "Let's GoTalk About It" templates
• New pages inherit the current page's background color, so building a consistent book is faster.
• GoTalk NOW Lite and GoTalk Start can no longer get stuck in a state where the app has more than 5 pages.
• Various bug fixes and improvements throughout.
7.0:
Our biggest update ever is here!
GoTalk NOW has been rebuilt from the ground up to help SLPs, teachers, and families create Communication Books faster than ever. Here's what's new:
Smart, optional AI assistance: On supported iPads, Apple Intelligence helps speed up your work without taking over. Build complete Activity Boards from a quick description, get button text suggestions tailored to each page, find better images with smarter search, and let CARA suggest replies based on what's being said in the room. Every AI feature is optional, runs entirely on-device, and never sends your data anywhere.
The all-new New Book Creator: Set up a complete Communication Book in minutes. Create a profile, choose a grid, share a bit about the communicator's life, and GoTalk NOW builds a personalized book ready to use.
A reimagined Page Wizard: Three powerful ways to build a new page: generate a focused Activity Board, start with a blank grid, or pre-fill with the buttons you already use across your book.
Quick Editor and Batch Editor: Edit one button or forty-nine at once. The new Quick Editor puts everything you need in a single popup, and the Batch Editor lets you change colors, fonts, text, and more across multiple buttons at the same time.
Sound it Out: A brand-new action for early literacy. Tap a button and watch the word float to the center of the screen, sounded out one segment at a time, with each piece highlighted as it's read. For best results, use with Recorded Audio messages. TTS support for English only.
Better Keyboard Pages: A redesigned full-screen keyboard, smarter word prediction, sentence-starter shortcuts, and a saved Phrases folder. Plus CARA, our new Conversation-Aware Response Assistant, listens to the conversation and suggests responses in real time.
Smarter Scene Pages: Save the faces of family members, classmates, and friends, and GoTalk NOW will recognize them in new photos and place hotspots automatically. All processing happens on-device.
Vocabulary Reports: A powerful new tool for SLPs and educators to analyze the vocabulary in a Communication Book, track progress, and make informed decisions about what to teach next.
Export to GoTalk Connect: Send any page directly to a GoTalk Connect device over Bluetooth, with a matching printable overlay ready to go.
Open Board Format support: Import OBF and OBZ files from anywhere in the AAC world and use them as templates in your books.
Online template gallery: Browse our full template library at Gallery.GoTalkNOW.com from any device, and download directly to your iPad with one tap.
We've put a lot of love into this release and we hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed building it!
7.0.1 Jun 10
Our biggest update ever is here!
GoTalk NOW has been rebuilt from the ground up to help SLPs, teachers, and families create Communication Books faster than ever. Here's what's new:
• Smart, optional AI assistance: On supported iPads, Apple Intelligence helps speed up your work without taking over. Build complete Activity Boards from a quick description, get button text suggestions tailored to each page, find better images with smarter search, and let CARA suggest replies based on what's being said in the room. Every AI feature is optional, runs entirely on-device, and never sends your data anywhere.
• The all-new New Book Creator: Set up a complete Communication Book in minutes. Create a profile, choose a grid, share a bit about the communicator's life, and GoTalk NOW builds a personalized book ready to use.
• A reimagined Page Wizard: Three powerful ways to build a new page: generate a focused Activity Board, start with a blank grid, or pre-fill with the buttons you already use across your book.
• Quick Editor and Batch Editor: Edit one button or forty-nine at once. The new Quick Editor puts everything you need in a single popup, and the Batch Editor lets you change colors, fonts, text, and more across multiple buttons at the same time.
• Sound it Out: A brand-new action for early literacy. Tap a button and watch the word float to the center of the screen, sounded out one segment at a time, with each piece highlighted as it's read. For best results, use with Recorded Audio messages. TTS support for English only.
• Better Keyboard Pages: A redesigned full-screen keyboard, smarter word prediction, sentence-starter shortcuts, and a saved Phrases folder. Plus CARA, our new Conversation-Aware Response Assistant, listens to the conversation and suggests responses in real time.
• Smarter Scene Pages: Save the faces of family members, classmates, and friends, and GoTalk NOW will recognize them in new photos and place hotspots automatically. All processing happens on-device.
• Vocabulary Reports: A powerful new tool for SLPs and educators to analyze the vocabulary in a Communication Book, track progress, and make informed decisions about what to teach next.
• Export to GoTalk Connect: Send any page directly to a GoTalk Connect device over Bluetooth, with a matching printable overlay ready to go.
• Open Board Format support: Import OBF and OBZ files from anywhere in the AAC world and use them as templates in your books.
• Online template gallery: Browse our full template library at Gallery.GoTalkNOW.com from any device, and download directly to your iPad with one tap.
We've put a lot of love into this release and we hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed building it!
7.0.0 May 19
New in 6.1.2
• Stability improvements for iPadOS 26
New in 6.1.1
This update includes several bug fixes:
• Resolved a display issue where Express Page buttons would not display their right-side borders (after updating, you’ll need to toggle Express Pages off and back on to realign them)
• Adjusted the Express Bar layout for better alignment on certain iPad screen sizes
• Addressed a scanning error that could cause the scan to become unresponsive when using the Jump To List or Quick Buttons
• Ensured that imported Recorded Audio files now save correctly
New in 6.1.0
• Over 20 new Acapela text-to-speech voices available for purchase
• Added language support for French, Hindi, Korean, Lithuanian, Russian, and Vietnamese. To change the language go to the Settings app; Settings > Apps > GoTalk NOW > Preferred Language
• Made some visual updates to the Button Editor and Action Editor
• Fixed a bug where images would display black instead of transparency
• Fixed a scanning bug where the scan would stop after watching a video or visiting a URL
• Various fixes and improvements throughout
6.1.2 09/29/2025
New in 6.1.1
This update includes several bug fixes:
• Resolved a display issue where Express Page buttons would not display their right-side borders (after updating, you’ll need to toggle Express Pages off and back on to realign them)
• Adjusted the Express Bar layout for better alignment on certain iPad screen sizes
• Addressed a scanning error that could cause the scan to become unresponsive when using the Jump To List or Quick Buttons
• Ensured that imported Recorded Audio files now save correctly
New in 6.1.0
• Over 20 new Acapela text-to-speech voices available for purchase
• Added language support for French, Hindi, Korean, Lithuanian, Russian, and Vietnamese. To change the language go to the Settings app; Settings > Apps > GoTalk NOW > Preferred Language
• Made some visual updates to the Button Editor and Action Editor
• Fixed a bug where images would display black instead of transparency
• Fixed a scanning bug where the scan would stop after watching a video or visiting a URL
• Various fixes and improvements throughout
6.1.1 09/12/2025
New in 6.1.0
• Over 20 new Acapela text-to-speech voices available for purchase
• Added language support for French, Hindi, Korean, Lithuanian, Russian, and Vietnamese. To change the language go to the Settings app; Settings > Apps > GoTalk NOW > Preferred Language
• Made some visual updates to the Button Editor and Action Editor
• Fixed a bug where images would display black instead of transparency
• Fixed a scanning bug where the scan would stop after watching a video or visiting a URL
• Various fixes and improvements throughout
6.1.0 07/24/2025
New in 6.0.15
• Fixed a bug that prevented searching for symbols via keyword.
New in 6.0.13
• Fixed a bug that prevented adding new pages to certain Communication Books.
• Fixed a bug that had some PCS Symbols not displaying correctly.
• Fixed a bug that would cause the Wifi Transfer to occasionally freeze.
New in 6.0.12
• Improvements for general iPadOS 18 stability, including restored access to some app settings in the iPad’s Settings app.
• Restored the ability to pair with a Google account for backing up & restoring books.
• Fixed an issue where duplicating certain pages would cause an app crash.
• Fixed an issue where importing a page from another book would cause an app crash.
• Fixed an issue where some settings would unexpectedly affect other books.
6.0.15 01/21/2025
New in 6.0.14
• Fixed a bug that prevented adding new pages to certain Communication Books .
• Fixed a bug that had some PCS Symbols not displaying correctly.
• Fixed a bug that would cause the Wifi Transfer to occasionally freeze.
New in 6.0.12
• Improvements for general iPadOS 18 stability, including restored access to some app settings in the iPad’s Settings app.
• Restored the ability to pair with a Google account for backing up & restoring books.
• Fixed an issue where duplicating certain pages would cause an app crash.
• Fixed an issue where importing a page from another book would cause an app crash.
• Fixed an issue where some settings would unexpectedly affect other books.
6.0.14 01/16/2025
New in 6.0.12
• Improvements for general iPadOS 18 stability, including restored access to some app settings in the iPad’s Settings app.
• Restored the ability to pair with a Google account for backing up & restoring books.
• Fixed an issue where duplicating certain pages would cause an app crash.
• Fixed an issue where importing a page from another book would cause an app crash.
• Fixed an issue where some settings would unexpectedly affect other books.
New in 6.0.11
• Fixed a bug where Communication Books created on larger iPads would not display properly when using on a smaller iPad.
6.0.12 10/28/2024
New in 6.0.11
• Fixed a bug where Communication Books created on larger iPads would not display properly when using on a smaller iPad.
New in 6.0.10
• Fixed a bug where scanning would automatically select the first button a page.
• Fixed a bug where synced buttons would not display properly on 12.9 inch iPads.
6.0.11 06/26/2024
New in 6.0.10
• Fixed a bug where scanning would automatically select the first button a page.
• Fixed a bug where synced buttons would not display properly on 12.9 inch iPads.
6.0.10 04/23/2024
New in 6.0.9
•Bug fixes.
New in 6.0.8
• New voices from Acapela are available for purchase.
• Expanded the viewable area of the Button Editor when on a 12.9 inch iPad.
• Made some updates to various localizations.
• Improved integration with iOS system scanning.
• Fixed a bug where some Scene Pages wouldn’t transfer properly between iPads.
• Fixed a bug that prevented the use of Synced Buttons.
6.0.9 03/12/2024
New in 6.0.8
• New voices from Acapela are available for purchase.
• Expanded the viewable area of the Button Editor when on a 12.9 inch iPad.
• Made some updates to various localizations.
• Improved integration with iOS system scanning.
• Fixed a bug where some Scene Pages wouldn’t transfer properly between iPads.
• Fixed a bug that prevented the use of Synced Buttons.
New in 6.0.7
• The Restore Purchases button is once again available at the top of the Downloads window.
• Added the option to import audio files that you have saved on your iPad or in the cloud, including songs! While editing a button choose Recorded Audio, and then Import File.
• Added the option to build a Scene Page from a PDF! When creating a new page, select Import Scenes from PDF.
• You now can sort book pages alphabetically! In the Page Editor, select the Pages icon, then Edit, and then tap sort icon.
• While viewing your list of Communication Books you can now tap on the title bar to jump to the currently selected book. A handy tool for those with lots of Communication Books in their library!
• Fixed a bug where some Scene Pages would lose their background image and the hotspots would reset their size and location.
6.0.8 02/27/2024
New in 6.0.7
• The Restore Purchases button is once again available at the top of the Downloads window.
• Added the option to import audio files that you have saved on your iPad or in the cloud, including songs! While editing a button choose Recorded Audio, and then Import File.
• Added the option to build a Scene Page from a PDF! When creating a new page, select Import Scenes from PDF.
• You now can sort book pages alphabetically! In the Page Editor, select the Pages icon, then Edit, and then tap sort icon.
• While viewing your list of Communication Books you can now tap on the title bar to jump to the currently selected book. A handy tool for those with lots of Communication Books in their library!
• Fixed a bug where some Scene Pages would lose their background image and the hotspots would reset their size and location.
New in 6.0.6
• We’ve added support for Apple’s Personal Voice. With this new feature in iPadOS 17 you have the power to create your very own text-to-speech voice! Please note this feature is only available on the following devices: iPad Air (5th gen, 2022), iPad Pro 11 inch (3rd gen, 2021 or later), iPad Pro 12.9 inch (5th gen, 2021 or later).
• Internet Image Search now uses Google as the search engine.
• Improved legibility when iPad is set to Dark Mode.
• Fixed a bug where scanning would get stuck when navigating to a new page.
• Fixed a bug where Full Screen Scanning would not display correctly.
6.0.7 12/05/2023
New in 6.0.6
• We’ve added support for Apple’s Personal Voice. With this new feature in iPadOS 17 you have the power to create your very own text-to-speech voice! Please note this feature is only available on the following devices: iPad Air (5th gen, 2022), iPad Pro 11 inch (3rd gen, 2021 or later), iPad Pro 12.9 inch (5th gen, 2021 or later)
• Internet Image Search now uses Google as the search engine
• Improved legibility when iPad is set to Dark Mode
• Fixed a bug where scanning would get stuck when navigating to a new page
• Fixed a bug where Full Screen Scanning would not display correctly
New in 6.0.5
• Additional alternate keyguard layouts are available for 10.9 inch & 12.9 inch iPads
• A new setting is available for users who get locked into an alternate keyguard layout – use “Ignore Alternate Page Layouts” to get the app back to normal
6.0.6 10/27/2023
New in 6.0.5
• Additional alternate keyguard layouts are available for 10.9 inch & 12.9 inch iPads
• A new setting is available for users who get locked into an alternate keyguard layout – use “Ignore Alternate Page Layouts” to get the app back to normal
New in 6.0.4
• Fixed a bug where scanning pattern could get out of order.
• Fixed a bug where the Debounce feature would only work on part of the screen.
• Fixed a bug where the background image for Scene pages would change size between Player & Editor.
New in 6.0.3
• New Feature: control electrical appliances via connection to Pretorian’s iClick device! Simply plug your favorite appliances into iClick and control them directly in GoTalk NOW. Set a Button Action to iClick to get started!
• We’ve updated the app’s display to expand and fill the screen on modern iPads that lack a home button. No more black bars along the sides!
• We have options for those using keyguards to make sure things are still aligned after our screen size update. If things aren’t lining up go into the Page Editor, then Page Options and choose an Alternate Layout.
• We also have a new keyguard layout to pair with PRC-Saltillo’s Via Pro and Via Mini communication devices. These are also accessed in Page Options, then Alternate Layout.
• The Template Gallery now properly filters by language.
• We’ve improved support for backing up to Dropbox & Google Drive.
• Fixed a bug that would occasionally cause Auto Scanning to get stuck.
• Fixed a bug where hotspots on Scene Pages were not copying correctly.
• Fixed a bug where the Page Icon would appear above the menu bar and obscure buttons along the bottom of the grid.
6.0.5 10/06/2023
New in 6.0.4
• Fixed a bug where scanning pattern could get out of order.
• Fixed a bug where the Debounce feature would only work on part of the screen.
• Fixed a bug where the background image for Scene pages would change size between Player & Editor.
New in 6.0.3
• New Feature: control electrical appliances via connection to Pretorian’s iClick device! Simply plug your favorite appliances into iClick and control them directly in GoTalk NOW. Set a Button Action to iClick to get started!
• We’ve updated the app’s display to expand and fill the screen on modern iPads that lack a home button. No more black bars along the sides!
• We have options for those using keyguards to make sure things are still aligned after our screen size update. If things aren’t lining up go into the Page Editor, then Page Options and choose an Alternate Layout.
• We also have a new keyguard layout to pair with PRC-Saltillo’s Via Pro and Via Mini communication devices. These are also accessed in Page Options, then Alternate Layout.
• The Template Gallery now properly filters by language.
• We’ve improved support for backing up to Dropbox & Google Drive.
• Fixed a bug that would occasionally cause Auto Scanning to get stuck.
• Fixed a bug where hotspots on Scene Pages were not copying correctly.
• Fixed a bug where the Page Icon would appear above the menu bar and obscure buttons along the bottom of the grid.
6.0.4 09/08/2023
New in 6.0.3
• New Feature: control electrical appliances via connection to Pretorian’s iClick device! Simply plug your favorite appliance into iClick and control them directly in GoTalk NOW. Set a Button Action to iClick to get started!
• We’ve updated the app’s display to expand and fill the screen on modern iPads that lack a home button. No more black bars along the sides!
• We have options for those using keyguards to make sure things are still aligned after our screen size update. If things aren’t lining up go into the Page Editor, then Page Options and choose an Alternate Layout.
• We also have a new keyguard layout to pair with PRC-Saltillo’s Via Pro and Via Mini communication devices. These are also accessed in Page Options, then Alternate Layout.
• The Template Gallery now properly filters by language.
• We’ve improved support for backing up to Dropbox & Google Drive.
• Fixed a bug that would occasionally cause Auto Scanning to get stuck.
• Fixed a bug where hotspots on Scene Pages were not copying correctly.
• Fixed a bug where the Page Icon would appear above the menu bar and obscure buttons along the bottom of the grid.
6.0.3 07/31/2023
New in 6.0.2
• Bug Fixes
6.0.1
• We’ve updated the app’s display to expand and fill the screen on modern iPads that lack a home button. No more black bars along the sides!
• The Template Gallery now properly filters by language.
• We’ve improved support for backing up to Dropbox & Google Drive.
• Fixed a bug that would occasionally cause Auto Scanning to get stuck.
6.0.2 05/30/2023
English
New in 6.0.1
• We’ve updated the app’s display to expand and fill the screen on modern iPads that lack a home button. No more black bars along the sides!
• The Template Gallery now properly filters by language.
• We’ve improved support for backing up to Dropbox & Google Drive.
• Fixed a bug that would occasionally cause Auto Scanning to get stuck.
6.0.1 05/24/2023
New in 6.0.0
• We’ve updated the minimum requirement of the app to iPadOS 12. This will give us more flexibility to further enhance and improve the GoTalk NOW experience. Including:
• We’ve made some improvements to how image files are saved in newly-created Communication Books and as a result the file size of your books should be much smaller! This improvement is only available on certain iPads: iPad (6th generation or later, 2018), iPad Air (3rd generation or later, 2019), iPad Mini (5th generation or later, 2019), iPad Pro 10.5 inch (2017) or later.
6.0.0 01/23/2023
• Fixed a bug that was causing some communication books not to save properly
more Version 7.0.6 Oct 19
Data Not Collected The developer does not collect any data from this app.