Dictation equipment

Digital dictaphone reviews

2010-01-09T07:06:00.000-08:00

This is meant to be the best Internet resource for digital dictaphone. When buying such a equipment, there are many questions that you might need information on. If so, read on to find the answer to your dictation equipment questions.

How does digital dictaphone works

A dictaphone basically records the voice of the user. The recording is fairly basic. You simply press the record button, speaks into the dictaphone and the device will automatically record the speech. Once the recording is done, the equipment will convert the recording to a file which can then be uploaded to a computer. This is where a lot of things can be done to enhance your productivity and efficiency. The file can be manipulated so that it can shorted into a concise version for communication. It can also be sent to various parties via email, which improves a company's communication channel. Finally, the file can be stored and saved for further usage.

Benefits of digital dictaphone

The most important reason for buying a dictaphone is to enhance the workflow of the organisation and helps to improve the productivity. Before the dictaphone, a recorder needs to joint down the meeting minutes, convert them to a digital file by typing them out in a word document, edit them before emailing them out for information purposes. With a dictaphone, the first two steps can be removed as you simply needs to speak into the device and it will convert your speech into a software file. This alone can save the organisation lots of time and effort.

Another less obvious benefit is the ability to then organise these files. On most models, the files can be stamped with information about their time of recording, the categories, and the ID of the recorder. This sorts the files to be sorted according to these filters, which helps tremendously in the retrieve of information later on.

Digital dictaphone comparisons

There are a number of brands in the market for these digital dictaphone. Sony and Olympus are the leading brands here that most people are familar with. If you want to know about these brands and the various models they offer, I suggest you read my previous post where I have done extensive reviews on these two brands:

Olympus digital dictation equipment review
Sony digital dictation equipment review

If you want to compare the two brands, here is a rough summary. For prices, sony dictaphone tend to be more expensive as per the norm for all Sony products. In terms of performance, there are no clear winner among the two brands. Most of their models have strengths and weakness so it is realy up to the user to determine which feature is the one that suits them the most. Again, if you want information on the different models, I suggest you read the posts that I have linked above.

Where to buy digital dictaphone

You can buy these devices at most of the local retailers and electronic stores. However, they might not offer the model you want. For a more comprehensive selection, the best way is to go online. Places such as Amazon offers a wide selection of models that you can select from. Not only that, they have detailed reviews from actual buyers that can help you determine which model best fit your purposes.

Cheapest digital dictaphone

Buying online also enable you to find the cheapest prices available. Nowadays, with price comparison tools, you can easily which site offers the best dictaphone deals. For example, Google products offers you a clean and intutive interface to navigate your product search. At one glance, you can see which site is offering dictaphone for sale and discounts.

You can also get a cheaper device via second hand places such as Ebay if you don't buying a used dictation equipment. If you are intending on buying a second hand equipment, you need to be careful that you are not getting a faculty product. You need to make sure the seller is a reputable seller, with good reviews by other buyers. You also need to ask the seller about the condition of the device to make sure it has no obvious faults. If you don't ask, the responsibility becomes yours, not the seller.

Olympus digital dictation equipment voice recorders

2009-12-14T04:30:00.000-08:00

Olypmus digital dictation equipment is one of the more popular voice recorders in the market, next to the Sony digital dictation equipment. This post will review some of the better models in the market and also give you some tips on where to buy both new and used dictation equipment online.

Olympus ds 4000
This models work very well and does what it is suppose to do. Overall, it is a good product and works effectively. The battery life is excellent, with options for you to lower the sound quality and increasing its battery life. The voice recording itself has very good quality, enabling you to hear all the meeting proceedings.

The only weakness is that the build is not tough. You can't drop this digital dictation machine or else the fragile compartment doors for the battery will tend to be spoilt. Once it is damaged, it is difficult to use the device as the battery tend to slip off its container without the door covering the opening. In fact, with the door, the battery would not even recharge, meaning you can't use it once the current power runs out. Other than this, the Olypus ds4000 is a solid voice recorder and can pick up the voices in the room quite effectively. Prices wise, it is in the hundreds range and is slightly more pricey than what the rest of the devices cost. However, during sales period, you can buy the ds4000 for discounts.

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Olympus ds 40

The Olympus ds40 is a the upgrade to the WS 300/310 range. It improves upon its predecessor greatly and has all the good qualities for a functional voice recorder. DS-40 is a stereo microphone jack which supports an optional remote control / microphone jack and is where the external stereo microphone is plugged in. Curiously, Nuance in their Dragon testing of the DS-30/40/50 writes that this recorder does not accept an external microphone.

The Olynpus ds 40 can be used as a digital voice recorder, a music player, an audiobook player, and a podcast player. For a digital voice recorder, it is great. For the rest, it is acceptable and the quality is not as good as pure music player for example.

As a recorder, it has excellent sound quality, impressive voice guided menu, easy to read display, great performance and key response, and is a great size and can conspicuously be put in your shirt pocket. It records to WMA files and can be plugged into your computer via USB as a USB drive. Overall, it is a great digital dictation equipment.

The only drawback is its limited control. Besides delete and and move, there is no other option for your to manipulate the sound recordings. There is also no supply case which means you need to buy an additional case.

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Olympus DS61
The device is easy to use, compact and very sensitive mic. The sound quality is amazing! The VCVA feature works awesome. Like all good voice recorders, it can pick out sounds coming from right across the room. When played back, the sounds are crystal clear and are great for any dictation work.

Overall it has a lot of features but it has some shortcoming. Most notably, it lacks any kind of edit functions, such as erase, overwrite, insert and append. These are essential for a recorder at this price point.

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Hope you find this review post useful for you in buying olympus digital dictation equipment voice recorders.

Sony digital dictation equipment buy

2009-11-14T19:13:00.000-08:00

One of the best selling dictation recorder is the Sony digital dictation equipment. Buy a set a few months ago and have found the performance to be excellent. If you want to see how this piece of dictation equipment performs, read on to find out more!

Sony has a wide range of models, from the types that use micro casstess tape to the more up to dated digital dictation devices. Here is what I look out for when buying dictation equipment:

- Battery power: I look for good solid recording hours. I want something that I can pick up and use.
- Recording quality: I want something that can record sounds clearly and pick up the sound at a fair distance
- Design: I look for an interface that is comfortable to hold, easy to navigate and preferably has a bigger screen to see more information
- Price: My budget is around less than $100 dollars. If the quality is really good, I don't mind paying a bit more and I wouldn't buy anything above $150 dollars.
-Portable: I want a portable dictation equipment. I certainity don't want something that is bulky and difficult to carry around
-Digital: It is digital for all the way for me. I can't imagine not being able to transferred the sound recording to my computer and working on them.

Here are the digital models that I have researched upon before making my purchase. Consider them my digital dictation equipment reviews:

Sony icd MX20

This is one for the pros and the high price reflects that quality. If you are looking for crystal clear recording, this is the model for you. Its standout feature is the large memory. It uses both 32M flash memory as well as a slot for sticking your usb memory stick. That will give you more than sufficient space for any length of recording. This is the model that I bought and I must say the software is superb with nearly 100% accurate voice recognition. My dream has been to be able transcribe dictation from a recorder to a finished document and this allows me to do it a fraction of the time.

Design wise, the controls are very well laid out. All of the switches on the sides can be manipulated with one hand and a flip of the unit is required to maneuver the Hold switch on the back

In terms of drawbacks, it suffers the same problem as the rest of the Sony machines which is a lack of support for Mac machines. The dictation equipment is also a bit smooth and slippery and there is the danger of dropping it if you are not careful.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE REVIEWS

Sony ICD P720
This is the latest model that is on the market since January 2009 and is also their best selling item on Amazon. It has a native SHQ format, which I believe stands for Super High Quality and is worth about 260 hours of playback time which should last you quite a while. It is PC compatible but Mac users are out of luck as far as transferring digitally to their computers. For Vista users, there is a software called Digital Voice Editor, which has a lot useful features such as being able to play back the files at variable speeds, as well as automatic file deletion on the dictation equipment once they have been transferred to the machine. Memory wise, it has about 1 GB of flash memory. It also comes with a stereo recorder as well as microphone.

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Sony ICD P620 and P520

These 2 models are the predecessors to the p720. A lot of features are similar to what was describled above except with the following drawback. Battery life wise, they are shorter and I would recommend you to purchase a rechargable battery. The screens on these two models are also smaller, which make adjustiing the setting a bit troublesome. However, they can still great at picking out sounds. If you have a lower budget, this 2 models are worth considering if you don't some minor drawbacks as described above.

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Sony ICD ux70
This is a great value for money model that I would recommend for people on a budget. The ICDUX70 records directly to the internal memory which can be easily read and written to by any computer that has USB just like a flash card. This is one of the exception model that can work well with Mac. The recording is great and can be used for recording lectures, or meeting with ease.

Its greatest drawback is the short battery life. It tends to drain battery power even when put on HOLD model, which means the battery will be flat after a couple of days, regardless of whether you use it. Control wise, the interface can be better improved as I feel the current buttons are too small for my fingers. Unfortuantely, it doesn' include, Dragon Naturally Speaking, which is a great software for text translation.

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Where to buy cheap sony dictation equipment
Prices of these machines have been coming down for a while down. That is due to cheaper production costs as well as better technology. Compared to 5 years ago, it is entirely possible to buy one at a price of less than $50 (not the Sony brand of course).

To get the best price, it is good to go to places like Amazon and use their price comparison to check out what is the best price you can get. Sometimes, during sales, there are very good discounted prices that will help you save some money.

I recommend you to go online and make your purchase rather than your local retailer like Walmart, Sears or Target. This is because you can scan prices more effectively and there are second hand or used dictation equipment or machine for sale as well. Sometimes, these machines are fairly new as people might want to get rid of them after 1-2 uses or they might be gifts that the person doesn't find too useful. Anyway, for whatever reasons, you can consider these used dictation equipment if you are really on a budget.

I hope you don't find this review to be too long and is now equipped to know how to buy Sony digital dictation equipment.

Dictation equipment birmingham

2009-11-08T05:22:00.000-08:00

Look for dictation equipment Birmingham? This post will tell how to look for one and what are the things to look out for when buying such an equipment. Hope this buying guide will be useful to you.

Most businesses currently need such a equipment to copy with the increased amount of paperwork that one faces in our knowledge based office. Using a dictation equipment can save lots of time in terms of needing to write papers and minutes. When used correctly, they can help to shave as much as 50% off your administrative workload.

Before venturing off on your purchase, finalise on the budget you will be spending this equipement. For your budget, you might want to include accessories such as microphones, headphones, foot pedalss, power cords etc that will make the most out of the machine. Also, you might want to decide to have a digital dication equipment or an analogue version. For me, I recommend the digital version as you have more flexibility in terms of being able to better manipulate the files for later use.

In terms of where to find places that sell dictation equipment in Birmingham, there are a couple of options you can take. First is to look through local listing in your newspapers. Typically, if there are any sales of cheap dictation equipment dr used dictation equipment, they will be listed there and you can pick out some good bargains along the way. You can also refer to the local Yellow pages.

However, I prefer to shop online. Not only can you find more options, but there are plenty of tools which you can leverage on to find cheap dictation equipment. One such tool is the price comparision feature. On sites like Amazon or Nextag or Google product search, you can see at one glance the different prices that are offered from a variety of sites. Through this, you can easily find the cheapest price online. Moreover, you can find more models and options for you to consider.

When shopping online, the important thing is to know where to look. Most turn to Google and I am no different. The trick is to know where to type in that search box. Most people looking for dictation equipment would just type that in but if I am only interested in results that are relevant to Birmingham, then I would use dictation equipment brimingham instead so that Google shows only results from this region. Be smart when you are searching and you will waste less time and resources in finding that exclusive discounted equipment.

One final note when buying a dictation equipment online is to look out for a return or warranity policy. This is to safeguard you again interior products or products that are damaged during shipping. Such policies are what made online shopping so secure and greatly expand upon your horizon so that you no longer need to just look at these equipment in your local area.

I hope you have enjoyed this post on dictation equipment birmingham.