Many people like to use voice recognition software because it makes them feel like they are living in the future. It may not be what you would picture when you think of the word “future” though. There is no flying cars or laser beams shooting out of your fingers (well, I don’t know about your fingers), but there is voice recognition software.
This article will be dedicated to that computer feature that allows the user to speak without pressing buttons or clicking with a mouse. You can dictate into Microsoft Word, dictate into Google Docs, and dictate into Notepad if you wanted too!
Dictate in Word for Office 365
If you have a subscription for Office 365, launch Microsoft Word and open a document. Position your cursor where you want to start dictating. Click the Dictate icon on the Home Ribbon. The first time you do this, Word may ask for permission to use your microphone. Grant permission and you can start speaking.
Dictate words, punctuation, and specific actions, such as “new line” and “new paragraph.” You may want to dictate just a few sentences or a single paragraph at a time and then stop so you can review your text for any mistakes. To stop dictating, press the Dictate icon again.
After activating the tool, click the Settings icon on the small Dictate window at the bottom of the screen. Here, you can turn on Auto Punctuation so your dictation automatically includes periods, commas, and other marks without you needing to speak them. You can also turn the profanity filter on and off. With this filter on, any profane words show up as a series of asterisks.
You can also dictate text in other languages as well. Click the Settings icon on the Dictate window. Move to the command for Spoken Languages and choose the language you wish to use.
Dictate in OneNote
You can dictate text in two different versions of OneNote. Either go to Office on the web and choose OneNote, or use the OneNote Windows 10 app. In either version, open a OneNote document and click the Dictate button on the Home Ribbon, then start dictating. Click it again to stop. Click the Down arrow to see other languages for dictation.
Dictate in Word For the Web
If you’re using Office on the web, head to the website and sign in with your Microsoft Account. At the main Office screen, click the icon for Word. Open a document and click the Dictate icon on the Home Ribbon and dictate your text. When finished, click the icon again to turn off Dictation. To see other languages available for dictation, click the Down arrow next to the Dictate icon and choose the language you’d like to use.
Dictate on Your Mobile Device
Your iPhone, iPad, and Android devices offer built-in dictation features accessible from the keyboard. These tools support Microsoft Office apps and other text-based programs.
To dictate text in an Office document, tap in any area to display the keyboard and select the microphone icon. You can then dictate to your mobile device. Tap on any area of the screen to stop the dictation.
Available Tools for Dictation
Microsoft Dictate
Microsoft’s Dictate is here to prove that the even best text to speech software can be free and be just as good as premium software. Created by Microsoft Garage (a division of the company where employees get to work on their ideas as projects), this feature-rich application boasts the same advanced speech recognition technology that powers the Microsoft Cortana Virtual Assistant.
Dictate is essentially a Microsoft Office add-on and works well with Word, PowerPoint and Outlook. You can install it from the Microsoft store if you don’t already have it pre-installed with a copy of Microsoft 365. Once installed, you can access it through the “Dictation” tab that shows up in the top right of the Ribbon toolbar. The app supports voice commands for most standard operations such as typing or editing text, moving the cursor to a new line and adding punctuations either manually or automatically.
Furthermore, the app offers features such as visual feedback to specify that it is processing speech input. Microsoft dictates also supports dictation with real-time translation 60 different languages. Microsoft Dictate is compatible with Office versions 2013 and above and works well with Windows versions 8.1 and above.
Apps Compatibility: Windows devices only
Price: Free
Download Link: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/garage/profiles/dictate/
Winscribe
Best for legal, health care, law enforcement, education, and other professionals to dictate text on Android and iPhone devices.
Winscribe is a dictation software company based in New Zealand. This dictation software is owned by Nuance, which allows you to transcribe and review documents on your smartphone. It also provides documentation workflow management to organize dictated text. It is available in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and the US.
Features:
- Dictation
- Supports Android, iPhone, PC, and Blackberry devices
- Document management
- Data encryption
- Reporting
Verdict: Winscribe is a speech recognition and document management application for professionals. Using the software allows the staff to be more productive. The price is affordable for medium and large corporations.
Price: Winscribe transcription service costs start at about $284 per user per year (or $24 per user, per month) for one to nine users. Discounts are available for larger workforce. A free trial is also available to test the features of the software.
Website: Winscribe
Speechnotes
Best for dictating text online for free.
Screennotes is online dictation software that lets you type using your voice. You can also insert long texts with just one tap. It supports multiple languages including English, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Chinese, Hindu, Urdu, Turkish, Bahasha, and many other languages. You can also order a professional transcribing service at $0.1 per minute.
Features:
- Fast speech recognition
- Works on any website
- Keyboard shortcut for start and pause
- Custom text stamps
- Export to Google Drive
Verdict: Screennotes is simple and easy to use online tool for dictating text. It is great for dictating texts on websites including Outlook and Gmail.
Price: Basic version is free of cost. The Premium add-free chrome extension costs $9.99 that comes with the additional feature of dictating on any website.
Website: Speechnotes
e-Speaking
Best for using voice command to control windows without using a keyboard or mouse.
e-Speaking is a dictation tool that allows you to control the Windows operating system. You can use the voice application to replace the keyboard and mouse. It allows you to open applications, browse windows, and create documents with voice commands.
Features:
- 100+ built-in commands
- 26 dictation voice command variation
- Integrate with Office
- Based on Microsoft SAPI speech engine
- Compatible with Windows XP, Vista, Win7, and Win8
Verdict: e-Speaking offers great value for money. It is an excellent app for Windows devices to dictate letters and emails and control the operating system.
Price: Full version costs $14. You can try the software for free for 30 days.
Website: e-Speaking
Gboard
Best for Android phone users to dictate speech, glide typing, and handwriting.
Gboard is an easy-to-use keyboard application for android users. The android app allows you to do a lot of things such as dictate text, swipe-style input, and emoji search when chatting.
Features:
- Voice typing
- Emoji and GIFs search
- Multilingual support
- Gesture cursor control
Verdict: Gboard is a simple and easy-to-use dictation software for Android phone users. The smartphone dictation app is an alternative to keyboard input. However, the shortcoming of the dictation software is that the customization and dictation features are limited.
Price: Free.
Website: Gboard
Windows 10 Speech Recognition
Best for Windows users to control the operating system and create documents.
Microsoft included the speech recognition feature for the first time in Windows Vista. All the subsequent releases also contain a speech recognition feature. The Windows 10 speech recognition feature is much better than its previous iteration with enhanced speech recognition. You can train the speech recognition software to recognize your voice.
Features:
- Launch applications
- Dictate text
- Navigate windows
- Use in place of mouse or keyboard
Verdict: Windows 10 speech recognition is simple and easy to use the feature. You can set up a speech recognition feature to control the operating system and create documents through voice command.
Price: Free.
Website: Windows 10 Speech Recognition
Otter
Best for transcribing voice conversations for researchers and students.
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Otter is a responsive dictation software with high accuracy. The software boasts of AI technology called Ambient Voice Intelligence (AVI) which allows it to learn as you speak. It also supports team collaboration features such as sync with zoom, share voiceprints, and user management.
Features:
- Live transcribe
- Share voice
- Record conversation
- Ambient Voice Intelligence
Verdict: Otter is a great dictation software for students and teachers alike. The only shortcoming of the application is the transcription limit. You cannot transcribe a lot of documents using the software.
Price: Otter is available in three packages. The Essential Otter version is free that contains basic features like record and playback, live transcribe, user identification, summary keywords, share audio, and text notes, and sync with Zoom Cloud. It supports a maximum transcription of 600 minutes at 40 minutes per month.
The Premium version costs $8.33 per user per month that allows a maximum transcription of 6000 minutes with 4 hours per month. It supports premium features such as import audio, documents (PDF, DOCX, SRT), custom vocabulary, skip silence, sync with Dropbox, and bulk import and export.
Teams version costs $20 per user, per month that has additional team collaboration features such as live notes for Zoom, team vocabulary with 800 names, and 800 additional terms, shared speaker voice prints, time codes, and usage statistics. Educational institutes are offered a 50 percent discount on the regular price.
You can also request a custom Enterprise plan. Here are the details of the different packages.
Website: Otter
Tazti
Best for Gamers to control games and users to control the operating system.
Tazti is one of the best dictation software that is packed with features. The software has built-in speech commands. You can also add up to 300 commands to control the operating system and games.
Features:
- Control games with voice
- Navigate websites and files
- Over 25 built-in speech commands
- Add up to 300 speech commands
- Compatible with Windows 7, 8, 8.1, and 10.
Verdict: Tazti has an uncomplicated and easy user interface. It offers great value for money due to excellent features at a relatively lower price than top-of-the-line competitors.
Price: $80.
Website: Tazti
Honourable Mentions
Google Docs Voice Typing
Google Docs has now become an integral part of the lives of most content writers. Especially if already a google services user. So if you use Google products such as Gmail and Google Drive, and need an in-built, powerful, yet free dictation tool, consider using Google Docs or Google Slides and make use of their Google’s Voice Typing tool. It enables you to type with your voice and make use of over 100 view commands meant explicitly for editing and formatting your documents in any way you like. Including making bullet points, changing the style of the text, and moving the cursor to different parts of the material.
To use Voice Typing through Google Docs, all you have to do is click on the “Tools” button and then select “Voice Typing” then allow Google access to your laptop or PC’s microphone.
Compatibility: Any Google Chrome compatible device
Price: Free
Download Link: https://www.google.com/docs/about/
4) Otter
Otter can be used for taking notes and as a collaboration app that records and transcribes any audio source as long as the speech is coherent. Common data sources include meetings, interview and other voice interactions with data processing in real-time. Created by AISense, Otter uses Ambient Voice Intelligence for some of the smartest and most accurate speech recognition tools out there. Transcriptions are available within minutes so you can share them with your team almost immediately.
Compatibility: Android and iOS
Price: Free 600 minutes/month; $9.99 for 6,000 minutes/month
Get it from: https://otter.ai/login
Speechnotes
Based on the Google speech-recognition engine, Speechnotes is a straight forward online tool for dictations and speech transcription. Since downloads, registrations or installations are unnecessary to use Speechnotes, so it is by far one of the more accessible dictation tools available on the internet.
Speechnotes is incredibly user-friendly too — it automatically capitalises the beginning of your sentence, AutoSaves your documents, and has the option for you to dictate and type all at the same time. You’re your work is complete; you can manage your documents in a multitude of ways. You can either send it out through email, print and file it, export it to Google Drive, or download the files onto your computer.
Compatibility: Any device with Google Chrome installed and a microphone
Price: Free with an option to donate and upgrade to premium
Download Link: https://speechnotes.co/
Conclusion
As typing is not something that most children will pick up naturally, you might want to consider using dictation software for pc with your child. This way they can learn how to type by focusing on the words themselves rather than trying to remember the layout of the keyboard itself.