Purchase a recording device according to your needs

There are many options available on the market when it comes to voice recording devices. Of course, there are also a number of factors that you have to consider before buying one.

The best way to limit your options is to ask yourself what you will be using the device for. Journalists or attorneys who are always on the go might want to choose digital pocket voice recorders that are lightweight and easy to carry around.

Professionals in the medical field on the other hand might prefer a device that can be used with voice recognition software.  These recorders will typically record in a .ds2 audio format, which is ideally suited to  use with Nuance Dragon Medical, Professional, and Legal.  While you can run the recordings of lesser devices through Dragon, accuracy will suffer.  The slightly higher cost of a professional dictation device would quickly be recovered by shortening the editing time required in the finished document.

Many professionals are still unaware that with the right dictation machine, they can dictate, drop the recorder in it's cradle and have a text document automatically produced from the recording.  Once set up properly this requires little to no interaction from the user.

If you are looking to record conference, meeting or interview, however, your needs are very different.  In this case, you should look at digital recorders that record in stereo format.

Stereo recordings are helpful because, during playback, you can use your balance adjuster to listen to only the voices picked up by one channel independent of the other.  In a conference or meeting environment, many times multiple people will be speaking simultaneously, or back and forth.  This can make transcription, or extraction of the meeting minutes difficult.

By simply sliding your playback balance control to the left, you will hear all that was recorded on that channel, then simply back up, using your footswitch, and listen to the other channel.

If your voice recording needs are few, and perhaps you just want to record thoughts, lists, or the occasional lecture, then a personal recorder  may fit the bill.  Small, light and inexpensive, these are perfect for the occasional user and student.


One of the issues we see daily is users who purchase the wrong device for their needs.  Usually, in an effort to save a little money, buyers actually cost themselves more in the long run.

Information and products in all voice recording fields are available at American Dictation Corp. a national leader in dictation, transcription, and speech recognition technologies.