I’ve been asked what speech to voice dictation software I use and after trying plenty, I settled on Otter which is an App that I have on my phone, but it links to my desktop which makes it so easy to use and copy into any CRM or other software.
When asked to review any software or products it is all about functions and ease of use.
In this brief Otter review I have focused on the positives as I really could not find many negatives.
Setting Up Otter
Setting up a new Otter account is extremely straightforward and shouldn’t take more than a few minutes.
To get started, all you need to do is create a free account. CLICK HERE
You can connect with your Apple, Google, or Microsoft login, or you can create a new account by entering a few basic personal details.
If you’re using Otter on your smartphone, you will also need to download the app from the Android Play Store or Apple App Store.
Then on desktop devices you just log in to your new account and start using the web interface.
Once you are set up you can start using straight away.
Simple To Use
The smartphone App is super easy to use with a big (and obvious) button to start a recording.
You can use it as a dictation machine to record a summary of a meeting or just your thoughts. I will often dictate notes of meetings straight afterwards to ensure that I have a record and do not forget things. I will also use it to record thoughts or for things that I have to remember, especially when I’m in the car and can therefore not easily write something down.
There are many more options if you want to link to Zoom and other software.
For all the more advanced features there is a good Help Centre that you can access from within the App.
How Much Does Otter Cost?
You can use Otter with a limited number of features for free with the Basic plan, but I have gone for the Pro option which gives the ability to “teach” the system 200 names + 200 other terms which I have found makes the difference especially when we are talking about New Zealand where we have many Maori names which most transcription software struggles with.
It also has 4-hours transcription per conversation versus 40-minutes in the free plan, and this has been important when recording trainings and presentations.
There are other features too, but those are the ones that I believe are most important to me anyway.
The Pro plan costs USD$8.66 monthly or about USD$100 per year.
How Good Is The Speech To Voice Dictation?
I’ve tried a few options with speech to voice dictation and most struggle to get the transcription correct for my Kiwi voice and especially the Maori names that we use all the time for place names, street names and various business and organisation names too.
I have found that Otter is pretty good, and with the Pro option it gives the ability to “teach” the system 200 names + 200 other terms which has been great.
The other thing that I like is that it syncs quickly with the desktop web interface so I can easily make corrections on the spelling when needed, and before I copy and save into the CRM or other software.
I have found too that I will often dictate things rather than type them as it is faster and means that I can get more done. Even this blog post was mainly dictated using Otter and then I copied and sorted from the desktop web interface.
My Otter Review In Summary
I like this software and use it every day.
It’s not expensive and is a huge time saving App to have in your business toolbox.
Use my link HERE and I get a free month added to my plan, or just try out the free version to see what you think.