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by Editors of TopTenReviews.com
While we often criticize TopTenReviews.com's reports in other categories, its report on voice recognition software provides direct, clearly referenced comparisons between multiple, currently available… products. Although the individual reviews vary somewhat in detail and depth, the editors do a good job of identifying the strengths and weaknesses of each program and the resulting rankings are logical and well supported. One shortcoming is that the voice recognition capabilities of Microsoft Vista (or Windows 7) are not included here, although the site does address them in a separate review.
by David Pogue
David Pogue, an unabashed voice recognition enthusiast, tests Dragon's NaturallySpeaking version 10, observing that the program is taking "voice control unmistakably closer to that holy grail of computing."… Having also evaluated previous iterations of NaturallySpeaking, as well as MacSpeech Dictate and Windows Vista's voice recognition program, Pogue offers some comparative insights alongside objective results from his tests.
by David Pogue
The first half of this article is devoted to the new Mac version of Microsoft Office; the second half covers MacSpeech Dictate, which David Pogue says is based on Dragon NaturallySpeaking. MacSpeech Dictate… is extremely accurate in Pogue's sole test of the beta version. He is very impressed with it and confident Mac users will appreciate it. Still, Pogue concedes it isn't quite as good as Dragon. One of the differences is that Dictate lacks voice correction.
by Michael Muchmore
Don't let the title fool you -- this seemingly single-product review is actually a very thorough, richly detailed head-to-head between Dragon's NaturallySpeaking version 10 and Windows Speech Recognition.… Michael Muchmore puts each program through a series of increasingly complex tests in transcription, system navigation and web browsing. Though both perform admirably, Dragon outshines Windows Speech Recognition on accuracy, speed and customizability. With Windows Speech Recognition being a free option for anyone who already owns the Vista operating system, Muchmore poses the question whether is it worth $120 to buy Dragon's superior program. He concludes that for anyone who plans to use voice recognition technology in a serious way, it is.
by Simon Williams
Simon Williams compares Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 to the previous version. He is complimentary of the program overall, commenting that for skilled users it likely can result in the threefold increase in… efficiency (over traditional typing) that the manufacturer claims. Voice recognition speed and accuracy -- "the core functions of any speech recognition software" -- are both improved over its predecessor. Some serious criticism is aimed at the Bluetooth headset that's included in this package, however. Still, Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 Preferred Wireless earns the site's Recommended award.
by John Brandon
by Glen Salzman
This review is exclusively devoted to Windows Speech Recognition. In that regard, it's good and exceptionally informative. The shortcoming is the absence of a needed comparison with Dragon -- vague… references to "the competition" are inadequate. Salzman reports the system resource usage of Vista's application and advises, "Without good hardware, the response time for Speech Recognition can become unbearable." With that caveat, he endorses the software.
by Aoife M. McEvoy
PC World's cursory review focuses mainly on accuracy and on whether or not NaturallySpeaking 10 is enough of an improvement to merit an upgrade from version 9. Reviewer Aoife M. McEvoy compares the two… versions, but doesn't compare NaturallySpeaking to any other voice recognition software. For users who can live without advanced system commands, McEvoy recommends the lower-priced Standard or Preferred editions of NaturallySpeaking rather than the Professional version used in her review.
by Nate Anderson
by Elsa Wenzel
Version 10 of NaturallySpeaking performs ably, though not perfectly, in CNET's evaluation. Reviewer Elsa Wenzel notes improvements over version 9 in terms of speed and command shortcuts, but finds that… version 10 continues to struggle with some monosyllabic words, as did preceding versions 8 and 9. Additionally, Wenzel also documents some significant difficulties installing NaturallySpeaking on a Windows Vista system, and is displeased with the quality of the included headset microphone.
by Steve Pavlina
Personal development blogger Steve Pavlina is a fan of voice recognition's potential for maximizing productivity, even if he is less than enthused with most currently available software. In his… dissatisfaction with Dragon NaturallySpeaking, he decides to try Windows Speech Recognition and is pleasantly surprised. Pavlina finds that the program is more accurate than other (unidentified) systems on the market, though its reliability falters when used in conjunction with non-Microsoft programs.
by Jeff Muendel
by Contributors to Amazon.com
Customer reviews of various editions of Dragon NaturallySpeaking, IBM ViaVoice and Dictate on Amazon.com are detailed and insightful. Various versions of Dragon NaturallySpeaking are by far the most popular… products, but they earn mainly mixed reviews. The majority of dissatisfied customers write that they had installation problems and found Nuance's customer service to be sorely lacking; several contributors who liked version 9 found that version 10 could not be installed correctly on their PCs. ViaVoice and Dictate aren't as well liked. Many reviewers give all the products either the best possible or worst possible rating.
by Lecia Monsen
Although Windows Speech Recognition is not included in TopTenReviews.com's report on top voice recognition software, it is covered separately in this brief review. Lecia Monsen describes the voice… recognition capabilities of Vista as superior to "many" of those ranked on the site's voice recognition software matrix. There's no indication of how Windows Speech Recognition should rank, however, though Monsen lists accuracy, speed, features and program support as reasons to be impressed with the module.
by Kirk McElhearn
Kirk McElhearn delivers a balanced assessment of MacSpeech Dictate's pros and cons in this noncomparative review. As an accomplished typist, McElhearn quickly becomes frustrated with the speech recognition… program's learning curve and is disenchanted by time-intensive editing processes. Even so, he also finds that Dictate offers good out-of-the-box accuracy and would be beneficial to slower typists or anyone with mobility limitations.
by Aseem Kishore
IT systems analyst Aseem Kishore provides a brief overview of three competing speech recognition applications for cell phones: Tellme, Vlingo and Nuance Voice Control. He describes how each program… functions, with limited comparative scope: he writes that Vlingo is "probably better than Tellme" but offers no other direct comparisons between the applications. Tellme and Vlingo are both designed to work on BlackBerry phones, while Nuance's service -- the only one of the three that is not free -- is compatible with Windows Mobile devices, BlackBerrys and Palm devices.
by David Pogue
David Pogue tests Yahoo's OneSearch With Voice, a free mobile application designed to allow BlackBerry users to perform voice-controlled web searches on their phones. He calls the program "an amazing… start," indicating that he likes that the service is entirely automated (as opposed to ChaCha, a service with the same intention that relies on human searchers on the other end of a toll-free phone line), but dictation errors and search shortcomings undermine OneSearch With Voice's claims of convenience.
by Editors of GadgetUserBlog.com
This short, anonymous blog post provides a favorable evaluation of the version of Windows Speech Recognition included in the new Windows 7 operating system, finding its "accuracy and ease of use are greatly… improved." No further detail is given on how the program is tested or compared to the previous version. Most of the remainder of the commentary is devoted to the general value of speech recognition technology. The writer concludes that Windows Speech Recognition is "on par" with Dragon's, though the frame of reference is unclear.
by Jim Hatley
In this single-product review, voice recognition skeptic Jim Hatley tests Nuance Dragon's NaturallySpeaking program with included Bluetooth headset. Hatley admits to not using the navigation commands often,… finding it easier to resort to manual clicking, but otherwise is highly impressed. He makes no direct comparison to competing voice recognition products, but indicates that the Dragon program is better than any others he's used (whichever those may be).
by "Jazzy1120"
This very brief, blog-like review is submitted by an e-Speaking user who relies on voice recognition due to physical limitations. After an unsuccessful attempt to install a budget-priced edition of Dragon… NaturallySpeaking and a frustrating process of being unable to obtain any other Dragon or competing voice recognition product at an affordable price, this contributor downloaded e-Speaking online for a 15-day free trial and ultimate price of $14. The contributor is pleased with e-Speaking's dictation and web browsing capabilities, and recommends obtaining a good quality microphone to improve accuracy.
by Charlie White
by Jacob Schulman
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