|
MacSpeech Dictate (Mac/Leopard) | 
 enlarge
| From: MacSpeech
Category: Software
List Price: £179.95
Buy New: £119.99
You Save: £59.96 (33%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  19 reviews
Sales Rank: 167
Platform: Mac Os X
Media: CD-ROM
Operating System: Mac OS X
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5.8 x 2.6
UPC: 806709380074
EAN: 0806709380074
ASIN: B0014FHK1W
Release Date: March 21, 2008
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 14 more reviews...
 Putting the other reviews in perspective November 3, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
The many mixed reviews of this product may have confused potential buyers, so what I want to try and do with this review is put them in perspective so that you will have the necessary facts to buy (or not buy) with total confidence.
First of all, many of the negative reviews have come from people who either didn't know that they needed an Intel-based Mac or who had a very slow older system. You need an Intel Mac running at 2.0Ghz or above with 2Gb of RAM. Without this, the program will struggle.
Second, voice recognition is still in its infancy, because all such programs are incredibly processor intensive. What the software is trying to do is to interpret speech by making educated guess on what you're saying based on phonetics and vocabulary context. In other words, your computer is making a massive amount of calculations every second as you speak using complex algorithms. We're still two or three chip generations from perfect speech recognition hardware, let alone software. So when you buy software like this you are inevitably running up against the limits of computer hardware. If you're prepared to accept the lack of perfection as a natural consequence of all such products being at the bleeding edge of technology, you can judge it for it is, rather than what it cannot yet be.
Thirdly, many people just aren't used to speech recognition as a means of date input. Some people think better when they type, others as think better as they speak. Dictation doesn't work for some people. If you are one of them, don't criticize Dictate for your own shortcomings!
In many ways, Dragon Naturally Speaking is better than Dictate. (Dragon has just released version 10 which is now more efficient and reliable rather than changing the interface etc.) but you have to put up with the limitations of Windows and Vista. Frankly, as a recent PC to Mac convert, I would prefer to use MacSpeech Dictate with OSX than Dragon on Windows Xp or Vista. This is because the Mac interface is so good and Dictate integrates VERY WELL into it.
If you use MacSpeech Dictate on a new iMac or MacBook Pro, you should encounter no problems either with installation or use. Yes, the Company's support is not great. For this reason, it loses a star. But overall, it does do what it says on the tin:
1. Easy to install - on a system with right technical specifications
2. Easy and quick to train - while some British regional accents will cause it problems, speaking the Queen's English won't.
3. Easy to use - once you're up and running, you'll forget about it and simply focus on the task at hand
Of course, what you dictate using Dictate will not be 100% right nor as accurate as Dragon 10 on Windows, (which is why professional writers may prefer the Dragon/ Windows option). But, for whatever reason you use this software, with MacSpeech Dictate, even when you've corrected whatever you've input, you will still be faster than if you had typed the whole document.
So, I do recommend this product and hope these comments help you decide whether it is right for you.
 Far better than expected . . . October 30, 2008
Having suffered the inadequacies of earlier versions of speech recognition software based on Dragon, I was pleasantly surprised with the quality and accuracy of this product. It was quick and easy to install, required minimal "training" for my voice and it understands vocal commands across a whole range of programs. I only bought it out of desperation because I have limited use of my right arm and typing with only my left hand was driving me crazy; this little package has enabled me to continue writing, although not surprisingly, it does stumble on some proper nouns and technical terms. I was also surprised to find included a decent Plantronics microphone which comes with a USB adapter for easy connectivity.
MacSpeech works particularly efficiently with Scrivener, a marvellous program which I use exclusively for all my writing. I avoid Word except for exporting finished documents. I can also use this software with Skype and Adium messaging without any problems. I can't quite understand why some people have had such nightmares setting this up and working with it. In fact, the negative reviews nearly put me off buying it. I'm glad I ignored them!
Great value for money. The only word of caution is to make sure the microphone is turned off before wandering away from your Mac -- if it can still hear your voice, MacSpeech will try and follow as many commands as it can pick up, even if you're in the next room. I discovered this to my amusement when I found several thousand words had been typed, without my realising it, covering my side of a telephone conversation.
This review was input totally using MacSpeech Dictate on an iMac running Leopard.
 Product not ready October 3, 2008
Despite extremely good basic word recognition this product is simply not ready. If you, like me, have been using Dragon NaturallySpeaking you will be overwhelmingly disappointed. This program is currently primitive, by comparison, to the point of being positively neolithic. Few of the sophisticated features of the Dragon programme exist. Worse the inability of the programme to correct itself or be trained effectively make it a real pain in the neck. All sorts of upgrades are said to have been promised. They are desperately needed.
 Misleading the public October 1, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Nowhere on any of the information on your site does it say that this software only works with Intel-based Macs. It actually says you need Mac OSX Leopard, so I had it installed specifically so I could run this. Check out all the info you have available: nowhere does it say, "Only Intel chip Macs." Even on the box, once it arrived and I'd tried unsuccessfully to install it, there is only a tiny 2-point message under system requirements. This is a major differentiating requirement: there are loads of Macs out there that are not Intel based and it appears to be promoted as if it works on any of them that are OSX 10.5.1 or above. Needless to say, with the disks out of the box, I can no longer get a refund. I am seriously considering reporting the business to Trading Standards for such misleading promotion. If it only works on Intel, You need to SAY SO IN BIG LOUD CAPITALS - EVERYWHERE. I am spitting feathers (in case you didn't notice).
IMPROVEMENT? October 1, 2008
0 out of 6 found this review helpful
I bought MacSpeeches previous effort, called iListen. I found it very poor - a waste of 119. Despite repeatedly trying to train on it, the performance was never better than inconsistent and poor. It should not have been on the market. I hope their latest effort is an improvement and a big one.
G
|
|
|
Thank you for shopping ExcelBookstore.co.uk! | |
