Control your computer by voice with speed and accuracy. Dragon speech recognition software is better than ever. Talk and your words appear on the screen. Say commands and your computer obeys. Dragon is 3x faster than typing and it's 99% accurate. Master Dragon right out of the box, and start experiencing big productivity gains immediately. Voice recognition technology has come a long way and is used for a variety of different applications like automotive, aerospace, law, etc. However, the healthcare industry is one of the few industries that rely heavily on voice recognition.

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1. What is speech recognition software?

Speech recognition software (aka voice recognition software) enables computers to interpret human speech and transcribe that speech to text, and vice versa. Speech recognition software can also power personal virtual assistants, facilitating voice commands that prompt specific actions. Speech recognition software applications include interactive voice response (IVR) systems, which route incoming calls to the correct destination based on customer voice instructions.

2. The benefits of speech recognition software

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• Faster documentation: According to a Stanford study, taking notes via dictation is three times faster than typing. Speech recognition solutions free up users to focus on important tasks rather than taking notes. As an example, medical practitioners can document patient visits/appointments without having to manually record each note. Customer service agents can document calls without typing, letting agents speed up the entire process of helping customers and improving overall customer service quality.
• Efficient note-taking: A common misconception around speech recognition solutions is that such tools are error-prone. However, as speech recognition systems approach near-human levels of accuracy, this concern has become virtually nonexistent. In fact, users now look at these solutions as a way to improve accuracy in their note-taking and documentation processes.

3. Typical features of speech recognition software

• Audio Capture: Record audio or import/upload audio files into the system.
• Automatic transcription: Transcribe voice messages and audio files.
• Multi-language: Recognize and support multiple languages/dialects.
• Speech-to-text analysis: Analyze, correct, and monitor speech for transcriptions or recordings.
• Text editor: Review transcribed text and make basic corrections (e.g., fix typos).

4. The cost of speech recognition software

Speech recognition software vendors offer a variety of pricing models based on factors such as duration of use, number of users, number of words, and audio duration.

Here are the most four common pricing models:

• Per user, per year/Per user, per month: Base plans start at around $39 per user, per year.
• Perpetual pricing (one-time license): Pricing for one-time licenses starts at around $100 per user.
• Per word: Pricing is usually around six cents per word.
• Per minute (audio): Some products also charge based on total duration of the audio being transcribed; this pricing is usually around eight cents per second.

^{*The pricing included in this table is for the entry-level/lowest priced offering found on vendor websites on September 12, 2018.}

5. Considerations when purchasing speech recognition software

• Mobile app: The proliferation of smartphones has turned mobile devices into indispensable business assets. As in other markets, mobile applications have made their way into the speech recognition software space with apps that let users take notes while on the go. Users can also connect mobile devices to bluetooth headsets and headphones with a microphone to facilitate easy dictation. Businesses with mobile workforces should shortlist products that offer mobile app functionality.
• Industry-specific needs: To maximize any speech recognition solution, you should use a system with features that meet your industry needs. Some speech recognition products are better-suited for specific industries. For example, medical practices require voice recognition solutions that support medical terminologies. Buyers should evaluate products that fit their industry-specific needs—including reading user reviews—and shortlist accordingly.
• Total cost of ownership (TCO): As shown in the pricing section above, speech recognition solutions are available in a variety of pricing models. Since the myriad of options can make direct pricing comparison difficult, buyers should estimate their business’ needs by calculating their number of words, audio duration, and user number to determine the TCO. Buyers should then use this estimated TCO to shortlist products based on their actual budget.

6. Relevant speech recognition software trends

• Speech recognition will integrate with smart devices: The internet of things (IoT) is one area where speech recognition software holds immense promise. Speech recognition software that integrates with IoT mobile applications lets users control smart devices using voice instructions. As speech recognition solutions become more and more accurate while businesses continue to embrace the IoT, expect to see increased integration between the two within the next five years.
• Voice-based bots is the next big thing: Another area where speech recognition technology holds promise is chatbots. When integrated with speech recognition technology, chatbots can emulate human conversations in customer-facing communications by listening to customer queries, interpreting them, and making recommendations. In the same way businesses have started using chatbots, expect similar adoption of voice-based bots within the next five to seven years.

Sources

Products evaluated for pricing calculation were taken from Capterra’s product catalog (sorted by “most reviewed”). The pricing ranges exclude freemium versions of the products. The features highlighted were identified based on their relevance and the percentage of products in Capterra’s directory that offer them.

The following sources were used for this document:

1. Top 5 Tech Trends for Small Business, Capterra (Date accessed: September 12, 2018)
2. Speech Is 3x Faster than Typing for English and Mandarin Text Entry on Mobile Devices, Stanford (Date accessed: September 13, 2018)
3. Google’s speech recognition is now almost as accurate as humans, 9To5Google (Date accessed: September 13, 2018)
4. The Past, Present, and Future of Speech Recognition Technology, The Startup (Date accessed: September 13, 2018)

Best voice recognition software

Read on for our detailed analysis of each app

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Voice recognition is a technology that has definitely come of age over the past decade.

With everything from Siri and Alexa now available as audio assistants, the ability for computers to accurately recognize and represent speech has now become an everyday reality.

Voice-to-text and text-to-speech applications have become common in the mobile app space, but for desktops there's surprisingly limited competition in the market.

This is a shame as this is one of the key areas where voice recognition can really develop, especially in a age where accessibility is key to an increasing number of people. And while voice recognition may be seen as a technology for those with additional needs, the truth is that when it works well it can be so much of a time saver, especially when it comes to typing up documents.

And because there's little need to wrestle with a QWERTY keyword, voice recognition software can be used to help prevent either the occurrence or development of Carpel Tunnel Syndrome, which can otherwise be debilitating to those who have to do large volumes of typing.

While voice recognition isn't yet perfect, the amount of time required to train the software to both recognize and work accurately with your voice is very much reduced these days.

So if you're looking for voice recognition software, take a look at the best that we've featured below.

• We’ve picked out the best free software for small businesses

• Want your company or services to be added to this buyer’s guide? Please email your request to desire.athow@futurenet.com with the URL of the buying guide in the subject line.

1. Dragon

Platforms: Windows, Mac Features: Voice commands, dictation, transcription

Dragon has long been regarded as ruling the roost when it comes to speech recognition on the PC, with a long line of quality products which work at a high standard. This is not least because of the ‘deep learning’ technology which helps the dictation software achieve greater levels of accuracy the more you use it, learning common words and phrases that you employ, and also adapting to background noise or your accent.

The latest Dragon speech recognition software has a higher baseline accuracy right out of the box, as well. Overall, we found it noticeably more accurate and responsive than older versions.

This software provides full dictation capabilities, as well as voice commands to control your PC (to open programs, navigate web pages and so forth – and note that you can dictate wherever you want, for example, in Gmail in your browser). It’s also built to work with touchscreen devices as required. All of this is included in the Dragon Home edition, which retails at $150.

Additional features are available with the Dragon Professional Individual upgrade, including the ability to create boilerplate forms or email signatures which can be inserted into a document with a single command. There’s also a transcription facility which can analyze an audio clip, podcast or similar, turning it into text. Furthermore, there are advanced custom command options available, plus the ability to synchronize your work with Android or iOS devices.

Dragon Professional Individual retails at $300, but there is also an enterprise package available for business groups which includes all these capabilities and makes them available for multiple users, along with additional integration features.

2. Dragon Anywhere

Benefit from dictation capabilities wherever you may be

Platforms: Android, iOS Features: Dictation, sync with Dragon Professional and cloud services

Dragon Anywhere is the mobile product for Android and iOS devices, however this is no ‘lite’ app, but rather offers fully-formed dictation capabilities powered via the cloud.

So essentially you get the same excellent speech recognition as seen on the desktop software – the only meaningful difference we noticed was a very slight delay in our spoken words appearing on the screen (doubtless due to processing in the cloud). However, note that the app was still responsive enough overall.

It also boasts support for boilerplate chunks of text which can be set up and inserted into a document with a simple command, and these, along with custom vocabularies, are synced across the mobile app and desktop Dragon software. Furthermore, you can share documents across devices via Evernote or cloud services (such as Dropbox).

This isn’t as flexible as the desktop application, however, as dictation is limited to within Dragon Anywhere – you can’t dictate directly in another app (although you can copy over text from the Dragon Anywhere dictation pad to a third-party app). The other caveats are the need for an internet connection for the app to work (due to its cloud-powered nature), and the fact that it’s a subscription offering with no one-off purchase option, which might not be to everyone’s tastes.

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Even bearing in mind these limitations, though, it’s a definite boon to have fully-fledged, powerful voice recognition of the same sterling quality as the desktop software, nestling on your phone or tablet for when you’re away from the office.

Nuance Communications offers a 7-day free trial to give the app a whirl before you commit to a subscription.

3. Google Docs Voice Typing

A nifty freebie nestling within G Suite

Platforms: Chrome browser, Android, iOS Features: Dictation

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Google has a free speech recognition facility built right into Google Docs (the word processor in G Suite).

The strength with Google’s voice solution is that it’s actually surprisingly accurate, particularly considering this is a freebie offering. If you’re happy using G Suite and want something for casual dictation which will cost you absolutely nothing, this is a great option to have.

However there is a caveat here, namely that you have to be using Google’s Chrome browser for voice to be supported on your desktop PC (Voice Typing can also be used with some Android and iOS devices).

Also note that this is purely for speech dictation within Google Docs, and the system doesn’t offer the likes of voice commands for the desktop. It’s all about dictating text, and issuing commands regarding formatting your document, but nothing outside that.

You can fire up the voice capability within Google Docs (remember, you have to be using the Chrome browser) by clicking on the Tools menu and then selecting Voice Typing.

4. Braina Pro

A virtual assistant for your PC

Platforms: Windows XP-10 Features: Voice commands, dictation, AI assistant, Android app for remote control of PC

Manual rns 315 navigation system. Braina is speech recognition software which is built not just for dictation, but also as an all-round digital assistant to help you achieve various tasks on your PC. It supports dictation to third-party software in not just English but almost 90 different languages, with impressive voice recognition chops.

Beyond that, it’s a virtual assistant that can be instructed to set alarms, search your PC for a file, or search the internet, play an MP3 file, read an ebook aloud, plus you can implement various custom commands.

The Windows program also has a companion Android app which can remotely control your PC, and use the local Wi-Fi network to deliver commands to your computer, so you can spark up a music playlist, for example, wherever you happen to be in the house. Nifty.

There’s a free version of Braina which comes with limited functionality, but includes all the basic PC commands, along with a 7-day trial of the speech recognition which allows you to test out its powers for yourself before you commit to a subscription. Yes, this is another subscription-only product with no option to purchase for a one-off fee. Also note that you need to be online and have Google’s Chrome browser installed for speech recognition functionality to work.

5. Windows 10 Speech Recognition

Microsoft’s desktop OS has fully integrated voice recognition

Platforms: Windows 10 Features: Voice commands, dictation

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If you don’t want to pay for speech recognition software, and you’re running Microsoft’s latest desktop OS, then you might be pleased to hear that Windows 10 actually has some very solid voice recognition abilities built right into the operating system.

Windows Speech Recognition, as it’s imaginatively named – and note that this is something different to Cortana, which offers basic commands and assistant capabilities – lets you not only execute commands via voice control, but also offers the ability to dictate into documents.

The sort of accuracy you get isn’t comparable with that offered by the likes of Dragon, but then again, you’re paying nothing to use it. It’s also possible to improve the accuracy by training the system by reading text, and giving it access to your documents to better learn your vocabulary. It’s definitely worth indulging in some training, particularly if you intend to use the voice recognition feature a fair bit.

This speech recognition capability is actually in previous versions of Windows as well, although Microsoft has honed it more with the latest OS. The company has been busy boasting about its advances in terms of voice recognition powered by deep neural networks, and Microsoft is certainly priming us to expect impressive things in the future. The likely end-goal aim is for Cortana to do everything eventually, from voice commands to taking dictation.

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Turn on Windows Speech Recognition by heading to the Control Panel (search for it, or right click the Start button and select it), then click on Ease of Access, and you will see the option to ‘start speech recognition’ (you’ll also spot the option to set up a microphone here, if you haven’t already done that).

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