Sony ICDSX68DR9 Digital Voice Recorder with Dragon NaturallySpeaking RE Software

The software vender does not support this product sold in this fashion. I went ahead and upgraded to Dragon 10 ($40 more). I did the training readings under version 9, upgraded to version 10 and my dictations are so garbled as to be non-sense. This product combo is not a quick easy solution for dictating. The voice recorder itself works ok, but don't expect that trained profile to be effective at dictating your thoughts.

This recorder creates proprietary files in .MSV format. Therefore if you want .mp3 you are forced to install Sony's software and use their 'converter' to output to MP3.
I always try to avoid unnecessary software (and it is a policy here in the office) so I will be returning this device for a Cannon that will allow us to copy directly from the device in MP3 format. FYI I also called support to verify there is no way to change the native output to MP3.

Having spent a considerable amount of research time on many brands and models on the internet I decided on this unit because of its features. Certainly more pricey than many recorders but when you consider the ease of use and the inclusion of the Dragon Speaking Naturally Software I think it is well worth the extra money.

Sleek and small, has rechargeable AAA batteries and can use regular AAA batteries too.

The recorder lasts a long time between battery charges, records very, very clearly, comes with a stand to use on a table top to dampen excess noise and it works too! Has 5 separate folders and each folder can hold up to 999 individual recordings with the ability to bookmark areas within each. A big plus when recording a long winded lecture or multiple days of training!

Fast download from the recorder to the software on your computer and I also used a thumb to do a back up at the same time.

Ease of use is what grabbed me at first. I don't generally catch on very quickly on the "intuitive use" on most new electronic devices but this one is fairly simple especially as compared to a digital cable remote! I found the instruction booklet understandable, a major plus, the controls on the recorder are easy to use and easily accessible. Software for the recorder and Dragon Naturally Speaking installed with ease and I had no glitches.

Was disappointed that the software is not Mac compatible, as I was told via a sales person at Circuit City that it was, but fortunately I have a PC also on which I installed the software.

I have not used the Dragon Naturally Speaking software to do the transcribing yet but I sure hope it works as well as the recorder does.

Highly recommended from this user. Charles, Salem ORSony ICDSX68DR9 Digital Voice Recorder with Dragon NaturallySpeaking RE Software

I'm not sure why one of the other reviewers had such a bad experience. I'm SO glad I bought this product BEFORE I read the negative reviews. I purchased this recorder and then read the reviews and decided to open it and go for it anyway.

The installation was a breeze and even the dragon software held my hand every step of the way. I was up and running in about 20 minutes. I installed the software, made a test recording, transferred the file, read the provided passage for voice recognition, and the software started transcribing my notes with a fair degree of accuracy.

I'm dictating case notes and this product is working wonderfully for me.

I purchased this knowing that it also included the Dragon Naturally Speaking Recorder Edition software with the intention of transcribing meeting recordings into text as MoM (minutes of meeting). The recorder itself is very simple to operate for recording and play back. The included Sony software that allows you to convert the recordings into a mp3 file onto your computer's hard drive was equally simple to use. The quality of the recording was excellent. However, attempting to use the Dragon Naturally Speaking software to try and convert the recorded meeting into text was not very good. The software was designed pretty much for an individual's speech pattern not for multple person speaking on a single recording. The Dragon Naturally Speaking software does allow you to set up multiple speech and writing patterns. The skinny is that both products are very good but like anything else the Dragon Naturally Speaking software will no doubt get better as times passes. If you are looking for a simple tool to record a single voice pattern and convert into a word or text document, this combination is for you.