In a recent press release from Philips Dictation Australia yet another innovative product has been added to their product line. This one though is a little different to the norm, this really is something different and something that I am sure will be very popular is the LFH2370 Philips Media Player Typing Set.

The innovation with this product is the clever thumb controller that sits under your keyboard which allows the control of audio playback through Windows Media Player 11, iTunes and WinAmp on Windows machines and iTunes and QuickTime on a Mac. Previously people typing notes from audio played back through media player type software had to constantly switch from their word processor to stop/start/rewind audio adding a huge amount of time to the transcription process. With this little device it will make typing notes from audio a much easier, less time consuming experience.

Using the two buttons on the USB thumb control the audio can be controlled in the following ways:

• Playback : To start continuous playback, press and release the right key. The status LED glows green during playback.
• Pause : Press the right key again to pause audio playback.
• Fast Forward : Press and hold the right key during playback. When “forwarding” reaches the desired position release the key.
• Fast Rewind : Press and hold the left key while playback is paused. When rewinding reaches the desired position release the key.
• Backspace : Double click the left key to backspace the audio by three seconds.

The media player typing set LFH2370 comes with the USB thumb control, stereo headset and Philips Media Player control software and is RRP $200.00 incl. GST.

The media payer typing set is also available as part of the Philips Writers Set, known as LFH087 which comprises the media player typing set and Philips Digital Voice Tracer 682 digital voice recorder.

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In the dark and mysterious world of transcription, well not really dark and mysterious just needed to make it a little more exciting than it really is, the most common software used by transcription typists is Express Scribe from NCH SwiftSound. This is great software for two key reasons, 1) it is free $0 2) it is Australian made, NCH Swift Sound are an Australia company based in Canberra.

Primarily because of key reason 1 above this makes it very popular with the army of Virtual Assistants (VAs) around the world who like to include transcription in their portfolio of services offered. Sure on its own Scribe works really well and for some, especially those with no transcription experience, having no footpedal is not a big deal. But for the serious transcriptionist or for people converting from analogue transcription kits (ahh those trusty Pearlcorders), a good reliable foot pedal is a must.

If you are an Express Scribe user on Apple Mac then i’m afraid the following information is not for you. The Philips USB foot controls are only compatible with the Windows version of Express Scribe.

This is where the Philips USB transcription foot controls come in. Having recently gone through a make over they have been transformed from the older ugly square brick look of foot pedal (like the LFH6212 to the left) into a more ergonomic, sleek modern look with a couple of layout options in the Philips 2310 (LFH2310/00) and Philips 2320 (LFH2320/00) models. 

Both the Philips 2310 and 2320 come with three foot pedals. The middle pedal is long, thin and along the top on the 2310 model whereas the 2320’s middle pedal takes up a larger middle area. The pedals are supplied with a Philips driver disk however this is not required, they are pure plug and play pedals and can be setup in around one minute. 

Once your USB foot pedal has been connected and recognised by your computer fire up Express Scribe and find your way to the Control tab inside Playback Settings. Tick the ‘Use foot pedal playback control‘ and leave the default Port and Number of pedals settings as ‘GamePort 1 or USBGame 1‘ and ‘3-Pedals‘.

With Express Scribe you can configure any pedal combination. Lets say you like the left pedal to be ‘play’, the right pedal to be ‘rewind’ and the middle pedal to be ‘forward’, easy. Simply click on the ‘Foot Pedal Control Setup Wizard‘ and you are asked which pedal you prefer for each audio function, rewind/play/forward. Finally the tick box ‘Quick tap on play pedal locks play on‘ lets you decide if you want to just tap the play pedal to start audio playback or if you prefer to hold the pedal down for audio playback. Using the combination of Express Scribe and the Philips USB Foot Controls you have full, easy configuration of your foot pedal set up.

Sure, the price of the Philips pedals (RRP AU$179) are quite a bit more than the pedals sold by NCH via the AltoEdge website like the VEC, but in my opinion you do get what you pay for. Coming from Philips who is a big player in the digital dictation and transcription world, their USB foot pedal is solid and responsive. As they come from Philips Dictation Australia they are also covered by an Australian warranty.

Our sister company, The Transcription People use and recommend the Philips 2310 and 2320 USB foot controls for transcription with Express Scribe.

For more information about the Philips USB transcription foot controls please visit the Dictate Australia website.

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