We seem to be blessed here in Australia, we have an excellent distributor for Nuance’s Dragon Dictate who has been into voice recognition on the Mac since day 1. Because of this we have five combinations of Dragon Dictate and microphone to choose from. The bundles and their RRP pricing are:

Nuance Dragon Dictate 2.0

+ Plantronics DSP 610 USB Headset & Mic [B3010-MS] – RRP $249.95 incl. GST

+ MacMice MicFlex Desktop Mic [B3015-MS] – RRP $249.95 incl. GST

+ Parrott VXI USB Headset & Mic [B3020-MS] – RRP $399.95 incl. GST

+ Plantronics Calisto Bluetooth Mic [B3040-MS] RRP $349.95 incl. GST

+ RevoLabs xTag Wireless Mic [B3030-MS] RRP $589.00 incl. GST

The software in each box is exactly the same, the only difference is the microphone. So what is the difference between the mics and which one should you choose?

Plantronics DSP 610 USB Headset & Mic

Plantronics are very well known in the headset/mic world so anything from them is going to be good. The DSP-610, also known as the .Audio 610) is the headset which is included in the “standard” Dragon Dictate package. This is what would be your entry level headset and mic, it is Nuance certified and is very good. The mic is noise cancelling, which is what you need for voice recognition and the mic is on an adjustable boom for easy adjustment. Don’t be put off that this is the cheapest headset, it is still excellent. Click to see the DSP 610 on the Plantronics website.

MacMice FlexMic

A very cool addition to any Mac users desk is the FlexMic. No headset here, just a high quality mic on the end of a flexible boom which can be easily positioned wherever you want it. Perfect for those that do not need a headset.

The Parrott VXI TalkPro

The Parrott VXI noise cancelling mic and headset is a step up from the entry level Plantronics DSP610. It is a physically tougher headset and mic so will withstand the test of time longer than a well used DSP610. This is the headset that I personally use and love it. Click to see the TalkPro VXI on the Parrott website.

Plantronics Calisto Bluetooth Wireless Headset & Mic

A very popular option is this bluetooth headset from Plantronics called the Calisto. Preferred by many as it fits comfortably over your ear and frees your desk from the cables you get with the above headsets. This is not your usual off the shelf Calisto, it comes with a special noise cancelling USB dongle, essential for high quality voice input to the speech recognition software. Please don’t be tempted to import a Calisto or grab one off eBay as the off the shelves do not have the dongle. Click to see the Plantronics Calisto website.

RevoLabs xTag Wireless Mic

This is the creme de la creme of wireless mics, the RevoLabs xTag. As the RevoLabs tag line says, “hear every word” which is exactly what Dragon Dictate will do if you go for this, the most pricey, mic option for your Dragon Dictate. USB chargeable, this little wireless mic is for the serious user with plenty of cash. Click to see the RevoLabs xTag website.

So there you have it, a quick look at the Dragon Dictate mic bundles. Everyone is different and has their own prefences; on the head mics, over the ear mics, standalone mics and wireless mics. I have been using my Parrott VXI happily with no problems for the last couple of years but I do have to admit the cable can be a pain sometimes. If I was to start again I would probably go with the Plantronics Calisto just because of the lack of desk real estate that it takes up.

Remember, all the mics above are not just restricted for use with Dragon Dictate. They can all be used with Skype, iChat and Facetime and the Plantronics Calisto can also be used with your iPhone.

Nuance has quickly forged their authority on the Dictate brand of voice recognition software for Mac and with their first release Dragon Dictate 2.0 they have done an excellent job. But what now for the Legal and Medical edition still stuck at MacSpeech Dictate version 1.5 and the fairly new offshoot product MacSpeech Scribe currently at version 1.1, all of which are using the older Dragon speech recognition engine and not the new one included with Dragon Dictate.

I have some theories for these products which may or may not be correct so please don’t hold me to them. These are my best guesses and have not been confirmed or denied by Nuance, just my two cents worth.

MacSpeech Scribe in my view can go in ne of two directions. It can either be discontinued and the voice to text functionality built into a later Dragon Dictate update, much like Dragon NaturallySpeaking Premium or Professional for Windows. Or Nuance will embrace this as a separate product and continue to push it as a stand alone offering for transcribing only recorded audio. I have always been torn on MacSpeech Scribe, I have never understood why you would create a separate product for transcription of digitally recorded audio but that maybe because I have been so used to the functionality from the Windows side of the fence. As MacSpeech Scribe is still fairly new I have a feeling Nuance will continue with it and we will likely see a Dragon Scribe product appear in the very near future.

So what about the Medical and Legal version of MacSpeech Dictate, are we going to see an equivalent in Dragon Dictate? My personal view is that we are likely to see a Legal version for Dragon Dictate but maybe not the Medical version. From my understanding the Legal dictionary of terms is fairly standard and so can be quite easily built into a speech recognition dictionary. Wheres Medical with its large number of specialised area of understanding would be an unwieldily dictionary to maintain and build. For the Medical side of things I think we will see a third party put their hand up and claim an exclusive partnership with Nuance to provide and support that medical crowd.

So when can we see what I have theorised about above. Dragon Scribe I would think would be very close, if it is coming, and we would likely see this before the end of the year. Dragon Dictate Legal I would also see on the same time line, especially as we now have Dragon Dictate in the wild adding a more comprehensive legal dictionary can’t be that far behind.

Of course as soon as we get wind of any new voice recognition products from Nuance for the Mac or Windows we will post the info.

The cat is finally out of the bag as Nuance, owners of the MacSpeech brand of voice recognition for Intel Mac, announced the latest version of the Dictate family. Dragon Dictate, formerly known as MacSpeech Dictate, is the new name and with it comes more enhancements and features. In this blog post we will look at:

• What’s New In Dragon Dictate 2.0 for Mac
• What Are Your Upgrade Options From MacSpeech Dictate to Dragon Dictate
• Where Can You Buy The Software In Australia

Dictate Australia has been with MacSpeech Dictate since day one, we are big fans and have loved to see this product grow from strength to strength. Now at version 2.0 the influence of Nuance is clear for all to see as the product lines of their famous NaturallySpeaking brand for Windows and Dictate for Mac merge closer and closer together. We have been beta testing the new Dragon Dictate for a few weeks and love the new look and feel, it feels polished.

I have always been honest and up-front with any customer I have spoken to over the years when asked “…just how good is  MacSpeech Dictate?”. I have lauded the accuracy of the Dragon speech recognition engine on the Mac but you could always feel that there was alot of catching up to do with the feature packed and more mature Windows equivalent. Nuance, since their takeover of MacSpeech earlier this year, are acknowledging the importance of the Mac by showing their dedication and support to the Dictate product and with Dragon Dictate 2.0 we now have a world class speech recognition software for the Apple Mac.

So what’s new in 2.0 other than the new name;

• Dragon 11 Engine – The very latest Dragon speech recognition engine used Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 for Windows – very fast and accurate voice recognition
• Proof Reading Added – making full use of the Macs text-to-speech functionality Dragon Dictate will now read back to you your transcripts, helping speed up the proof reading process.
• Mouse Grid – My favourite, makes browsing the web easy by zooming into a point on the screen quickly using a mouse grid.
• Mouse Movement – Easily fly your mouse pointer around the screen using just your voice.
• Mouse Click – Again, using your voice you can click, double click and triple click.
• Multiple Audio Sources – Use more than one mic? No longer a problem you can have multiple audio source now for your trained profile.
• Easier Editing – A range of new commands to help edit documents by voice much easier.

Dragon Dictate is available to buy now from the MacSpeech Australia website and available in four configurations:

• AU$219.95 – Download only, BYO mic.
• AU$219.95 – Boxed product, BYO mic. **
• AU$249.95 – Boxed product with standard headset and mic. **
• AU$349.95 – Boxed product with wireless bluetooth headset and mic. **

** boxed products available October 2010 in Australia, pre orders being taken now.

There is also good news if you currently own MacSpeech Dictate. Dragon Dictate is available as an upgrade from any version of MacSpeech Dictate. Here are the upgrade options in Australia:

Upgrade to Dragon Dictate for Mac if you have MacSpeech Dictate v1.5 and upwards

You have two upgrade options (your v1.5+ software must be registered before you upgrade):

1. You can upgrade the software only via download (be prepared its a big download, between 1Gb – 2Gb) for only AU$69. If you prefer the boxed upgrade that will be available in October. Click here for the Dragon Dictate Australia upgrade site.
2. You can upgrade the software and pickup a new Plantronics Calisto bluetooth headset for wireless dictation for AU$179. This will be a boxed product and available from October onwards. Pre orders are being taken now. Click here for the Dragon Dictate Australia upgrade site.

Your existing MacSpeech Dictate v1.5 profile(s) can also be upgraded, make sure you back them up first before you upgrade.

Upgrade to Dragon Dictate for Mac if you have MacSpeech Dictate v1.0 to v1.3

You will need to email MacSpeech Sales with your serial number and current version and they will give you upgrade instructions.

MacSpeech Dictate Legal Version Announced

Just a week or so since the launch of MacSpeech Dictate Medical, the legal version comes packed with a dictionary full of legal jargon, 30,000 legal words and terms, the kind of chit chat lawyers use every day and the kind of words their typists struggle with, unless of course they outsource their legal transcription to our sister company The Transcription People (shameless plug, sorry).

MacSpeech Dictate Legal is built on the very latest Dragon speech recognition software from the people at Nuance, in fact from what I understand the recognition engine in MacSpeech Dictate version 1.5 is more advanced than that currently in use by the Windows folk running Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10.1, so state of the art voice recognition combined with a comprehensive legal dictionary.

As always, no news yet of Australian packages or pricing as the US announcement is just a few hours old. However, in the US the price of MacSpeech Dictate Legal is the same as MacSpeech Dictate Medical so it would be fair to assume the same packages and same pricing as Medical (Australian MacSpeech Dictate Medical pricing and packages). As soon as we receive confirmation from the Australian distributor on price and availability I will post.

MacSpeech Dictate Medical v1.5 available from Dictate Australia

The medical version of MacSpeech Dictate has not yet landed in Australia but is expected any day ready for shipping nationally within the next week or so. Here at Dictate Australia we have already sold the first Australian copy of MacSpeech Dictate Medical to a doctor in Victoria.

The MacSpeech Dictate Medical packages that will be available in Australia are:

• MacSpeech Dictate Medical bundled with Parrott VXI TalkPro – RRP $849 incl. GST
• MacSpeech Dictate Medical bundled with Revolabs xTag Wireless – RRP $1,099 incl. GST

So, the choice is the excellent quality Parrott VXI TalkPro headset and mic (this is the headset I use and love it) or the very ugly (in my opinion, beauty is in the eye of the beholders though) Revolabs xTag wireless mic. Cable or no cable, that is essentially your choice for microphones.

There are also upgrade options for those early medical adopters of MacSpeech Dictate who have either stanadard version 1.3 or 1.5 – these upgrades will not be available through MacSpeech resellers or the Apple stores but only from the Australian MacSpeech distributor, MacSense in Sydney. Here is the upgrade pricing:

• MacSpeech Dictate Medical Upgrade from v1.3 – RRP $549 incl. GST
• MacSpeech Dictate Medical Upgrade from v1.5 – RRP $499 incl. GST

Any questions on MacSpeech Medical, upgrades to version 1.5 or just general MacSpeech questions please feel free to comment and we will get back to you with answers. You can also follow us on twitter @dictates or follow the official @macspeech twitter.