In a first of its kind Olympus Imaging in Australia held a product launch at swanky Woolwich eatery Deckhouse today in Sydney. Spoiled only by the torrential rain, with the Sydney Harbour Bridge seen in the murky distance stood several Olympus branded pedestals covered in magician black velvet hiding what was about to be announced.
Olympus Audio Pro dealers from around the country had gathered to listen to Olympus Imaging Managing Director Marc Radatt present his spiel starting with the history of Olympus, building thru to the imaging range and culminating with the announcement we audio people had gathered for … the new Olympus DS-7000 digital dictaphone.
In fact it wasn’t just about the new DS-7000 there was a slew of new digital goodies on offer which single handedly wiped out the current DS-5000/DS-3400/DS-2400 recorders, all now replaced by the DS-7000/DS-3500/DS-2500 models. So what new features will we see in this new Pro dictation range:
- Large 2″ colour screen (similar the LS series screens)
- 256-bit real-time .DS2 (DSS Pro) audio encryption
- New Li-Ion battery giving up-to 21 hours of recording
- Two SD card slots (1x microSD and 1x SD) in the DS-7000 plus in-built memory
- Uncompressed PCM .WAV recording in the DS-3500 for meeting/conference/music recording
- Capsuled 10mm mic specifically design with voice recognition in mind
Not content with revamping the Pro dictaphones a new Pro transcription kit was also birthed, the AS-7000 which replaces the AS-5000 and comes with a new four pedal USB transcription foot control (RS-31) and new under-the-chin stethoscope style transcription headset (E62). I like that, it’s kind of retro and will likely be embraced by most transcription typists, especially those that find over-the-head headsets mess with their hair.
Wait there is more … new Olympus Dictation and Transcription module software taking the release from R5 to R6 and given a new name. Gone is DSS Player Pro and in its place comes ODMS or Olympus Dictation Management System which is not just a user interface revamp but promises a more improved interface and interaction with Dragon NaturallySpeaking Premium/Professional/Legal versions most notably real-time transcription and background transcription using Dragon. Sorry Mac fans still no link to Dragon Dictate for Mac for transcription of recorded voice files, Nuance dragging their feet here a little.
The DS-7000 and DS-3500 are available from today in Australia, the DS-2500 will make its debut down under mid-May 2012. Amazingly the RRP of these new recorders have dropped significantly and are lower than the previous Pro range – kudos to Olympus for this, continuing to innovate while driving pricing down. RRP’s in Australia are:
- Olympus DS-7000 RRP $699 incl. GST ($150 cheaper than the DS-5000 it replaces)
- Olympus DS-3500 RRP $549 incl. GST ($150 cheaper than the DS-3400 it replaces)
- Olympus DS-2500 RRP $379 incl. GST ($110 cheaper then the DS-2400 it replaces)
Some light reading for you to download (all in .PDF format):
- New Olympus DS Series Pro Digital Dication/Transcription Brochure
- Olympus DS-7000/DS-3500 Australia Press Release (17th April 2012)
- Olympus DS-2500 Australia Press Release (17th April 2012)