Voice to text

Speaking is about three times faster than typing for most people. This voice-to-text tool turns your speech into text as you talk, using the speech recognition built into your browser. It works well for drafting emails, capturing meeting notes, writing first drafts or giving your hands a rest.

How to use it

1. Choose your language.
2. Click start and allow microphone access when your browser asks.
3. Speak naturally; the text appears as you talk.
4. Stop, then edit, copy or download the transcript.

Tips for accurate dictation

• Use a decent microphone or headset and a quiet room. Background noise is the biggest cause of errors.
• Speak in complete phrases at a steady pace rather than word by word.
• Say punctuation if your browser supports it, such as comma, full stop or new line; support varies by browser and language.
• Review names and technical terms, which are the most common misrecognitions.

Browser support and privacy

The tool uses the Web Speech API. It works best in Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge; support in Safari varies and Firefox has limited support. In Chrome, audio is typically sent to the browser vendor's speech recognition service to be transcribed, so an internet connection is needed. DevDeskApp does not receive or store your audio or transcript, but avoid dictating highly confidential information on any cloud-based recognition service.

Use cases

• Drafting emails, blog posts and documents.
• Accessibility for people who find typing difficult.
• Quick notes and to-do lists.
• Practising pronunciation in a foreign language.