Dragon Site Licences For Education [Australia] - What You Need For Your School or Uni

Our focus at Dictate Australia in 2012 is to bring Dragon to schools, TAFEs and universities. Educational facilities across Australia can take advantage of some great discounted pricing from Nuance in order to get students using and creating using just their voice on Mac and Windows computers.

In our latest blog post we look at the site licence or volume licence model for education in Australia. How the licences are determined (by machine install rather than per use) and the benefits of taking out optional maintenance and support on Nuance Dragon products.

As always, click the title above to head to our main blog and the in depth post.

Speak To Tweet - Dragon Voice Recognition Updates Twitter

In the latest round of software updates for Nuance's collection of voice recognition software for Windows (Dragon NaturallySpeaking) and Mac (Dragon Dictate) voice commands were added for status updates to Twitter (and Facebook) using just a voice command.

"Post to Twitter" is all you need to say to bring up a dialogue box ready for your speech recognised tweet.

Head to our main blog, click the title above, to see a quick how to video of my very first voice tweet.

Nuance Release Dragon Express - Voice Recognition For Poor Mac Users

If I had a dollar for every time I had been asked for a free or a trial version of Dragon Dictate, the leading voice recognition software on the Mac from Nuance Communications, I would have easily a couple of hundred dollars by now. Still, it is a good question and one worth asking. With Dragon Dictate coming in at a couple of hundred dollars plus it is quite an outlay for something you might want to try.

Step up Dragon Express [app store link] - a brand new app available on the Mac app store which goes one step closer to helping make people feel a little more warm and fuzzy about speech recognition without spending too much hard earned. The Dragon Express app is US$49.99 (AU$51.99) - so still a fairly significant amount but just enough if you are really keen to see what voice recognition on the Mac can do.

For more info on Dragon Express and how it differs from the fully fledged Mac app Dragon Dictate 2.5 head to our main blog for a peruse. Click the title link above to be hyperlinked there.

Express Scribe for Mac - Pro & Free Versions Available

NCH have just released the Pro version of their hugely popular Express Scribe transcription software for the Mac typists amongst us and yes there are plenty. There has been a free edition of Express Scribe for Mac for some time but NCH have re-jigged the Express Scribe brand attempting to cash in on what has been a hugely successful and popular free package over the years.

On Mac Express Scribe follows the same pattern now as Windows, a free edition with only a handful of popular audio formats supported. Perfect for those just getting into transcription typing to see how the software works and to train themselves with little (if you buy a footpedal) or no (if you just use hotkeys) expense.

The Pro version on the Mac supports just about every audio dictation format you can expect to receive except for the obvious ommision of the older Digital Speech Standard (.dss) files and .DVF audio files from Sony (these are supported in the Windows Pro version of Express Scribe).

For the full list of supported audio and video formats for both the free and Pro version of Express Scribe for Mac head to our main blog - click the title on this post above to be teleported there now.

Pro Olympus Voice Mac Users - DSS Player Plus v7 Upgrade For Lion

Mac Pro voice users who currently use the professional digital dictation range from Olympus - DS-5000, DS-5000iD & DS-3400 - a new upgrade is available to the DSS Player Plus V7 Software for Mac.

The upgrade will take your software to version 7.2.8 and makes DSS Player Plus v7 compatible with OS X 10.7 a.k.a. Lion.

Prior to this release new installs of DSS Player Plus v7 on Lion failed to recognise the digital dictaphone when docked.

Download link and more info on our main blog - just click the title of this post above to go there now.

NCH Finally Have A Paid Model For Express Scribe - Limits The Free Edition

NCH Software's move to finally make some money out of their hugely popular transcription software called Express Scribe is now just about complete as at version 5.40

Users of the free versions prior to this release certainly enjoyed some fantastic transcription software for nothing but an upgrade from older versions to 5.40 will see all that change.

NCH have limited the audio playback in the free edition to just .MP3, .WMA, .WAV, .AIF and .DCT audio file formats and all video formats have been removed totally from the free version of Express Scribe.

Buying the Pro version of Express Scribe will give you back all the audio and video formats that are commonly transcribed by transcription typists and at around AU$36 (US$32) you can't really grumble as at that price it is still a bit of a bargain.

Also, users of non Alto Edge USB foot pedals look out as support has also been removed for those devices in v5.40 Express Scribe free edition - if you have a Philips 2310 or 2320 it will no longer function until you buy the paid edition.

More details at our main blog including a full list of compatible video and audio formats and the Express Scribe version history - click the heading above to go straight there.

Found - The Best Free & Paid Digital Voice Recorder Apps for iPhone and iPad

Need to record your notes or thoughts? Nodding off during meetings but need to listen to what is being said? Want a LiveScribe pen but can't justify the cost? Own an iPhone or iPad? Then do we have the apps you have been looking for.

Digital voice recorder apps are nothing new and judging by the huge number of them in the iTunes app store developers think it is something we all need. We have tried a few over the years, they all pretty much do what it says on the packet - records your voice. So to help you we have found what we think is the best free digital voice recorder app (which also doubles as a digital dictaphone) for the iPhone.  And for those of you with dollars burning your virtual iTunes pocket we have our favourite universal digital voice recorder app.

Head to our main blog, click the title of this post above, to see who we rate as the #1 free and paid digital dictation apps for iPhone and iPad.

Using DragonNaturally Speaking To Transcribe Meetings, Can It Be Done?

Using Dragon alone with a recording the answer is no. But if you add you, yes you, in between the recording and Dragon then it can, but not easily.

In our latest blog post we look at how digital recordings or videos can be converted from voice to text and the options that you have to do this. We look at using Dragon NaturallySpeaking or Dragon Dictate and a technique called voice writing or parroting to listen and speak what you hear into Dragon, not easy I tell you.

We also look at other options like transcribing the audio yourself and what software is available to help you. Or alternatively using an outsourced transcription service and what to look for in this service and how they should work.

Click on the blog title above to go to our main blog and the article in full.

Dragon Recorder - New iOS5 App From Nuance

Pushing on with their love of all things iOS Nuance have just released another iOS app bringing their voice scentric portfolio to four apps.

Dragon Recorder is their new app and it is a voice recording app which can be used on iPhone, iPad and 4th Gen iPod touch. It is a fairly basic digital voice recording app and records your spoken voice in the .WAV audio format.

The idea behind this app is to raise awareness of the transcription from recorded voice functionality of the Premium and Professional edition for Dragon NaturallySpeaking on Windows and also for the dedicated recorded voice to text product on the Mac the legacy product from MacSpeech called Scribe.

More detail on our main blog - click the title above.

Planning To Use A Digital Voice Recorder or iPhone/iPad Recorder App With Dragon NaturallySpeaking?

If the answer is YES then you may want to read this blog post before you go ahead and part with any cash.

With the Premium and Professional (not the Home) edition of Dragon NaturallySpeaking you have the ability to record your spoken voice on a digital voice recorder or on your iPhone or iPad and later play that into Dragon and have it transcribe what you said. This is very handy for busy people who can't always dictate in front of their PC.

This is known as deferred transcription and requires a high quality audio recording plus all the usual hard and fast rules when dictating to Dragon NaturallySpeaking i.e. very quiet background and clear diction.

Before you go ahead and buy a new digital voice recorder or download one of the many iPhone or iPad voice recorder apps you should check first how they rate with Nuance on their hardware compatibility website.

Head over to our main blog to read more and for the link to the Nuance compatibility website, just click on the title of this blog post to go straight there.

Buying A Pro Olympus Digital Dictation Recorder - Look For The Pro Dealer

In Australia resellers of the Olympus Pro range of digital dictation voice recorders (DS-5000/DS-3400/DS-2400) and transcription kits (AS-5000/AS-2400) are selected by Olympus themselves. There are strict guidelines as to who can become an Olympus Pro Dictation reseller and currently there are just over thirty in Australia.

However, a number of websites are springing up selling the Pro range of Olympus recorders from companies who are not Pro resellers are are sourcing their stock from overseas, likely the US where the strong Australian dollar makes US purchases more favourable. So why should you buy from an official Olympus Australia Pro reseller? In our latest blog post we look at this question and list the Pro resellers in Australia. Click the blog title above to go direct to the article.

New Olympus DirectRec Series II In Australia

Out with the old and in with the new.

Old being the Directrec series I USB hand held dictation mics (DR-1000 and DR-2000) and the new being the Directrec Series II USB hand held dictation mics (DR-2100, DR-2200, DR-2300).

This isn't your standard replace for the sake of replacing either. The Series II are worth taking some time to have a look at. They have been ergonomically re-designed so fits in your hand alot more comfy which is a big deal when you consider the mileage these USB connected mics get.

Often used as an alternative to the traditional tape or digital dictation recorders, the Directrec in conjunction with the Olympus DSS Player Pro R5 dictation module software gives you a powerful dictating tool in your hand which records directly to your PC. All the new DR series come with a slide switch for easy dictation functions such as rewind/review and insert/over write. Plus the DR-2200 and DR-2300 also have a trackball for control of your computers mouse from the hand held mic saving you time swapping between mouse and mic.

But the big news with these new hand helds is their mics. Vastly improved over the older DR series the high quality mics in the DR-2100/DR-2200/DR-2300 have been certified as highly accurate with Nuance's Dragon NaturallySpeaking.

The link with DNS is what is going to make these little units very popular in legal and medical practices all over the world.

Dictate Australia - Now Suppliers Of LiveScribe Echo SmartPens

Yes we are back selling the LiveScribe range of Echo SmartPens - these handy little gadgets can record your meeting, lecture or conference while you hand write notes. Not only that, they will link the audio to what you write. Simply tap any location of your text in your hand written notes and the audio plays back from the moment it was written, yes that is technology magic at its best.

We sold the original LiveScribe Pulse SmartPens when they first arrived in Australia, now we are back selling the full range of their latest digital voice recorder pen, the Echo.

Available now on our new evolving website with free delivery across Australia. Click here to have a peek at the 2Gb, 4Gb and 8Gb pen packages.

LS-3 - Latest PCM Music Recorder From Olympus Australia

With the discontinue of the LS-10 and LS-11 digital PCM music recorders earlier in 2011 there was an obvious gap in the Olympus Australia digital recorder range for music lovers.

That gap has now been fully filled by the awesome new Olympus LS-3 digital PCM music recorder. Just released into Australia the LS-3 comes with a couple of very cool new features.

First of which is the Tresmic microphone system. Secreted below the mic grills of the LS-3 are three seperate mics. The center mic is omnidirectional which enhances lower frequencies. Then two mics sits either side of the center mic which are high-performance directional mics. The center mic can be turned on or off, adjusting the frequency response.

The second very neat feature is a pre-record function. This is very clever, how many times have you gone to record something and not quite hit the record button in time? With pre-record on the LS-3 keeps a two second buffer of audio, as soon as you hit record the previous two seconds are then added to the recording making sure you never miss that moment again.

Complete with 4Gb of on board memory and a microSD expansion slot the LS-3 is available from Dictate Australia and has an RRP of $299 incl. GST

Express Scribe Now .ds2 Compatible

As of version 5.30 Express Scribe (Windows) can now load and play DSS Pro audio files, better known as .ds2 files, from both Olympus and Philips recorders.

A point of great angst for nearly two years now with the fleet of transcriptionists worldwide who dedicate their lives to audio typing using Express Scribe, the handy free software from NCH that will play just about every audio format known to man has finally overcome its greatest hurdle, the .ds2 file.

Prior to this update typists who received a .ds2 audio file had a few options:

• Ask the sender to convert to .dss or other compatible format
• Upgrade their own transcription software to a paid Olympus kit
• Buy software to convert the audio for them

So what are you waiting for, head over to http://www.nch.com.au/scribe and get the latest version and become .ds2 compatible. (Not yet Mac, just the Windows people).

Olypmus LS-20M Coming To Australia Any Day Now

One device we have had our eye on for some months now is the Olympus LS-20M which has been hugely popular over in the US. Why are we getting excited about this unit? Well it marks the start of a cross over between Olympus Imaging and their impressive camera knowledge and Olympus Voice with their just as impressive voice recording skills.

Squish the two together and you come up with the LS-20M, HD 1080p video mixed with PCM audio and you are onto a winner.
Olympus Imaging quietly snuck this into the latest Australian Olympus reseller price list released this morning (18th August 2011) maybe thinking nobody would notice. Perfect timing too with Father Day coming, Christmas on the horizon and on a personal note my birthday next week !
The Olympus LS-20M has an RRP of $449 incl. GST in Australia.

Dropbox - The Easy Free Way To Transfer Large Audio Files

Audio files, especially from the non professional high quality digital notetakers, are very large in size, too large to email. This is not a bad thing, the audio they are recording is after all very high quality, especially if you are using a PCM recorder generating uncompressed WAV files. So how do you easily get these audio files to colleagues or to an outsourced transcription service? The answer, Dropbox.

Dropbox has been around for a couple of years and has redefined the way we share and backup files. Dropbox uses a mix of both local storage (a directory or folder on your Mac or PC) and cloud storage, syncing whatever you drop in your Dropbox folder with the cloud.

Certain folders or even files can be shared with others making it an ideal tool for sharing your large audio files with select people. head over to our main blog to read more ... oh yeah, Dropbox is FREE for 2Gb of cloud storage.

Mac OS X 10.7 Lion - Not Friendly With MacSpeech Scribe

Since the flurry of new releases in the last week from both Apple, with OS X 10.7 Lion and Nuance with Dragon Dictate 2.5, we have had a few phone calls and emails asking about some of the older MacSpeech products.

Not so much MacSpeech Dictate as most users seem to have upgraded to the Nuance offering of 2.0 but many are still using MacSpeech Scribe. Like most Apple users they are keen to get their hands on the latest and greatest anything from Apple.

Unfortunatly, in an update on the Nuance for Mac wesbite, the news is out that MacSpeech Scribe is not supported in OS X 10.7 Lion and users of this product will need to stay on 10.6 Snow Leopard if they want to continue using MacSpeech Scribe.

MacSpeech Scribe takes only recorded audio from a digital voice recorder and transcribes voice to text rather than speaking directly to your Mac.

Dragon Dictate for Mac - Free Update To 2.5 - Use iPhone As Remote Mic

Nuance have been busy this week, first an update for the Windows crowd and yesterday a bump for the Mac crowd. If you are a registered user of Dragon Dictate 2.0 you will receive a free update to version 2.5 via check for updates.

Go grab the free Dragon Remote Mic from the iTunes app store and give your iPhone a go as a remote mic, its very cool and only takes the usual 5 minutes to voice train.

Also new in this release:

• Microsoft Word 2011 for Mac support
• Social media updates to Twitter and Facebook via voice command

Its Here Australia - Dragon NaturallySpeaking Free Upgrade to 11.5

Finally, today I received a popup on my desktop to let me know that my free upgrade from Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 to 11.5 is now available for download, you can imagine the excitement (if you can't picture an old bloke, standing, punching the air going "whoop whoop").

Here's a tip, if you have more than one Dragon NaturallySpeaking to upgrade choose the download option, its a near 500mb file so will save you time and bandwidth.

If you are a Premium or Professional user, while you are waiting for the upgrade to download head over to your local iTunes store and grab the Nuance Dragon Remote Mic app for your iPhone, I think we are all going to love using our iPhone's to dictate wirelessly.

Roarrrrrrr - Dragon Dictate & Lion, Compatible?

Any second now Lion will be upon us and Apple fans around the world will be watching as the huge 3Gb+ download slowly makes its way to our Macs.

But what of Dragon Dictate from Nuance, will it still work under Lion? Head over to our main blog and take a look ... (click this blog post title to go straight there)

Olympus DM-3 vs Olympus DM-5

Choosing a digital voice recorder can be a little frustrating sometimes, mainly due to the huge range of digital voice recorders all sporty a thousand features. Fortunatly there are people like me who know the best digital voice recorders, Olympus, inside out.

In our latest blog post we look at two of the higher range digital notetakers (perfect for interviews, meetings, focus groups), the Olympus DM-3 and the Olympus DM-5. To look at they appear to be the same, except for the colour, but there are a few features available on one and not the other. We detail the maximum recording times on both along with the features that the DM5 has that the DM3 doesn't to help you decide on the right model for you.

Latest Firmware v1.20 for Olympus DM-3 & DM-5

The latest firmware for the Olympus DM3 and Olympus DM5 digital voice recorders is available now for download and install. The update (from version 1.10) adds some new functionality to the DM-3 and DM-5 recorders, the list of updates from the previous release are:

1. Support the functions of USB microphone or Speaker.
2. Supports the function to register the voice keywords for the schedule.
3. Supports the function to register the voice memos for the schedule.
4. Supports the playback for audio files from the schedule list display.
5. Improve the volume setting when the text file is spoken out.
6. Supports to directly connect the device to CD drive and import DAISY contents from CD (Only for DM-5)

Not sure which firmware version you have on your Olympus DM3 or DM5? Head over to our main blog where we explain how to find your current firmware version: click here

How To Update The Firmware: Olympus DM-3 / DM-5 Digital Voice Recorders

A new feature that has started to creep into the higher end digital voice recorders of late from Olympus is the ability to update the onboard firmware. This gives the end user, you lot, the ability to keep your recorder up-to-date. Firmware updates fix any minor bugs but more often than not add functionality and improve the performance and ease of use of the recorder.

What is firmware? Firmware is the software which controls your digital voice recorder, think of it as the operating system for your recorder much like Windows is for your PC and OS X for your Mac.

For more details on the latest version of firmware for the Olympus DM-3 and DM-5 recorders, where to get the firmware and a step by step guide on how to install the firmware using a Windows or Mac computer head to our main blog (here's a tip, click on this blogs title and you will go straight there).

Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11.5 - An iPhone app, Twitter & Facebook Updates

Nuance last month announced a bump to Dragon NaturallySpeaking from version 11 to version 11.5. Whats new? Well just the usual: it's faster, it's more accurate, it's more user friendly and oh yeah, there is an iPhone app.

What the? Yep, rumours of Nuance and Apple cosying up together have been rife over the last few months and with an iPhone app Nuance are tipping a nod to the Cupertino resident as well of course to acknowledging the huge percentage of Windows users who love their iPhones.

The Dragon Remote Mic app (available now on an iTunes store near you) will use your iPhone (or iPad) across wi-fi to provide a wireless mic into Dragon NaturallySpeaking.

Surging ahead also in this release is easy voice integration to post Facebook and Twitter updates without lifting a finger or in my case lifting my legs from off my desk as I recline back in a relaxed dictating posture.

The excitement of the Dragon Mic app being available now soon subsides when you jump into NaturallySpeaking to check for updates - there are none, yet. Should be out mid to end July 2011 so check for updates regularly.

The Dragon Remote mic app is only for Premium, Pro and Legal users. All registered version 11 usres (yes including you people using Home) will get the free upgrade to version 11.5 via download when it comes out.

Read more and see some Nuance videos on how to post to twitter and facebook and also how to configure the remote mic app with NaturallySpeaking 11.5 over on our main blog.

Olympus DM-450 & DM-550 Discontinued In Australia

This week will see the end of the highly popular Olympus DM-450 and DM-550 recorders in Australia. They will be replaced by the new Olympus DM-3, the smaller brother of the already available DM-5.

The DM-450 in particular was the most popular digital voice recorder we had ever sold from the Olympus range and rightly so. It was a superb recorder in so many ways, superb audio pickup is a given with all Olympus recorders but the DM-450 was something special.

The first DM-3's will arrive in Australia at the end of this week (24th June, 2011) and we will get our hands on one straight away and run it through its paces. Blog review and photos will be posted soon after ... watch this space.

Dear Santa - Olympus LS-20M Please !

About to launch in the US is the new Olympus LS-20M HD video camera and digital PCM recorder combo.

A new venture for Olympus taking their extensive imaging knowledge and combining it with their world class digital recording technology to come up with the beast known as the LS-20M.

Set to debut for a mere US$299 in June 2011 across America there are no plans as yet to see this device in Australia, but I have my fingers, toes and arms crossed hoping it will be here for Christmas. This will be the present from me, to me !!

Olympus Voice Announce DM-3 For Australia

Olympus this week advised its Gold Aussie resellers to expect a new recorder in their notetaker range, the DM-3.

Expected in June/July 2011 the DM-3 will join the already available DM-5 in the top tier of digital notetakers for recording meetings, interviews, conferences and focus groups.

To make room for the large colour screen DM-3 we will see the end of the hugely popular DM-450 and DM-550 recorders, some of the best recorders ever to come out of Olympus in my opinion. The DM-3 along with the DM-5 raise the bar just that little bit more, great work Olympus.

Free Olympus Camera When You Buy A DS-5000 / AS-5000 Bundle

In a first by Olympus Australia and I would guess the first of many we see a voice product linked with an imaging product. Testing the waters Olympus have started their first combined promo by offering a free Olympus FE-4030 digital camera if you buy a bundle of one Olympus DS-5000 (or DS-5000iD) Pro digital dictaphone and one Olympus AS-5000 Pro digital transcription kit.

This promo is only available from official Olympus Australia Pro dealers and only while stocks last so make sure you call ahead to check that camera stock is available.

Olympus DSS Player Pro R5.0.12 Is Released

A small bug fix release appeared in my DSS Player Pro today bumping the release from version R5.0.11 to R.5.0.12

The new release addresses a couple of bugs and implements some additional functionality for administrators. The release is for Windows users of DSS Player Pro and applies to both the dictation and transcription modules.

For full details on the release notes and how to grab the latest version please click to our main blog.

Click - Olympus DSS Player Pro R5.0.12 Is Released

Where Is That Cable? - Olympus DS-5000 Replacement Parts

By design the Olympus DS-5000 digital dictaphone is a portable device. Designed to be used in the office yes but also quite happy travelling with you on business or at home working out of hours or weekends. So it makes sense that when you rush to leave the office you grab your DS-5000 but forget a cable, the power, the dock, its case. Worse still, you do remember to take the cable, the dock, the power and the case but lose one on the way.

Well stress no more. In this blog post we look at all the parts included with the DS-5000 and detail what they are used for, their Olympus part number and what you can expect to pay (in Australian dollars).

So if you need an extra power supply or your rechargeable battery pack is growing old here you will find their details.

Australia Legal Vocab for Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 Professionlal Released By Nuance

Nuance Australia this week released the legal Australian edition vocabulary. Whats that then? Well a blob of legal terms specifically for the Australian legal market.

It is an add-on to Dragon NaturallySpeaking 11 Professional and will give legal users a much higher accuracy rate when dictating legal terms. The benefit is muss less time training your commonly used legal lingo.

Out now as a stand alone install if you have DNS 11 Pro already installed or you can buy a bundle of DNS 11 Pro plus the legal pack.

Olympus Imaging Australia Drop The Price On Popular Digital Notetakers

Olympus Imaging in Sydney, Australia announced yesterday that the RRP on a large number of their digital voice recorders mainly from the budget and low end had been revised and for the consumer its in the right direction - down.

The VN series (VN-8500PC,VB-8600PC), WS series (WS-650S, WS-750M, WS-760M), super cheap DP-20 and the super expensive DM-5 all got slashed.

The biggest saving came from the super slick DM-5, Olympus' first full colour screen digital voice recorder where a massive $100 was wiped from the RRP bring it down from $599 incl. GST to $499 incl. GST.

For all the prices changes please visit our main blog - idictate.com.au

Using Dropbox with the Olympus DS-5000 On A Mac To Auto Send Files

It is very rare to hear a Mac user complain but it does sometimes happen. One example of a whinging Mac user can be found when someone with an Olympus DS-5000 digital dictaphone who has switched from Windows to Mac realises that the Olympus software for the Mac is lacking an auto email function to get audio from their recorder to their typist or transcription service.

On a Mac the Olympus DSS Player Version 7 Plus software will convert your audio, will let you play your audio and you can even edit your audio but auto email it - no. So what can a Mac user do to save some time and automatically get their dictation across to their typist when their DS-5000 is docked - Dropbox.

Dropbox is an awesome free service which has been around for a while and automatically syncronises files in a special Dropbox folder on your Mac (or PC) with the cloud and with other computers linked to your Dropbox account and even your iPhone and iPad.

By using Dropbox in conjunction with the DSS Player Version 7 Plus software for Mac and by sharing a folder with your typist or transcription service you can easily share files with your transcription provider. Not only that, once they have completed transcription all they need do is drop the completed document in their Dropbox folder and it is instantly delivered back to you, securely.

For a closer look at using Dropbox with your Olympus DS-5000 as a transcription workflow solution on Mac head over to our main blog. To grab a copy of Dropbox for yourself - click here.

Olympus Microphones for Digital Voice Recorders

All of the current Olympus digital voice recorder range come with excellent high quality microphones built in, so why would you need to buy an optional mic from the range that Olympus voice offer?

The answer to that can be found in our latest post on our main blog - idictate.com.au

Essentially these are specialist situation microphones. E.g. if you need to record a phone call then the Olympus TP-7, if you record audio out and about and suffer from background wind noise then one of the noise canceling mics, if you are a presenter and need to record your speech, lecture or presentation then the Olympus ME-15 tie pin mic.

We look at these Olympus microphones in more detail, compare them and have some close up pictures to show you exactly what they look like.