Dictation Machines > Aiwa Dictation Machines

Advantages: Cheaper than others on market
Disadvantages: Sound quality low, long distances barely picked up, battery life short

...And it was this. The Sony ICD-P520. I found after an entire year of use that there were several problems with this product. Without an external microphone, often the voices of lecturers not more than 3m away from my desk were drowned out by the noise of paper shuffling and murmered voices in the background. These microphones cost about £20 and shouldn't have been a necessity. Not only that, but the dictaphone was battery draining beyond expectation. ...
...software NOT provided by the Sony website to access recordings. You *cannot* lose the software and driver CD. But the advantages of this software is that it allows you to save these recordings as pretty much any file format you need to. As well as this, the software is NOT mac compatible. That's right, the ever growing numbers of people opting to choose Mac OS are excluded in one swoop by Sony's lack of accessibility. Now that I've tackled the problems ... Read review

Advantages: Record upto 36 hours, digital sound quality, compact device with mic
Disadvantages: Microphone not as effective as I thought

The Olympus VN-3100 is known as a Dictation Machine, but I like to simply call it a portable voice recorder. In size it is not very big, thus being portable. It measures in at a length of 10 cm, a width of 3.5 cm and an overall depth of 1.7 cm. The top end of the the device has a depth of 1.3 cm and the bottom end which contains the batteries has a depth of 1.7 cm. The device is made in China, like many things are nowadays. The Olympus VN-3100 does ...
...to reveal the batteries. The OLYMPUS VN-3100 takes standard AAA batteries. In the box you get: - USB Cable - Microphone - Software CD - Manual - 2 AAA batteries The provided Microphone is supposed to reduce background noise levels when recording. I have used the microphone and have to say I cannot tell the difference between a normal recording and a recording with the use of the microphone. The OLYMPUS VN-3100 is compatible with Windows 2000/XP/VISTA. ... Read review

Advantages: Great recording and playback quality.
Disadvantages: Too complicated and 'busy'.

I bought this dictaphone (sorry, digital voice recorder) last year as I needed to record a client session to use in a supervision session, i work part time as a therapist. I had an old dictaphone which really was not that good at playing back anything legible, so I thought, hey ho, run it through my books (I am self employed) and I've got it for keeps, £30 did not seem cheap, but it does seem to be of good quality, good build and a reliable name ...
...and plastic with a handy pen like catch to attach to clothes if needed, and also comes in the box with a clothes attachable microphone, and an ear piece. It weighs, with batteries, 2.4 oz, and is similar in size and shape to a mobile phone, 9.5 cm long, 3.5 wide and 2cm deep. The small screen digital display is easy to read, if a bit 'busy'. Also in the box is the 'set up' CD, USB to device cable, and instruction booklet. The instruction booklet ... Read review

Advantages: Practical and Efficient
Disadvantages: Slightly tedious uploading

I am currently studying in my first year at university, but have experienced some problems with attending lectures and figured it would be a sensible idea to ensure that i have a record of the lectures i have missed. Unfortunitly my university has not started to release podcasts of lectures yet so that was not an option. Anyhow i purchased the VN340 and lent it to a friend in advance of when i knew i had a lecture. Of course i have not actually had ...
...the quality of the recording. The only drawback i have experienced is that the uploading and software required when uploading the files onto my computer was a bit time consuming, but not to an extent where it put me off purchasing the product. Firstly the account my friend gave of his experience in using it was highly possitive; he claims it was very simple to use, had a discrete and practical size so it was not in the way when making notes, allowing ... Read review

Advantages: Compact, lightweight
Disadvantages: No USB link

...do. I saw the Sony ICD-B 500 on the Amazon web site for £35.98 (with free delivery if you want the super saver delivery). It is a little cheaper on Pixmania but you pay extra for delivery. The Technical Stuff! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The machine has lots of features - for the technically minded it reads like this: Product Type: Digital Dictaphone Digital Player Type: Based on a flash memory Casing Colour: Silver Audio System Capacity: 256 MB Digital ...
...Output Mode: Mono Output Power / Total: 250 mW Built-in clock: Digital clock Features: Battery level indication, voice operated recording, microphone sensitivity selection Built-in Display: Alarm Wake-up Modes LCD Speaker System Features: 1 x speaker - built-in - 250 mW Digital Player (Recorder) Recording Time: 1,825 mins - HQ (High Quality), 4,875 mins - SP (Standard Play), 9,015 mins - LP (Long Play) Data Storage Capability Up to 99 files / 4 folders ... Read review