UltraDisk DV7
With the DV7, UltraDisk is catering for the lower end of the market here, and this memory key, radio and voice recorder combo is, apparently, one of the company's best selling products in the UK.
This particular model holds 4GB of data and records in three formats, MP3, Wav and ACT. Despite it's small size, the DV7 still manages to pack-in relevant features such as voice actuation. It does take a fair time to start recording and process at the end, though, and it doesn't have much in the way of file protection. Changing settings can be quite fiddly too and there's no fast forward, let alone scrubbing ability.
Captured from a pinhole-sized microphone, the audio quality was never going to realistically compete to other models in this roundup. Indeed, the DV7 is better used as a handheld interview or personal dictation box rather than lecture capture or use in noisy environments.
While not ideal as the office dictation machine, the DV7 is definitely a handy to have in your pocket when the mobile phone is out of juice and spontaneous ideas are brimming. It's focused on the recording aspect, but still provides a fob-pocket-sized audio device with a range of format support, and all for the price of £45. Things could be worse, although tests revealed the DV7 wasn't Mac compatible.
Reg Rating 65%
Price £45
More info UKET
Ultradisk DV10
The 8GB Ultradisk DV10 is essentially just a USB key with a voice recorder built in. Flick the switch on the side and within a few seconds, the key starts recording, blinking a little red LED lamp to let you know the status. Turn it off and the file saves, popping an MP3 onto storage. It doesn't get much simpler than that.
The resulting sound clips are actually pretty decent for a mic that's hard to spot, but it's not ideal. Still, to have a device you'd probably carry around with you attached to a keyring, the bonus functionality is warmly welcomed. Obviously there's no way to listen to what's being recorded, delete files on the go, or attach any external mics. It's just a memory key with a switch and microphone. Simples. Oh, and there's no Mac compatibility either. Bummer.
Also, the DV10 remains a tad on the pricey side. For a tenner more, you get the aforementioned DV7 and heaps of additional playback features as well as a headphone port.
Reg Rating 55%
Price £35
More info UKET
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COMMENTS
Can I use your dictaphone?
No, use your finger like everyone else.
Possibility of a flame war here, but...
I have an iphone (I'm not proud of it - it's my work phone) and it has a voice recording app on it. I'm about to start an evening course and was planning on recording the lectures on the phone. Given that phones are designed to pick out voice and discard other frequencies, how does the iphone app (or similar) compare to these as a dictation device?
comment from UltraDisk Voice Recorders
Hi Peter,
Many thanks for the question on the UltraDisk recorder. The need for Mac support is one I hear more and more.. It is great to hear that we have the demand from different users of Operating systems and file formats.
At the moment, It wouldn't work as the removable drive is formatted as FAT 32, it is partitioned by NTFS (Windows OS) so 1 drive appears as a CD containing the UltraDisk PC software (read only) and the other is mapped as a removable storage device. Macs by default will not recognise NTFS (B.Gates v S.Jobs etc) without some additional 3rd party software, this not supported natively by Apple. So Apple do not recognise the drive for this reason. The UltraDisk software is written for PC 32 bit and 64 bit only, no Mac software exists (just yet)..
If you ever need any support regarding any UltraDisk please do contact me at support@ultradisk.co.uk or visit UltraDisk support online, I will be happy to help. The products are fully compatible with Microsoft Windows supported on 32 and 64 bit. I'm also happy to hear from experts in Linux / Macs who may wish to make suggestions.
We will be releasing a Mac compatible version that will not rely on NTFS and it is in our roadmap for development. Do watch this 'UltraDisk' space!
As we are a small UK business, I was obviously flattered to be contacted by Caleb regarding UltraDisk voice recorders. Although quite surprised (but pleased) to see we have been positioned against some of the largest corporate brands..
By contrast to the others, UltraDisk is a small family business based in Manchester, our scale and attitude in business is very different, development therefore takes us a little longer, not just in time, but largely to finite resources unlike the share capital available to Sony, Olympus Grundig etc, This fails to get a mention and Caleb was aware of this, so a little misleading of where we are at.
Despite our size differences, we offer support, advice, listen to what is said and continue to offer feature rich products at a price that is more favourable with entry level customers. Whilst I am flattered about the comparison in this run down, I'm also aware that it makes a good portion of judging the product on something which it is not. The author was aware of this in advance, but I fully respect the artistic license of the reviewer to highlight Mac support in whatever way.
Mac support is in sight and I'm pleased to hear we have the product demand, we have a full support / ticket desk FAQ etc at http://www.ultradisk.co.uk/support-center
I hope this helps answer the question, many thanks to Caleb too for placing 2 of our products in the top 10.
David Grant
www.UltraDisk.co.uk
UltraDisk Digital Voice Recorders.
Professional Voice Recorders
Whilst these devices are all very well made and have many features, only the Grundig can be classed as a professional Voice Recorder. The other primary manufacturers (Olympus and Philips) are not represented here accurately. Olympus have a device called the DS 5000 ID which comes with 2 SD expansion slots and a biometric finger scanner to allow multiple people to log in and their personal details are stored when docked and sent for transcription. It also serves as a security feature.
The Philips 9600 is also a market leader with PIN security and DS2 file encryption, as with the Olympus DS 5000, it also can hold multiple profiles and demographic information on each dictated job.
As for the iPhone (and Android devices and Blackberry for that matter) there are many recording software suites out there that connect to enterprise solutions such as Winscribe, the market leader, but the smartphones have limitations such as battery life and audio quality, but do have the advantage of over the air transmission into a workflow solution.
audio file samples
Would be nice to have sample audio files to listen to of knocks, echoes etc.
