Speech to text software is not new. It’s been around for nearly two decades.

But the launch of Nuance’s new Dragon Professional software package takes this technology to a new level.

Speech recognition software has certainly come a long way since Dragon Dictate hit the market in 1994.

The latest Dragon Professional Individual (Version 14) was launched earlier this year with a host of associated products including a version for Mac, the Dragon Anywhere mobile app that supports Android and iOS and Dragon Professional Group designed for enterprise document-sharing environments.

Dragon Professional Individual (DPI) is the personal version of Nuance's PC-based speech-to-text product.

With Dragon Professional Individual it is easy to dictate, edit and format documents, spreadsheets, presentations or emails, fill out forms or simply reduce the physical stress of typing.

And Dragon Professional Individual allows you to interact with your computer in more ergonomic and comfortable way using your voice. It relieves stress on the hands and arms by letting you dictate documents and emails much faster than typing – with up to 99% accuracy – and navigate your desktop and applications using simple spoken commands.

Setup is quick and simple as there is no longer a need to read and absorb pages of training text.

Simply select a geographical region during install, and then pick an accent during setup.

You can choose an Australian or English accent. Then after reading a relatively short text (a couple of hundred words) – you can begin.

An interactive tutorial gives you some help on how to get started.

We found the dictation accuracy and responsiveness to be outstanding – and correcting errors is quite simple.

And being able to synchronize profiles across devices is a boon for those who are using speech recognition on a regular basis.

Dragon Professional Individual v14 will transcribe recordings made in other voices. This is particularly useful if you engage in one-on-one interviews.

It would obviously be far more difficult if attending a public meeting with multiple speakers.

Dragon Professional Individual v14 seems to be pushing their users to be more engaging, so you can get the most out of the product. It encourages you to learn the new advanced functions, to derive maximum benefit.

By using the option of "What can I say?", users can find out which applications support what commands.

The Dragon Bar even provides access to an entire word processor called Dragon Pad.

This provides a basic range of features to help generate basic text documents.

And a Dictation Box allows you to enter and correct text ready for cutting and pasting into any application. You simply dictate your text and then hit the transfer button for it to be cut-and-pasted into an open application.

The Auto-Text function is a real time-saver. You can set up blocks of words that can be recalled using a short verbal command.

For example, with a simple command like “Standard letter” you can set up a complete template ready to add body copy.

Dragon Anywhere is a standout feature of this software package.

It’s a separate, cloud-based mobile application that provides continuous dictation capabilities, letting you create and edit documents of any length by voice – using your own customized words, shortcuts and commands – directly on your iOS or Android device.

It adapts to your voice and terminology so you can dictate, edit, navigate and format quickly and accurately within your document – right on your mobile device – no matter where your work takes you.

With the ability to synchronize your Dragon Professional Individual dictations, custom words and auto-texts with the Dragon Anywhere mobile app, you enjoy seamless productivity from any location.

Who is Dragon Professional Individual for?

Dragon Professional Individual is ideal for Individual professional users who need fast, accurate dictation and high-performance speech recognition features.

This includes individuals who work in a business, sole proprietors, independent contractors, or professional employees within an enterprise (without a corporate license) who choose to purchase out-of-pocket or expense a speech recognition solution to boost their personal productivity on the job.

Existing Dragon Premium users who use the software for work can benefit by upgrading to Dragon Professional Individual to take advantage of its extended customization features and its ability to sync with the Dragon Anywhere app for iOS and Android mobile devices to make them even more productive no matter where their job takes them.

In summary

The new Version 14 delivers greater speed and higher accuracy and when integrated with the new Dragon Anywhere mobile app it allows professionals to work with increased productivity and efficiency from any location.

It’s a highly impressive package.

For more information, visit: www.nuance.com