Introduction
Legal professionals, journalists, healthcare workers, and others record audio of people speaking that needs to be typed up and placed into a document. Doing this work yourself can be tedious, especially since transcription services can do it on your behalf. Transcription services come in two types: automated transcription and human transcription.
Automated vs. Human Transcription: What’s the Difference?
Automated transcription services use automatic speech recognition to convert an audio file into text. The advantage of using a machine is that it is fast and inexpensive.
Automated transcription services sometimes offer additional features that may not be free with human transcription, such as timestamps and identifying main speakers (e.g., Speaker 1, Speaker 2). However, the downside of automated transcription is that it’s much less accurate compared to human transcription.
Automated transcription services often include access to document editing software that allows you to clean up the text. If you see an error in the document, you can click on the timestamped section to listen to the words and transcribe that part yourself.
Rev, Otter, GoTranscript, Scribie, TranscribeMe, Trint, and Temi (which did not receive a high enough rating to be included in the list of the best transcription services) all offer automated transcription services. Rev, GoTranscript, Scribie, and TranscribeMe also provide human transcription services.
Human-generated transcriptions are highly accurate but are more expensive and take longer to produce, although you can pay extra if you need expedited service.
Human transcription services use trained transcribers—often more than one person—to complete the work. When the transcription job is handed off to multiple transcribers, it means no one person has access to your entire audio recording, which is usually considered good for privacy. Employees and contractors sometimes sign non-disclosure agreements to become transcribers as well. When choosing human transcription, you may sometimes pay extra to get transcribers who are knowledgeable in specific industry terminology, such as legal or medical terminology.
Using human transcription may raise privacy concerns. During the testing and review of transcription services, we look at the terms by which the company claims it will comply with law enforcement and turn over any user data. You can read the details in each service’s review. All services listed in the best transcription services list operate under strict non-disclosure policies and allow you to remove your files from their servers at any time.
How Much Do Transcription Services Cost?
Many transcription services charge on a per-minute basis. For example, a 30-minute transcription at a rate of $1 per minute would cost $30. Costs can add up quickly, and some services charge extra for faster delivery, verbatim files (meaning they include all “ums” and “ahs”), or if the audio is of poor quality. If you find yourself frequently transcribing audio and video files, a subscription-based service, like those offered by Otter and Trint, might be your best option. Increasingly, video editing software now also includes automatic subtitles, so if you’re using one of these programs, you may want to check if that’s included first.
As you might expect, the time it takes to convert a file usually depends on its length. Automated services can process the file in a matter of minutes. Human-based services take much longer, and you may have to pay an extra fee for faster delivery. Rev is straightforward in that it promises to return your file (in most cases) within 12 hours. The slowest option at GoTranscript (five days) is also the cheapest option.
How
Do You Get the Most Accurate Transcript?
One of the most important things you can do to ensure an accurate transcript is to capture a high-quality recording of the conversation or interview in the first place. It’s crucial for speakers to be near the recording device and to speak loudly and clearly. When there are multiple speakers, participants should speak distinctly to avoid overlap. Most services have a note in their documentation stating that speakers with heavy accents may cause some issues, although there isn’t much you can do to avoid that. Free audio editing programs like Audacity can fix some problems, but they can’t perform miracles. Personal recordings also yield better results than phone call recordings.
How to Edit the Transcript
People often need to correct parts of the text once they receive it. Upon logging into a transcription service, you’ll get an editing program that allows you to listen to the audio recording again while viewing the written text so you can make changes easily. Setting up audio playback directly in the editing program is convenient.
Some editing interfaces include tools to highlight specific parts of the text or edit the start time of the recording. Playback speeds and fast rewind buttons (all controllable via keyboard shortcuts) are also nearly standard. GoTranscript is the only service that does not offer an online editor. The only option you have is to edit the source text after the work is completed by GoTranscript.
Best Audio Transcription Apps
Many transcription services we’ve reviewed, including GoTranscript, Otter, and Rev, offer mobile apps in addition to web dashboards. Most provide Android and iPhone apps. Generally, these apps function as digital audio recorders, although you can also request transcripts from your recordings directly from your mobile device. The downside is that you cannot import audio files or links in the same way you can through their websites. Many of them allow you to view the completed text right on your device. Otter goes a step further than the others by providing excellent organizational features and the ability to edit transcripts on the go.
Human Transcription vs. Automated Transcription
There are alternatives if you want to avoid transcription services altogether – for privacy reasons or cost savings. For your manual transcription needs, Transcribe is a great option at just $20 a year. It allows you to listen to audio recordings while you type, with built-in keyboard shortcuts and useful playback modes that reduce the number of times you need to stop and rewind. Another option is oTranscribe. It works in the same way as Transcribe but is free.
If you are subscribed to paid Microsoft 365, you can use the Transcribe feature in Word from the Home dropdown menu > Dictate. You can record in real time within Word or upload audio files to the online automated transcription service. Transcribe for Word incurs no additional fees.
Google Docs might be the best solution for those who do not want to spend any money. With Google Docs, you can use the voice typing feature, which is essentially a speech-to-text tool, to put words on the page. It is usually faster than typing everything out. Some people listen to a pre-recorded audio file through headphones and then read the same lines aloud to the speech-to-text tool, which is better than playing audio directly into the microphone, but it’s still tedious and time-consuming.
Conclusion
In
The end, any method or service you choose for transcription is much better than letting your recordings go to waste. Yes, transcription can be annoying, and some services can be expensive, but the value of accurate and usable transcription far outweighs these annoyances. At least one of the services mentioned above should meet your needs. Be sure to read our full reviews to help you choose the right service for you.
Source: https://me.pcmag.com/en/productivity/20469/the-best-transcription-services-for-2023
Leave a Reply