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Dragon NaturallySpeaking Premium 12, English
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| List Price: | $199.99 |
| Price: | $102.04 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details |
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Average customer review:
(326 customer reviews)
Product Description
Control Your Digital World by Voice-Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12 Premium speech recognition software ignites new levels of personal productivity and convenience by enabling you to interact with your PC by voice. Say words and they appear on your computer screen - three times faster than typing - with up to 99% accuracy. Dictate or modify documents, spreadsheets and presentations, manage email, search the Web, post to Facebook and Twitter, and more. Launch applications, select menu items, save files, and switch windows using simple voice commands or create your own custom commands to insert boilerplate text and/or graphics. Even dictate notes into a digital voice recorder or a compatible iOS device and Dragon will later transcribe the recorded files into text on your PC. Dragon 12 Premium is your key to less stress and more success at home, school, work, or wherever life takes youProduct Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #62 in Software
- Brand: Nuance Communications, Inc.
- Model: K609A-G00-12.0
- Released on: 2012-08-15
- Platforms: Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP
- Format: DVD-ROM
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 7.50" h x 1.50" w x 5.00" l,
Features
- Improved Accuracy: Dragon 12 delivers up to a 20% improvement in out-of-box accuracy compared to Dragon 11.
- If you use Dragon on a computer with multi-core processors and more than 4 GB of RAM, Dragon 12 automatically selects the BestMatch V speech model for you when you create your user profile in order to deliver faster performance
- Better performance: Dragon 12 boosts performance by delivering easier correction and editing options, and giving you more control over your command preferences, letting you get things done faster than ever before
- Smart Format Rules: Dragon now reaches out to you to adapt upon detecting your format corrections - abbreviations, numbers, and more - so your dictated text looks the way you want it to every time
- More Natural Text-to-Speech Voice: Dragon 12?s natural-sounding Text-To-Speech reads editable text-with fast-forward, rewind and speed and volume control-for easy proofing and multi-tasking
Editorial Reviews
From the Manufacturer
Dragon Sidebar puts important voice commands and tips in one convenient desktop location
(view larger).
Use your compatible iOS or Android device as a wireless microphone
(view larger).
Use Dragon with Gmail and Hotmail with Full Text Control and commands for the most frequent actions (view larger).
Dragon Sidebar puts important voice commands and tips in one convenient desktop location
(view larger).
Use a Bluetooth wireless headset for
superior comfort and mobility
superior comfort and mobility
Use your compatible iOS or Android device as a wireless microphone
(view larger).
Control Your Digital World by Voice
Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12 Premium speech recognition software ignites new levels of personal productivity and convenience by enabling you to interact with your PC by voice. Dictate or modify documents, spreadsheets and presentations, manage e-mail, search the web, post to Facebook and Twitter, and more. Launch applications, select menu items, save files, and switch windows using simple voice commands or create your own custom commands to insert boilerplate text and/or graphics. Even dictate notes into a digital voice recorder or a compatible iOS device and Dragon will later transcribe the recorded files into text on your PC. Dragon 12 Premium is your key to less stress and more success at home, school, work, or wherever life takes you.Key New Features
- Natural-sounding text-to-speech reads back editable text for easy proofing or multitasking.
- Smart Format Rules allow Dragon to adapt by detecting your format corrections - abbreviations, numbers, and more - so your dictated text looks the way you want it every time.
- An interactive tutorial provides simulations to enable you to learn and practice good dictation, correction, and editing habits.
- Use Dragon with two of the most popular web-based e-mail applications - Gmail and Hotmail - with Full Text Control and commands for the most frequent actions.
- Use a Bluetooth wireless headset for superior comfort and mobility.
- Use your iPhone, iPod touch (4th gen), iPad or your compatible Android device as a remote microphone.
- Dragon 12 delivers up to a 20% improvement in out-of-box accuracy compared to Dragon 11.
- If you use Dragon on a computer with multi-core processors and more than 4 GB of RAM, Dragon 12 automatically selects the BestMatch V speech model for you when you create your user profile in order to deliver faster performance.
- Dragon 12 boosts performance by delivering easier correction and editing options, and giving you more control over your command preferences.
Ignite Productivity with Fast, Accurate Dictation
Say words and watch them appear on your computer screen — three times faster than typing — with up to 99% recognition accuracy right out of the box. Correcting or revising your dictated text is fast and simple, too. Natural-sounding Text-to-Speech reads editable text for easy proofing or multi-tasking. Dragon adapts to your voice and the words you use to deliver better recognition results over time. You can even personalize Dragon with your own custom vocabulary of acronyms, proper names and other unique phrases that you frequently use. Dragon can even adapt its format rules by detecting your format corrections – abbreviations, numbers, and more so your dictated text looks the way you want it to every time.Ignite Proficiency and Ease of Use, Right Out of the Box
Thanks to the new interactive tutorial’s simulations, you can learn and practice good dictation, correction and editing habits so that you can create text efficiently within just a few minutes. The Dragon Help system contains a Tip of the Day window and other easy ways for you to quickly learn what interests you. The Dragon Sidebar puts important voice commands and tips in one convenient desktop location. And on-screen help means information is always available when you need it.Ignite Freedom and Comfort at Your PC
Say "goodbye" to repetitive stress injuries. Use your PC in a comfortable, ergonomic way without being tied to your keyboard and mouse. Open applications or folders, select menu items, click or move the mouse, press keys, switch from one window to another and more using simple voice commands. Use your Apple iPhone, iPad or iPod touch (4th gen) or your Android device as a wireless microphone over Wi-Fi for optimal convenience. Wideband Bluetooth support delivers outstanding wireless performance with no training required.Ignite Convenience by Using Your Favorite Applications
In addition to DragonPad, the built-in text editor, you can use Dragon 12 Home with many of your favorite Windows applications.- Dictate documents in Microsoft Word, Corel WordPerfect, or OpenOffice Writer.
- Send e-mail in Microsoft Outlook or Windows LiveMail.
- Work with spreadsheets in Microsoft Excel.
- Create presentation text in Microsoft PowerPoint.
- Search the web using Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome.
- Post to Facebook or Twitter.
Ignite Efficiency with Voice-Driven Multitasking
Dragon Voice Shortcuts collapse common multi-step tasks into direct voice commands you can use at any time, no matter which applications are currently active. For example, say: "Send email to John Smith and Raphael Sanchez" or "Search maps for financial advisors in Boston, Massachusetts" or "search Google for 87 divided by 12" and Dragon makes it happen. You can also say "open top site for Facebook" and Dragon automatically opens the top-ranked page for these keywords. You can even use voice commands to create e-mails, schedule tasks and appointments, and search your computer faster than ever before.Ignite Mobility for Productivity On-the-Go
A free Dragon Recorder app lets you record high-quality audio files using your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch (4th gen). For more advanced recording functionality, dictate into a Nuance-approved digital voice recorder, and then have Dragon transcribe the audio files into text when you return to your PC. These mobile recording capabilities enable you to capture thoughts while they’re still fresh in your mind to produce detailed, high-quality reports, papers, proposals, meeting minutes, and more.System Requirements
CPU
- Recommended: 2.2 GHz Intel dual core or equivalent AMD processor
- Minimum: 1 GHz Intel Pentium or equivalent AMD processor or 1.66 GHz Intel Atom processor
Processor Cache
- Recommended: 2 MB L2 cache
- Minimum: 512 KB L2 cache
Free Hard Disk Space
- 3.2 GB
- 4 GB for localized non-English versions
Supported Operating Systems
- Microsoft Windows 7 and higher, 32-bit and 64-bit
- Microsoft Windows Vista SP2, 32-bit and 64-bit
- Microsoft Windows XP SP3, 32-bit only
- Windows Server 2008 SP2 and R2, 32-bit and 64-bit
RAM
- Recommended: 2 GB for Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 32-bit; 4 GB for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 64-bit
- Minimum:1 GB for Windows XP and Windows Vista; 2 GB for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008
Other
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 or higher for online help
- Sound card supporting 16-bit recording
- DVD-ROM drive for installation
- Nuance-approved noise-canceling headset microphone (included in purchase)
Use Dragon with Gmail and Hotmail with Full Text Control and commands for the most frequent actions (view larger).
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews744 of 762 people found the following review helpful.
Version 12 is a DOWNGRADE! Grab Version 11 Before it is Sold OutBy SanjeevP
When it comes to speech recognition software, Dragon is pretty much the only game in town. Ever since Dragon Naturally Speaking version 9, the accuracy of voice recognition has been very good.
The upgrade from Dragon Naturally Speaking version 9 to 10 improved the accuracy of voice recognition perceptibly; and even version 11 improved the voice recognition noticeably. But Nuance disabled the use of Dragon Naturally Speaking version 11 in Electronic Medical Record programs. They want to sell, Nuance Dragon Medical Practice Edition 1 or 2, several times more expensive to the healthcare market. And the irony of all this is that despite costing several times more, Dragon Medical 11 (Dragon Medical Practice 1) does not work any better for electronic medical records than Dragon Medical 10. You just feel being ripped off!
Having used Dragon Naturally Speaking version 12 for 4 weeks now, I think version 12 is actually a DOWNGRADE and not an upgrade because of following reasons.
1. SLOWER: I have been spending a lot of time watching the spinning dragon in the correction window on Intel i3 processor 10 Gb RAM computer. Sometimes 6 seconds for a correction.
2. BUGGY: The Dictation Box keeps popping up in a variety of programs even when you are directly dictating into the program and do not want it. For example, you are dictating a document in Microsoft Word and suddenly the Dictation Box pops up and all dictation starts going to the box instead of Microsoft Word document.
3. Many of the old formatting commands do not work, and you have to learn a whole set of formatting commands all over again. Nuance is claiming lot of new formatting commands but so far I have seen very few new usable commands.
4. It does not work for Electronic Medical Record programs. And also functions poorly in browser and Citrix based programs. That is where Dictation Box is useful.
5. It does not work on Remote Desktop programs like RDC, Logmein, RDW, JumpDesktop etc.
6. Keeps crashing in Windows 8 and does not close, when you exit the program. Releasing a program in late 2012, tailgated by Windows 8 release, that does not work well with Windows 8.
UPGRADE? Huh?
But version 12 has a few practical advantages.
1. The repertoire of recording devices has increased.
2. You can add multiple audio sources to your profile, instead of having to create multiple profiles.
3. Tutorial is nice, as of now only text, and no videos.
According to Nuance, the accuracy has improved by 20% but the improvement is hard to perceive in day to day use because Version 12 is slower. Slight improvement in accuracy for a slower program is not a trade off to call an upgrade. Version 12 is supposed to have social media commands, but I have not used those.
Based on my personal experience with microphones and recording devices over 15 years on Dragon Naturally Speaking version 3 to 12, I found the following.
A. USB MICROPHONES: give the best voice recognition. Andrea NC-181 VM USB High Fidelity Monaural USB Computer Headset (P-C1-1022300-1) is good value for money. And if you are dictating long documents or do dictation stop-n-go piecemeal then connection between microphone and computer is solid. Dragon or Plantronics USB headsets that come bundled with this program also give good (but not the best) accuracy, but lack mute and volume controls.
B. Bluetooth Microphones: Work fairly well, but not as good as USB microphones. PLANTRONIC Calisto Headset with USB Dongle - 81493-02 is very good. The biggest handicap with wireless microphones is that connection between the microphone and the computer keeps breaking and they do not work well for piecemeal stop-n-go and dictation. Every-time you start dictating after a long pause, you have to reestablish the connection.
C. Recording Devices: Sony ICD-MX20DR9 32MB Flash-Based Digital Voice Recorder & Sony ICD-SX712 Digital Flash Voice Recorder give excellent accuracy. For dictation on-the-go, and later transcription on Dragon, these are the way to go.
D. Smartphones: I have not had good experience with iOS devices like iPhone or iPod touch and the main problem is that their connection with computer keeps breaking off, in middle of dictation, which is very disruptive when you are dictating a long document or pause for 15-30 minutes. Getting a phone call or text in middle of dictation can be troublesome. iOS devices are probably OK for short snippets for Facebook posting, as shown in Demo, but not long document dictation. it is supposed to work with Android devices too, but I have not used it personally.
If you do a lot of dictation, particularly stop-n-go, like I do, for an hour or more every day, then consider hand-held and table USB microphones. Time wasted in putting a microphone on and off the ear and turning it on and off can add up. Instead of turning microphone on and off use "go to sleep" and "wake up" commands - much quicker.
1). TABLE MICROPHONES: SpeechWare's TableMike's 3-in-1, 6-in-1 and 9-in-1 TableMikes are absolutely phenomenal. SpeechWare 3-in1 TableMike is what I use every day and I have not had used a microphone with better speech recognition accuracy than this. For me, working handsfree increases the productivity. But you are better off buying that directly from Knowbrainer, and owner Lunis is very knowledgeable about the microphones and will guide you well and provide technical support for 30 days.
2). HANDHELD MICROPHONES: Like Philips LFH3500 SpeechMike Premium with Precision Microphone and Push Button Operations and Dictaphone PowerMic II Handheld USB Dictation Microphone (Without Scanner) have good speech recognition accuracy and the advantage of adding programmable buttons for activities that you do repetitively in your work day. Philips LFH3500 SpeechMike Premium has a better speech recognition accuracy, motion sensor that mutes the microphone when you lay it flat, a trackball and the buttons can be programmed to work in multiple applications - like Excel, Quickbooks, etc. but Philips software is very buggy. PowerMic II Microphone is made by Nuance, works only with Dragon Medical, has a trackpoint (like ThinkPad), cannot be used in any other application other than Dragon Medical but needs no extra software, comes with software built-into Dagon Medical. SpeechMike LFH3500 is the other microphone I use every day.
If you are already using Dragon version 10 or 11, then stick with it because you will lose a lot of functionality in version 12 without gaining much in accuracy.
If this is the first time you are buying Dragon and you do not plan to use voice recognition for electronic medical records directly in the EMR program or on remote desktop (like LogMeIn, RDC etc.) then go for version 12. Otherwise, stick with version 10 or 11 or grab Dragon NaturallySpeaking Premium 11, [Old Version] at a much lesser price. Version 11 has excellent accuracy, is fairly fast, and is not buggy but does not work with Electronic Medical Records.
Dragon NaturallySpeaking 10 Preferred - Medium Box works in most electronic medical record programs and on less powerful computers but is less accurate than version 11. Dragon NaturallySpeaking 9 Preferred [OLD VERSION] works in all electronic medical record programs that I know off. If not at Amazon, you can find older versions at off the beaten path retailers online, very cheaply. But if you work with electronic health record on a Windows 7 or 8 computer, you have no other option but to buy Dragon Medical Practice 1 or 2. The whole point of Dragon 12 upgrade is really to choke off the use of regular Dragon in electronic medical programs.
248 of 254 people found the following review helpful.
They call this an upgrade?By Novel Reader
Having used Dragon NaturallySpeaking premium 12 for about a month, I must admit that I'm completely baffled. They call this an upgrade?
For starters, this version is incredibly slooooooow. And I mean slooooow. It is slow to launch, and slower to close. Recognition is even slower. The promotional material stated that it was "20% more accurate," but I have yet to discover this unique aspect of this upgrade. The previous version (11.5) is far, far superior and much faster, compared to this clunky dog. And in typical Dragon fashion, technical support is a big run around, especially when you're calling to complain about the new upgrade. No one seems to know anything.
I've found that it no longer allows me direct access to dictate my godaddy webmail; now the dictation box pops up. Not a huge deal, but annoying. There are several other applications that duplicate this process, where in the past, it was just simple dictation to various fields.
My upgrade wouldn't allow me to import my user profiles from 11.5, so I had to start from scratch with a new user profile. More time wasted.
That being said: Dragon is still the leader in speech to text technology (IMO). I'm just surprised that they released this inferior upgrade and called it an "improvement" on previous versions. Purchasers should be well advised to consider an earlier version of the program . . . at least until all of the bugs are worked out of premium 12. Until then, I'm going to dump it an re-install 11.5.
Buyer beware.
UPDATE 1/03/13:
I continue to use version 12, (I have not went back to 11.5, as I stated I would do) and I stand by my above review. Version 12 is very slow to load and often maddingly slow to close. I was hoping that consistent working with the program, including audio training, would improve accuracy. To an extent, it does, but the strange quirks of this "upgrade" just don't make any sense. Often, Dragon takes nearly a full minute to boot up, and when you perform user maintenance to your profile when closing the program, it's not uncommon for this process to take two minutes or more. I might note here that I am using Windows 7 64 bit with 8GB RAM and plenty of space on the hard drive, so there shouldn't be any space/speed issues. I think Dragon rushed this one out, and I hope they make some serious improvements with future upgrades.
UPDATE 1/06/13:
I am closing out Dragon 12, and the program is performing its 'User Profile Mainenance.' So far, it has taken over 4 minutes, and the status bar doesn't even read 50%. This is ridiculous, compared with earlier versions of the program.
On another note: those of you using Dragon for their iPhone will be pleasantly surprised that the new update they released just a few days ago does nothing but CRASH! Tried uninstalling and reinstalling the program twice; no luck. Sure, it's free, but Nuance seems to be intentionally driving away customers. There are newly-emerging companies that are competing in this field of limited players, and this loyal customer (until recently) is happy to explore other options. I now see they've lowered the price for Dragon 12 Premium (again), so maybe they figured out that their most recent releases weren't quite ready for prime time. Do yourself a favor and pick up vers. 11.5. I've learned my lesson, and am dumping 12 in favor of an older, better version. And I mean it, this time.
UPDATE 2/06/13:
As suspected, 11.5 (the previous version) is an upgrade from their "upgrade." Much faster to load and close, speech recognition is (IMO) better than 12. I can't wait for their customer service folks to call me with a 'special deal' when they release their next upgrade. I will demand a refund for vers. 12 before I purchase their latest "upgrade."
One other note that I would add to those considering purchasing vers. 12: When you are dictating in a text box (as I had to do for my e-mail when using vers. 12), there is a good chance that you will LOSE what you are dictating if you do not transfer your paragraphs piece by piece. Numerous times, I'd compose lengthy emails, transfer them, only to have them vanish. VERY FRUSTRATING AND A WASTE OF OUR TIME, NUANCE. When I went back to vers. 11.5, it allows me to dictate directly to the compose window. Much more efficient.
On a positive note: Dragon recently updated their iPhone app, and (surprise!) this one acutally WORKS!
306 of 322 people found the following review helpful.
Superb accuracy, beware poor headsetBy Mr. T. Anderson
I have been testing speech recognition on the PC for some years. Yes, I remember spending ages training software to my voice and still ending up with a system that made constant errors. By contrast, the current Dragon (and to be fair version 11 and 11.5 as well) are superb. Setup takes only a few minutes, and provided you have a good microphone and a quiet environment it makes few mistakes. In fact, I am dictating this review in Dragon 12 and so far it is perfect.
If Dragon does need correction, and there always will be corrections either because of ambiguous words or simply because you make a mistake, the correction box is also very good.
Fundamentally then, this is excellent software and I do not know of anything better for windows. However I did find a few annoyances. First, I could not get good results from the supplied headset. Dragon's own software reported the microphone either as failed or just acceptable. For my test, I went back to an older Plantronics headset that came with an earlier version of Dragon.
Another thing I found annoying is that just occasionally Dragon pauses for a significant time while parsing your speech.
There are a couple of other things for which I do not blame Dragon. One is that it only partially works with Windows 8; that is, it is fine for standard Windows desktop software but does not seem to work in the new "Metro" environment. Second, the Dragon add-in causes Word 2013 preview to crash. That is understandable since Windows 8 is only just finished and Office 2013 is unfinished; but worth noting if either of these is important to you.
Another question is whether it is worth upgrading. My view is that the upgrade from 11 is probably worth it, but from 11.5 hard to justify unless you need one of the new features.
Disclosure: I am a professional writer and was sent this for review.
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