Outsourcing some or all of your typing work in recent times has got quite popular. It is now possible via software to set up an online typing management system, with recordings being directly uploaded from your offices to home-based typists, and returned extremely quickly as required.
There are a whole host of companies out there selling a range of products, but one of the cheapest solutions remains the Olympus digital recorders, which come with the market-leading DSS Player software, and are compatible with the Express Dictate packages from NCH, an Australian company.
The recorders we recommend are as follows:
1. Olympus DS 2400
This is a very powerful machine that comes with the Olympus DSS Player. It enables you to do as much recording as you want as it comes with a memory card for recording onto rather than directly onto a hard drive. The cost is about £169 on Amazon at present:
Olympus DS-2400 Professional Digital Voice Recorder
2. Olympus DS 40
The cheaper option at £82 on Amazon, this still comes with the Olympus DSS Player, which makes it an option if you do not dictate more than about an hour at any one dictation session. It is compatible with the Express Dictate suite of software, and is a very inexpensive option for firms wanting to outsource and not spend considerable sums in doing so.
Olympus DS-40 Digital Voice Recorder with MP3/WMA Playback 512MB
These two machines are often superceded by other models, but Olympus make such good systems for dictation and transcription they are thoroughly recommended.
The Express Dictate system for sending your recordings to transcribers externally can be obtained through NCH systems in Australia for £48.48 per user (no ongoing costs), with a free trial as well. We have been using the software for over 6 years and it is thoroughly recommended.
http://www.uk-transcription.co.uk/ is a transcription company with over 10 years experience working on small to large contracts and one-off pieces of work for solicitors firms, universities, government bodies and research establishments, to name but a few. Unlike others in the market, the typing is undertaken by UK-based native English speaking secretaries working from home offices.