Audio Recording Functionality - Critique

[DMeveruser 0]

I'm a big Evernote fan, but I have one major critique and a request for the Evernote development team.  The audio record function just plain sucks and it's below the standard of what I believe Evernote to be. 

I have two major issues with the functionality.  Both should be super simple fixes that could be included in the next update:

1.  Add functionality to the round red recording button to stop and save recording when pressed during a recording. Currently, if you hit the record button again (which is the universally accepted process to stop recording since I can remember) the recording is deleted. This is insanity. Just bad programming at it's worst.  So far I've found no way to recover the recording.  

2. Get rid of the "X" symbol as the defacto "stop and save recording" button (this symbol is universally accepted as "Delete" for as long I as I can remember).

3. Add a "failsafe" opt-in button if any symbol is hit say something like "Are you sure you want to (stop, delete, etc.) this recording...  Yes / Cancel).  Again a universally accepted programming process to save people from making a mistake.

Currently, the save and delete functions are opposite universally accepted programming standards.  I've now deleted several recordings since it's opposite the iPhone and most other digital recording devices, and very easy to get mixed up.  

I will stop using this function until it's fixed.  Just not worth it. It would be a great feature if these changes were made.

 

 

[gazumped 11,686]

Hi.  Whilst I love Evernote dearly,  I'd never consider using the record function for anything other than a personal short memo reminder.  There are far more effective voice and sound recorder apps on the market,  with 'proper' record and playback functions.  Plus if I'm making written notes at the same time as recording in the one app,  the chances of a major failure are pretty much 99%. 

Evernote doesn't do word-processing especially well,  or tables / charts / mind maps / geo location - it's a place to collect all sorts of input,  not one for 'professional' layout.  Given that there have been equally passionate demands for all those other functions - and thousands of others - from Evernote's users,  the chances of this one being addressed as a priority in the next update are pretty much zero - unless the team already had something in development.

However they don't normally share development details,  so while this feature request will no doubt be logged,  you may hear nothing more for a while.  Meantime why not try the other options out there if you need a better experience? 

It would actually be better feedback for Evernote if you could specify the minimum functionality you'd want from their app,  and using other software should give you a better feel for that.  I don't think Evernote will ever provide a fully functioning audio app - why waste the time and money involved in developing something which you can already get off the shelf in a variety of levels from other firms.  But they might consider tweaking what they have with a bigger Record button as you've already suggested.

[Xallie 1]

Speaking of the recording thing, another thing which would (probably) be simple to implement using different APIs/existing code, is to use some kind of OCR-like dictating function. Which means, you could record yourself saying "Alfred nobel invented the nobel price, because he...." and the search for "nobel price" and the note containing the recording would show up. That's would be quite useful. Or some kind of speech-to-text function. 

[gazumped 11,686]

7 hours ago, Xallie said:

Speaking of the recording thing, another thing which would (probably) be simple to implement using different APIs/existing code, is to use some kind of OCR-like dictating function. Which means, you could record yourself saying "Alfred nobel invented the nobel price, because he...." and the search for "nobel price" and the note containing the recording would show up. That's would be quite useful. Or some kind of speech-to-text function. 

Well,  this is what we got - How to use speech-to-text to dictate notes