Nuance Communications (NUAN) has made some big-time improvements to its popular Dragon NaturallySpeaking voice recognition software, including improved performance on Gmail and Hotmail and a new Android app that lets customers use their Android device as a remote microphone for the PC app. The new NaturallySpeaking 12 release, available on August 3rd for $99.99, promises 20% improved voice recognition accuracy over the previous NaturallySpeaking release, a Siri-esque Smart Format feature that adapts to users’ individual speech patterns, and a new version of the Dragon Remote Microphone app that is now compatible with Android.
Nuance unveils Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12, delivering unprecedented accuracy and speed for voice recognition on the PC
BURLINGTON, Mass., – July 26, 2012 – Nuance Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN) today unveiled Dragon NaturallySpeaking 12, the fastest, most accurate and easy-to-use version of Dragon yet with more than 100 new features and enhancements that will let people stop typing and start talking, and get more done in less time than ever before.
Dragon NaturallySpeaking brings voice recognition to the PC, and allows individuals to simply talk to create content and command a computer. Dragon’s powerful voice recognition software ignites new levels of productivity and convenience by enabling people to interact with and command their PC, cruise through email, update Facebook in seconds, surf the Web and create reports – just by speaking.
Dragon voice recognition is everywhere people look today – from PCs to mobile devices to cars and even living rooms – changing the way that people work, communicate, create and live. Dragon is already used by millions of people worldwide, and is the core technology powering an innovative portfolio of voice technologies for consumers and manufacturers, including Dragon Dictation, Dragon Go!, Dragon TV, Dragon Drive! and Dragon ID.
Dragon 12 now boasts a 20 percent improvement to out-of-the-box accuracy, faster performance and new technology that learns your preferences as you use the software. Further, Dragon 12 works better than ever with Gmail and Hotmail, and extends the free Dragon Remote Microphone App experience to Android, turning compatible Android phones into a wireless microphone for Dragon for PC.
“Dragon 12 is a remarkable leap forward in voice recognition technology. With Dragon’s increased accuracy, speed and more than 100 new features and enhancements, the technology simply disappears and your ideas flow onto the screen in front of you,” said Peter Mahoney, Chief Marketing Officer for Nuance and Senior Vice President, General Manager, Dragon. “Voice is transforming the way people engage with their PCs, tablets, phones, TVs and cars. And with Nuance’s Dragon at the heart of it– people are experiencing faster, simpler, more natural ways to communicate with the world around them.”
Significant New Features Include:
Fast, Accurate and Easy – Nothing Comes between Users and their Words
With significant accuracy improvements – up to 20% out of the box over Version 11, Dragon further personalizes and simplifies the PC experience to help them get more done – faster than ever. A new interactive tutorial is available to walk people through fun exercises that demonstrate best practices for dictating, editing and formatting to get up and running quickly. And, taking advantage of the latest multi-core processors in today’s PCs, Dragon truly works at the speed of sound.
The More You Use Dragon, The More it Gets to Know You
Dragon has long adapted to a person’s preferred style of writing as well as the audio characteristics of their voices including pitch, speaking style, accents and even speech impediments. With Dragon 12, the experience is further personalized with Smart Format Rules, a new technology that adapts to the way the user prefers to format their words. Dragon automatically detects word, phrase and format corrections, including abbreviations, numbers and more, so dictated letters, emails and documents reflect a person’s own writing style every time. Dragon also now offers the ability to correct words and phrases even faster and easier with more words, and more likely alternate word choices in the correction list. Further, Dragon 12 reminds users to adapt their profile’s vocabulary based on any documents or emails of their choosing – so the words and phrases each person uses the most are recognized every time.
Gmail and Hotmail – Dragon’s Got Them Covered
Dragon 12 now works even better with two of the most popular web-based email applications — Gmail and Hotmail — offering Full Text Control and commands for the most frequent actions in Internet Explorer 9, Mozilla Firefox 12 or higher and Google Chrome 16 or higher.
No Wires Necessary – Enhanced Wideband Bluetooth and Dragon Remote Microphone App for Android Improve Wireless Options for Dragon
Dragon 12 features support for the Dragon Remote Microphone App for iOS and now for Android devices. People can quickly and easily turn their mobile phone into a microphone for use with Dragon over a Wi-Fi network using the free Dragon Remote Microphone App. Dragon 12 also features enhanced support for wideband 16 kHz Bluetooth wireless headset microphones, providing increased accuracy through a higher-quality audio signal. When Dragon detects that a certified microphone is paired with the PC, Dragon 12 offers “Enhanced Bluetooth” as an audio source type. The improved audio quality eliminates the requirement for Bluetooth users to do initial voice training, allowing them to get started faster than ever (Bluetooth and Enhanced Bluetooth support available in Premium edition and higher).
Dragon Reads Back with Natural Text-to-Speech
Dragon 12’s natural-sounding text-to-speech reads editable text—with fast-forward, rewind, speed and volume control—for easy proofing and multi-tasking.