Dragon NaturallySpeaking Premium 12, English (Old Version)

Takes a fair amount of time to learn how to use, but is good with text such as email or word processing. Does not fit my needs for use with spreadsheet programs or statistical packages (Excel, SPSS, R, etc). Quirky operating process, for example when I first opened it, the microphone will receive the first sentence I say, and then just not accept any more, so I have to turn off the microphone, and then re-turn it on, and it seems to work--why? Another irritation is that for some applications it will pop up a dictation box and record your dictation, but about one out of every five times, when you hit the transfer button to send it to the application you had the active cursor in, the text just goes out into the ether, yes, it disappears, and then you have to start all over again. My arm is in a sling for a few months, so it makes a big difference for emails and wordprocessing documents, but beyond that does not help with the majority of my work.

I can type fairly well, but thought by having this I could save a little time. WRONG. First Ill say that I dictated reports for 20 plus years and never had an office assistant complain about my dictation. I understand the commands to use, talk clearly, into the mic. I also took the time to train Dragon, and edit its mistakes. I use the provided headset in a quiet office. It still couldnt understand what I believe are easy things: wood stove not would stove, light bulb not white ball, etc. In the end, it takes me so much time to go back, locate all the errors, correct them, and reproof that Im spending twice the time I did without Dragon. So....if you can type at all, youre better off typing. This is not a time saver. It does however provide some entertainment reading its mistakes. No, its not abandoned Raj, its a band in the garage.

I just purchased Dragon 12 and was trying to install it on my company provided computer. It wont install without .NET Frameworks 4.0. I contacted Nuance support which the confirmed, that Dragon 12 requires .NET Framework 4.0. This is not documented anywhere on the box, or online product requirements. Because my company IT policies are controlled and are not up to this version of .NET I cannot install Dragon 12. Of course I ran into this when I tried to install the software and had opened all the seals on the packaging, so just a straight return is not available. Im waiting for word from Nuance if I can return 12 for a version of Dragon 11.5 and if 11.5 will work on my older version of .NET Frameworks. Also to confirm other reviewers comments the headset provided is crap, and crushes your head. So if there is a package that is cheaper without headsets purchase it and buy a better headset separately.

I think this the best voice the text software. After training, it works well, and I am always finding new shortcuts to make it even more useful. I combined it with the Plantronics .Audio 628 Stereo USB Headset and have been extremely satisfied. There are many features that I havent tried. Most use has been in Microsoft Word, which the software has a link that allows you to speak directly into the document. Other word-processing software required that you use the Dragon text box, and then paste. There is also a link to INternet Explorer where you can use speech commands to navigate (I havent used this feature). So to be clear, I think the easiest use of Dragon is with MS Office. If Office isnt your favorite, be sure to research Nuances website to see how it will work for you.

I have used Dragon Naturally Speaking for years, starting with version 6, and, while the early versions left something to be desired, they worked pretty well. I bought Dragon Version 10 and used it for a couple of years and was very happy with it. When I got a new computer running Windows 7 my Dragon 10 would not run so I upgraded to 12. What a mistake! While it does translate speech into text it is so irritating to use that I have gone back to my old computer and version 10. Since many words sound alike (isle/aisle, to/two/too, etc.) the program will sometimes make a mistake. With my old version I could select the word and say spell that and the program would let me make a correction, either by choosing the right word from a list or actually spelling the word on the keyboard and training the program to understand it. With this one about 90% of the time it refuses to work. If I say spell that the program comes back with spell letter S, deletes the word and inserts an S. Other times it will say spell bracket and insert a bracket. Many times it refuses to do anything and just sits with the cursor blinking. I am using the same microphone I used before and have even tried a wireless USB mic with the same result. If you go to the Nuance website there are a bunch of FAQs, but no easy way to talk to customer support. Maybe version 13 is better but i am not about to plunk down another $100 to find out. I wish I could recommend it but I cant.

I had problems, not with Amazon, they were supportive, but with the software. To make a long story short,. the first purchase & the 2 additional replacements wouldnt load ( the disks couldnt be read), (Version 12.0 from Amazon), perhaps a bad batch of DVDs. I eventually paid $200 to Nuisance for version 12.5, which works good. Not the easiest software to learn, but it works.

I chose this item cause I HATE to type and thought this would be perfect in helping me get caught up with my work at the office. However I spent more time fixing the mistakes and getting frustrated when Dragon couldnt understand what I was saying that it now sits in its original box on a shelf. It sounded awesome and I bragged to everyone about ordering it. Now everyone is asking about Dragon and laughing when I say, if I took the time to learn it maybe it would be good but I dont have the time that is needed. Oh and I did not get it at the great sale prices it is currently selling for ....so yes I got duped hopefully by reading this you wont. Like I said if you have time to learn all its tricks Im sure it would be awesome but when one see online there are actual training classes for the software I should have known.....and I work in IT.

I purchased this product for my daughter going away to college. I believe the product works but I also know that it takes some time to get used to. Time is a very big issue with me so I decided to return it. I contacted the company and there were no issues, I would recommend the product for someone who has to the time it takes to learn it correctly, I think it could be a big help and I would recommend the company because they did everything they said that they would.

It takes quite a lot of time to train the software, but if you keep working at it you can get it to work well. Helps save the hands & wrists. I bought this version because it comes with a headset (mic & speakers) and Im glad I did.

I have only been using Dragon NaturallySpeaking for a few weeks now, but I am thoroughly satisfied with it. It was very easy to install and the training period was easy to get through. I have been using it for a variety of tasks. The primary reason for which I purchased it was to be able to dictate manuscripts for books and I was surprised at how easy and accurate it is to use. In fact, this review is being dictated through that same program. The number of mistakes that the program makes is far fewer than I had anticipated. Quite a few years ago I had used an earlier version of Dragon and was satisfied with it at the time, but there is no comparison between that version and the present one as far as ease-of-use and accuracy are concerned. I am very much satisfied with what I received.