Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
Huawei phones without Google services often lack the familiar Gboard voice input, and the built-in assistant Celia does not always cover the needed language. Potok (potok.now) does not solve this problem: it works on Windows, macOS and Linux, and even 14 days of free access will not change the fact that it has no version for smartphones.
Voice input on a smartphone and on a computer are different things, and the confusion between them is especially visible on Huawei: some of the familiar Android tools are simply absent there. The materials in this section cover three specific cases: HarmonyOS without Gboard, Celia without the needed language, and life without Google services.
Where problems on Huawei specifically come from
Modern Huawei models are sold without a license for Google services. This limitation affected the whole line and also touched voice input: the familiar Gboard, which is the default on most Android smartphones, is simply not on such devices, and it cannot be installed in the usual way through Google Play.
Without Google services on a Huawei smartphone, voice input depends on the keyboard and the shell of a specific model, so you have to check it on your own device.
Huawei's built-in voice assistant, Celia, can recognize speech, but its language coverage is not universal: in some versions or regions the language the user needs may simply be missing, and then voice input formally exists but cannot be used in practice.
All articles in this section (3): potok.now/oshibki/huawei
When the program is not the cause
If it is about a Huawei Windows laptop like the MateBook, and not a smartphone, none of the above applies: ordinary voice input for Windows works there, including Potok. All three errors in this section are about HarmonyOS and the Android ecosystem on phones, and not about computers of the same brand.
Potok is a cloud service, recognition on servers in Russia; it does not work without the internet, and this is also worth keeping in mind when choosing, but it applies only to a computer (Windows, macOS, Linux), and not to a Huawei smartphone.
Reviews of individual errors
- HarmonyOS without the standard Gboard voice input: none of the programs in this section has a desktop version for HarmonyOS; Potok also works only on a computer (Windows, macOS, Linux), and not on HarmonyOS.
- Celia voice input on Huawei does not support the needed language: this is a feature of the phone's built-in assistant, and not of a computer program like Potok.
- Without Google services on Huawei there is no familiar Gboard voice input: of the programs in this review, Android is supported only by Talkpad, but it too is not directly tied to Gboard or Google services.
Frequently asked questions
Not in the usual way through the Google Play store, if Google services are completely absent on the device. Some users look for workarounds through third-party sources, but that is a separate topic, not related to voice input programs for a computer.
No: Potok is built as an app for a computer, available for Windows, macOS and Linux, and it has no version for Android, HarmonyOS or iPhone. On a Huawei Windows laptop, unlike a smartphone, it works as on any other computer with this system.
In some systems yes, through adaptation to the personal dictionary and the terms the user often uses; in others the system is static and does not adjust to a specific person without manual dictionary setup.
Homophones (words that sound the same but are written differently) are a known limitation of any ASR: the model picks the most probable option from the context of the phrase and can be wrong without enough context; a personal dictionary and spelling out letters aloud reduce the frequency of such errors for specific terms.
Yes: speech recognition models are trained on a certain corpus of voices, and a noticeable regional or foreign accent can reduce accuracy if it is poorly represented in the training data of a specific model.
Built-in system tools (Win+H in Windows, Dictation in macOS, Voice Typing in Google Docs, Gboard on Android), browser voice extensions, and dedicated desktop or web services (Potok and similar ones) that work on top of any app through a hotkey.
How to start
Potok is available for Windows, macOS and Linux. For two weeks everything is open for free, after that 2500 words per week without paying. Potok is a cloud service: speech is recognized on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet.
Download PotokExisting recordings are transcribed by Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot: send a file or a YouTube, VK Video or RuTube link and the text arrives in the chat. The Potok subscription removes the limit in the bot too.
Related software: terms compared
| Service | Platforms | Free | Price | Payment from Russia | Where speech is recognized |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Potok | Windows, macOS, Linux | Free: 2500 words per week; full access for the first 14 days, no card needed | Pro 690 ₽/mo, 499 ₽/mo when paid yearly | Russian bank cards, rubles | cloud, servers in Russia; internet required |
| SpeakFlow | Windows, Web | 30 minutes of dictation per month, free forever | 690 ₽/mo (Personal (unlimited)) | rubles directly | cloud (the data center country is not disclosed on the website) (not confirmed) |
| Diktuy | Windows, macOS | 30 minutes of dictation per month, free forever | 239 ₽/mo (Profi (monthly equivalent when billed yearly)); 2870 ₽/yr (Profi (year, billed in full)); 479 ₽/mo (Max (monthly equivalent when billed yearly)) | rubles directly (not confirmed) | cloud (the data center country is not disclosed on the website) (not confirmed) |
| Talkpad | macOS, Windows, Android | 2500 words/week on desktop, 1500 words/week on mobile, free forever; plus a 14-day Pro trial | $6/mo (Pro (billed yearly, $72/yr)); $8/mo (Pro (monthly billing)) | unknown (not confirmed) | cloud (the legal entity is registered in Australia; the website is hosted on Cloudflare; the exact location of the ASR servers is not disclosed in the privacy policy) (not confirmed) |
| Voisty | Windows, macOS | 5 minutes of transcription (to judge the quality) | $6.7/mo (Pro); $67/yr (Pro (year)); $99/one-time (Lifetime) | Visa/Mastercard/Amex cards, PayPal; whether Russian cards are accepted is not stated (not confirmed) | device (offline, local models such as Whisper Large V3 Turbo / NVIDIA Parakeet) |
| WhispeRu | Windows | 7-day free trial (no card) | 290 ₽/mo (monthly license); 1990 ₽/yr (yearly license); 4990 ₽/one-time (lifetime license) | rubles directly (payment via YooKassa) | device (offline) |
| GigaType | Windows, macOS | free with no limits: open source under the MIT license (Copyright (c) 2026 Disrupt Builders), all features are available without payment | — | not needed: there are no paid plans | device (offline, Sber's GigaAM neural network) |
| Molvi | Windows, macOS | free forever, no accounts and no payment | — | not needed: the product is free; voluntary donations are accepted via Telegram Tribute or by card on the website, amounts are not fixed | device (offline; best quality on an NVIDIA GPU, otherwise a fast model on the CPU) |
Built-in dictation and Potok
| Tool | Where it works | Russian language | Where speech is recognized |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows voice typing (Win+H) | Windows 10 and 11 | Windows 11 only | Microsoft cloud, does not work offline |
| macOS Dictation | macOS | yes | on the device or on Apple servers |
| Potok | Windows, macOS, Linux | primary language | cloud, servers in Russia, does not work offline |
Primary sources: speakflow.ru · speakflow.ru · speakflow.ru · blog.speakflow.ru