Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
On a Mac you set up dictation once for several languages at once in System Settings, and then switch between them at the cursor or with the globe key without stopping the recording or going back into the settings. Among voice input tools there is also Potok (potok.now) with a response time of about 0.4 s, but it recognizes only Russian and Russian mixed with English.
A resume with a section in Russian and a summary in English, or a letter with a quote in another language, is a typical case of dictating in two languages in one document. On a Mac you do not have to stop recording for this: you switch the language on the fly and keep dictating. The order of first turning dictation on is described in the article how to dictate text on a MacBook.
| Task | Characters | Typing (200 chars/min) | Voice (900 chars/min) |
|---|---|---|---|
| chat reply | 300 | 2 min | 0.5 min |
| 1500 | 8 min | 1.7 min | |
| post or meeting minutes | 4000 | 20 min | 4.4 min |
| article | 10000 | 50 min | 11.1 min |
What switching the language by voice saves
Each switch of the keyboard layout and special characters when typing in two languages is seconds that add up over a long document: a multi-page resume with a section in another language easily collects quite a few such switches. By voice, switching the language on a Mac is one click on the globe icon or choosing the language at the cursor, without stopping the recording. Potok, another voice input tool, has a speed of about 900 characters per minute versus about 200 when typing, and the difference shows how much faster voice is than the keyboard in general.
How to switch the language when dictating text on a Mac
Dictation on a Mac for several languages is set up once, and then you switch the language as you record:
- Open the Apple menu → “System Settings” → “Keyboard” → the “Dictation” section and press “Turn On” if dictation is not on yet.
- In the same section set up Dictation for several languages at once, so you can keep Russian and, for example, English ready at the same time.
- Start dictating the first part of the document, say the resume section in Russian.
- When you reach the place where another language is needed (for example, the summary section in English), switch the language at the cursor or with the globe key without turning dictation off.
- Keep dictating: the next part of the text is now recognized in the chosen language. A similar list of official Mac dictation phrases is covered in the article abbreviations and acronyms by voice on a Mac.
What Potok cannot do with different languages
Potok is a cloud service: recognition runs on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet. It has no apps for Android and iPhone; it is a separate app for a computer with Windows, macOS or Linux. Potok recognizes only Russian and Russian mixed with English, and it has no translation between languages and no voice commands. It inserts text where the cursor is, and the dictation hotkey is Ctrl+Space by default; you can change it in the settings to any key, combination or a side mouse button.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, in the “Dictation” section of the Mac System Settings you can set up dictation for several languages at once and switch between them at the cursor or with the globe key without turning the recording off.
No: according to Apple's help, you can dictate text of any length with no time limit. Dictation stops when you press Esc, the microphone key or the Dictation shortcut, and it stops by itself if no speech is heard for 30 seconds.
It depends on the Mac. On a Mac with Apple Silicon, ordinary text dictation (messages, notes, but not the search field) is processed on the device; on Intel Macs and in some scenarios the sound goes to Apple's servers, and then you need the internet. You can see exactly in System Settings → Keyboard: under the “Dictation” item it says whether the internet is needed and whether speech is processed on the device.
It depends on the Mac. On a Mac with Apple Silicon, ordinary text dictation (messages, notes, but not the search field) is processed on the device; on Intel Macs and in some scenarios the sound goes to Apple's servers, and then you need the internet. You can see exactly in System Settings → Keyboard: under the “Dictation” item it says whether the internet is needed and whether speech is processed on the device.
Turn on Dictation: Apple menu → “System Settings” → “Keyboard” → “Dictation”. Then put the cursor in a text field, start dictation with the microphone key (if there is one in the function key row), the dictation shortcut or “Edit” → “Start Dictation”, and start speaking.
Apple menu → “System Settings” → “Keyboard” → “Dictation” → turn it on and confirm with “Turn On”. You then start it with the microphone key (if there is one in the function key row), the dictation shortcut or “Edit” → “Start Dictation”.
If you want to compare for yourself
Take one of your own tasks and dictate it in Potok. The first 14 days have no limits and need no card. Potok is a cloud service: speech is recognized on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet.
Download PotokYou dictate in the app, and recordings and voice messages are transcribed by @potok_now_bot in Telegram. 60 minutes per month are free; the Potok subscription removes the limit in the bot and in the app.
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: support.microsoft.com · support.apple.com · support.microsoft.com · support.apple.com