Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
Win+H inserts dictated text and recognizes speech in the Microsoft cloud: it does not work without the internet, and Russian in it exists only in Windows 11. Voice Access, available in Windows 11 starting with version 22H2, controls the whole computer by voice and recognizes speech on the device, but it has no Russian. For dictating text on several systems there are also third-party programs like Potok (potok.now).
Both Win+H and Voice Access are built-in Windows features for voice, but they solve different tasks and recognize speech differently.
How Win+H differs from Voice Access
Both features are part of Windows and need no separate installation. Win+H is built into both Windows 10 and Windows 11: the key combination turns on voice input of text, which is inserted into the active field. Recognition runs in the Microsoft cloud (the Azure Speech service), so Win+H does not work without an internet connection. Russian is supported only in Windows 11; Windows 10 does not have it.
Voice Access is a newer feature, available in Windows 11 starting with version 22H2. It recognizes speech right on the device: the language pack is downloaded once, and after that an internet connection is not needed for recognition. Its main point is controlling the whole computer by voice; it can also dictate text, but only in its own languages. Voice Access has no Russian: according to Microsoft, it is not listed among the supported ones. Why the built-in speech recognition in Windows gets along poorly with Russian in general is covered separately, in the article about the quality of Russian recognition in Windows.
Where Potok has limits
Potok (potok.now) is not a built-in Windows feature but a separate program for Windows, macOS and Linux. It is also cloud-based: recognition runs on servers in Russia, and without an internet connection Potok does not work, like Win+H, only the server is different. Potok has no voice commands for controlling the interface: it only inserts dictated text into the active field.
What cannot be compared here
Both features are for Windows only. The accuracy of speech recognition is not compared here between Win+H and Voice Access; only facts are known about where exactly speech is recognized and in which language. Other questions about voice input are collected in the general section of questions and answers.
Frequently asked questions
No. According to Microsoft, Russian is not among the languages supported in Voice Access.
Yes. Win+H recognizes speech in the Microsoft cloud (Azure Speech) and does not work without an internet connection.
It depends on whether the computer is managed by the organization: an administrator can centrally disable speech services with group policy, and then you cannot turn on voice input yourself and need to contact the IT department. If there are no such restrictions, Windows voice input opens with the usual Win+H combination in a text field.
Windows voice input does not turn on by itself: the panel opens only with Win+H or the microphone button on the touch keyboard. It works through the cloud “Online speech recognition”: if you turn it off in Settings → Privacy & security → Speech, Windows will use only on-device recognition, and voice input will not work. In an organization an administrator can turn off speech services with a group policy.
No: voice typing with extended language support (including Russian) is a built-in feature of Windows 11 specifically, and it cannot be moved or installed on Windows 10 separately. Windows 10 has an older version of dictation with fewer languages (without Russian).
Yes, they have different shortcuts: Win+H opens Windows voice input, and Potok works on Ctrl+Space by default. For one phrase it is more convenient to use just one of them.
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 |
| 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 |
Primary sources: support.microsoft.com · support.apple.com