Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
No: the Potok app (potok.now) listens to the microphone only while recording, not in the background. Recording works in two modes: while the hotkey is held, or between two presses. The audio recording and transcript are kept on servers in Russia. Free: 2500 words per week on one device.
No: the Potok app listens to the microphone only during recording.
Does Potok listen to the microphone all the time or only during recording
It listens to the microphone only during recording. Recording is started by the hotkey (Ctrl+Space by default) in one of two modes. In the Hold and speak mode, recording goes while the key is held: release it, and the text is inserted. In the Hands-free mode, press the key to start dictation and once more to stop it, or press Esc. There is also a Cancel recording key: it discards the current recording, and no text is inserted. System access to the microphone is needed: without it dictation does not work.
When the microphone is not listening
In the background the app does not listen to the microphone: the microphone listens only during recording. When the recording ends, the text is inserted where the cursor is. Potok places punctuation and capital letters itself. Recognition is in the cloud, runs on servers in Russia, and the audio recording and transcript are stored there too. Without the internet Potok does not recognize speech; if the audio was saved, the recording stays in the history, and it can be recognized again with the Re-transcribe button when the connection returns.
- Platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux
- Free
- Free: 2500 words per week; full access for the first 14 days, no card needed
- Pro
- Pro 690 ₽/mo, 499 ₽/mo when paid yearly
- Payment
- Russian bank cards, rubles
- Where speech is recognized
- cloud, servers in Russia; internet required
Potok is a cloud service: speech is recognized on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet. Download: potok.now/download
Where Potok will not help
Potok is a cloud service: recognition runs on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet. There is no offline mode, no apps for Android and iPhone, and no voice commands either. If you need transcription of finished recordings, there is the Telegram bot @potok_now_bot for them, and there is one subscription, for the dictation app and for the bot for recordings and voice messages. Where the voice goes during dictation is covered in the article about Federal Law 152-FZ and voice input, and how the bot differs from the app is in the answer about the bot and the app.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, system access to the microphone is needed: without it dictation does not work. The app listens to the microphone only while recording, not in the background.
Potok has a Cancel recording key: it discards the current recording, and no text is inserted. In Hands-free mode, recording can be stopped with one more press of the key or with the Esc key.
With Potok you can dictate the minutes live, speaking them during or right after the meeting. Transcribing an already recorded audio file of a meeting (a finished Zoom or Telemost recording) is a separate transcription task: such a file can be sent to Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot.
Voice input is real-time dictation: you speak and immediately get text in the active field. Transcription turns an already finished audio or video recording (for example, a meeting recording) into text after the fact. The Potok app handles the first task, live dictation; finished recordings in Russian are transcribed by its Telegram bot @potok_now_bot.
Voice input is real-time dictation into the active text field. Transcription turns an already finished audio or video recording (a lecture, a call, a podcast) into text after the fact, often with diarization (splitting by speaker).
Yes, several platforms have built-in meeting transcription: Zoom for cloud recordings, Microsoft Teams during the meeting, Google Meet on Google Workspace plans. The alternative is to record the sound and process it with a separate transcription service after the call. The Potok app does not do this kind of transcription, it is for live dictation; a call recording can be sent as a file to Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot.
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 PotokA voice message from a messenger or a call recording can be forwarded to the bot @potok_now_bot, and it sends back the text. The bot is part of the same subscription as the Potok 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