Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
Instead of recording a voice message in imo, you can dictate text right into the chat field. imo works on Windows, macOS and in a browser, and on a computer this typing is handled by the desktop app Potok (potok.now): hold the hotkey, say a phrase, release, and it appears in the input field. The first 14 days have full free access, with no card.
A voice message in imo is a sound recording that the other person then listens to whole, from start to end. It is not always convenient either to send such a thing or to receive it: sometimes it is faster and more appropriate to write ordinary text.
A work chat in imo: how to dictate text instead of a voice message
Work chats where colleagues send voice messages instead of short messages are a common situation: listening to them on a call or in an open-plan office is inconvenient, and typing a long reply by hand takes long. In imo a voice message goes to the chat as an audio recording, which is not text dictation. If you need to reply quickly with text without being distracted by the keyboard, this part of the work can be handed to a separate voice input program: it turns speech into letters right in the open chat field, regardless of what the messenger itself can do. Then voice messages in the chat are left for what really needs to be heard, and not for what you were just too lazy to type.
How to reply with text in imo without typing by hand
Potok does this most simply: it works as a separate desktop app and types text where the cursor is, in any window on the computer.
- Open imo and put the cursor in the message field.
- Hold the Potok hotkey (Ctrl+Space by default).
- Say the whole phrase without releasing the key.
- Release the key: the text appears in the imo input field, ready to send.
It places punctuation and capital letters itself, so you do not need to say “zapyataya” (comma) or “tochka” (period). If the Ctrl+Space shortcut is already taken by something else in imo, you can assign any other key in the settings. Voice input works in a similar way in Telegram.
| What is available | |
|---|---|
| Text insertion | yes |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Web |
| Potok | hold the key, speak, release: the text lands in the field under the cursor |
What Potok does not solve in imo
On a phone Potok has no solution: it has no separate versions for Android and iOS, although imo itself, according to its site, is available on Android, iOS, Windows and Mac, so you cannot dictate text in mobile imo through Potok. Potok also cannot transcribe other people's voice messages already sent to the chat: it recognizes speech only in real time while the hotkey is held, and not finished audio recordings. Potok is a cloud service, recognition runs on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet. Other ways to replace voice messages with text in different messengers are collected in a separate section.
Frequently asked questions
No: Potok recognizes speech only in real time while the hotkey is held, and not finished audio files. It cannot turn a voice message already received in imo into text.
Voice input is converting speech into text on the fly: the user speaks, and the program transcribes the sound with speech recognition technology (ASR) and inserts the resulting text into the active field: email, messenger, document. In Potok it works through a hotkey: hold it, speak, release, and the text is inserted.
By a model estimate, the average dictation speed through Potok is about 900 characters per minute against about 200 characters per minute when typing normally, so speech is noticeably faster than a keyboard.
Yes: Windows has built-in voice input on Win+H (Russian only in Windows 11, there is no Russian in Windows 10; it does not work without the internet), and on a Mac there is system dictation in the keyboard settings. Both are free.
Dictation pays off most for long texts written off the cuff: draft emails, notes, replies in messengers, lecture notes, and also when your hands are busy or tired (for example with RSI). For short precise edits (one-word commands, code) typing is often faster.
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.
Check it in one evening
Install Potok, dictate what you usually type and compare. 14 days of full access, no card needed. Potok is a cloud service: speech is recognized on servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet.
Download PotokThe Potok subscription also includes the Telegram bot @potok_now_bot: forward it a voice message or a long meeting recording and it returns the text. Without a subscription the bot gives 60 minutes per month for free.
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 |