Potok transcribes Russian speech; this site has been translated into English for convenience.
WeChat converts an already recorded voice message into text, but only in Mandarin, English and Cantonese, without Russian. To dictate text at once, skipping the voice recording, on a computer Potok (potok.now) helps: the text lands right in the WeChat message field, and Potok recognizes about 900 characters per minute by voice.
A recipient listens to a voice message at the speed at which it was recorded, while text can be skimmed with the eyes. WeChat has its own way to turn a voice message into text, but it does not always fit; a general breakdown of such a replacement is in the overview of turning voice messages into text.
| 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 |
How to dictate text instead of a voice message in WeChat
WeChat itself has a way to turn an already recorded voice message into text: swipe up and to the right while recording, or hold an incoming message and choose the “Convert to text” command. But the conversion works only for Mandarin, English and Cantonese, and Russian is not in the list. WeChat has versions for Windows and macOS. To get Russian text at once, instead of recording a voice message and then dealing with it, a separate program for a computer helps: Potok. You hold the hotkey, Ctrl+Space by default, say the message and release, and the text lands right in the WeChat message field, skipping the voice recording altogether.
Why text is sometimes more polite than a voice message
A voice message is not always polite: the other person has to listen to it in real time, and this is not convenient everywhere. In a meeting room, on transport or with a sleeping person nearby, text is easier and quieter to read. Some people find it inconvenient to read, others to listen: if you do not know the other person's preferences, text is safer, as it can be looked through anywhere, even silently. If the message is important and people return to it (an address, a meeting time, a number), such details are easier to save and forward as text than to retell in your own words what you heard in a voice message. How to do the same in Telegram is covered in the article on voice input in Telegram.
When it is still better to record a voice message
A voice message is honestly more convenient if your hands are busy (while driving, while cooking) or the thought is long and tangled: it is easier to say it than to word it in writing. It also fits when intonation matters: a joke, an apology or an emotion sounds livelier by voice than in text. But recording text instead through Potok works only on a computer: it has no apps for Android and iPhone, and Potok is a cloud service, recognition runs on servers in Russia, and without the internet you cannot dictate text. It also has no voice commands or editing by voice.
Frequently asked questions
No: converting a voice message to text in WeChat supports only Mandarin, English and Cantonese, and Russian is not there. To get Russian text, you can dictate it straight into the message field through a third-party program such as Potok.
Dictation pays off most for long texts written in one go, such as email drafts, notes, messenger replies and 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.
Voice input turns speech into text on the fly: the user speaks, the program transcribes the sound with speech recognition technology (ASR) and inserts the resulting text into the active field, such as email, a messenger or a document. In Potok this works through a hotkey: hold it, speak, release, and the text is inserted.
Built-in system tools (Win+H in Windows, Dictation in macOS, Voice Typing in Google Docs, Gboard on Android), voice browser extensions, and specialized desktop and web services (Potok and similar) that work on top of any app via a hotkey.
Any microphone the system sees as a recording device will do. In Potok you choose it in the app settings or in the tray icon menu; system access to the microphone is required.
By a model estimate, the average dictation speed with Potok is about 900 characters per minute versus about 200 characters per minute with ordinary typing, so speech is noticeably faster than the keyboard.
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: www.wechat.com · cs.help.wechat.com