With the Google suite’s voice-to-text capabilities, transferring thoughts from speech to digital copy is quick and simple. On top of that, Google just announced Monday that its upcoming batch of voice-to-text improvements, coming in February, will make for a more reliable and accurate transcription process. Also: Microsoft seems to have very big plans for this AI chatbot The list of changes includes:
Reduction of transcription errorsMinimizing lost audio during transcriptionExpanded support for major browsersAuto-generated punctuation in Slides captions
While you will have to wait a few more weeks before you can fully benefit from the performance gains, allow me to first show you how to use Google’s voice dictation feature to type and edit in Google Docs and even transcribe speaker notes in Google Slides.
How to use voice dictation in Google Docs and Slides
How do I turn on voice typing in Google Docs?
Make sure your device’s microphone is working and you’ve allowed Google Chrome access to it. Then, open a document, go to the Tools menu, select “Voice typing,” and click on the microphone box that appears. With the upcoming update, voice typing will be available on other browsers as well. For now, you’ll have to stick with Chrome. Also: How to maximize Google Docs’ Version History The same goes for using voice typing on Google Slides. Click the Tools option in the menu bar, then select “Voice type speaker notes.” The speaker notes will then open and a microphone box will appear. Tip: Make sure you’re speaking clearly and enunciating your words. If Google isn’t reproducing your dictation in a reliable manner, consider talking slower or closer to the microphone source. With the upcoming update, this process should be less of a hassle (if it currently is). Also: New Google Doc update makes adding emojis almost too easy Don’t forget to state the punctuation at the end of each sentence. For example, you actually have to actually say, “Period” or, “Question mark” for the end of your sentence to be marked by that punctuation. After you start voice typing, you can also use voice commands to edit and format the document. For example, you can say, “Indent line,” “Bold,” or, “Underline.” Note that voice commands at this time are only compatible when the account and document language are in English. They’re also limited to working with Docs and not Slides or any other Google suite software.
Can I correct a mistake while voice typing in Google Docs?
Yes. If you make a mistake while dictating, you can move your cursor and fix the talk-to-text output without ending the session. Just make sure you don’t say anything in the process.
Is Google voice typing an app?
Google’s voice-to-type is a built-in tool that can be accessed via Google Docs and Slides.
