At DMN, we’ve always been enthusiasts of MacWhisper, and the recent v11 update enhances the already excellent transcription app.
This new version is available as a free update for existing users, featuring a user-friendly redesign that highlights the best functionalities in a practical sidebar. Additionally, users can now quickly dictate text using AI-powered speech-to-text across any application through the menu bar utility, which can be utilized without opening the entire MacWhisper app in the Dock.
From the announcement of MacWhisper 11:
The newly implemented collapsible sidebar provides easy access to display settings, AI prompts, translations, transcript information, and speaker details. Users can customize the appearance of their transcripts with options for text size, colors, and padding.
With MacWhisper’s dictation feature, users can achieve incredibly high accuracy for text dictation in any text field on their Mac. The dictation speed surpasses typing by more than four times, and the AI integration allows for real-time rewriting of dictated content. The update also enables users to run the application solely from the menu bar.
MacWhisper integrates with on-device AI services like LM Studio and Ollama for enhanced privacy.
Here’s a summary of the new features in MacWhisper 11/11.1:
New Features
- A completely revamped transcript view design, featuring a sidebar for quick access to frequently used features
- Ability to adjust font size in the transcripts and segments views, ranging from tiny to very large
- Option to collapse the sidebar for a more focused transcript view
- Padding options around transcripts for a cleaner appearance
- Speakers can now be assigned on a per transcript basis with easier addition from the sidebar
- A clearer overview screen for Pro features in settings
- Enhanced transcript view design with a flexible sidebar
- Add speakers directly within the transcript view
- New Info tab to view details about the current transcription
- Option to use the right option key for dictation
- The search bar reflects the count of matching words found in your transcript
- Added option for Voice Activity Detection for WhisperKit models, increasing transcription speed and reducing empty audio segments (accessible from Settings > Advanced for Pro users)
- Ability to show the app only in the Dock, in the menu bar, or both
- Transcripts from WhisperKit models now highlight individual words during playback (Pro feature)
Improvements
- The HTML export now adjusts background and text colors based on light and dark modes
- Dictations will no longer appear in clipboard history managers like Alfred
- New button for creating a folder while selecting a save location
- The video player playback speed now matches audio playback speed
- In cases where a Whisper model fails to load at startup, the next best model will be used
- Font size can now be adjusted using ⌘- and ⌘+
- Playback speed can be controlled with keyboard buttons
- The copy button adapts to the selected display mode
- Whisper files have an improved filename display
- The export preview text now shows the complete transcript
- A “Translating…” indicator appears during translation
- The sidebar features smooth animation during transitions between full and compact modes
- Timestamp and speaker name options are now available when using AI features
- Translations can be removed by right-clicking in the sidebar
- Quick options for combining segments into sentences and omitting “- ” at the beginning of segments
- The home screen will not flash when retranscribing with a different model
- Improved audio effects to be at the appropriate volume
- Colors can be adjusted for each speaker in the speaker sidebar section
- Speakers can be assigned to a segment using the keyboard numbers 1,2,3…
- Segments will feature a background color matching the associated speaker
- Responses in the AI screen will remain visible when switching display modes
- Enhanced design of the AI Services view in settings
- Faster performance for the preview in the export view
- A copy button has been added to the toolbar for easier access
Visit macwhisper.com to start using MacWhisper and to discover more.
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