While my Pixel 6 should be able to add speaker labels to conversations in the Recorder app, I couldn’t get it to work.
Enable backup to your Google account and you’ll get a prompt to enable speaker tags.
I like to record and transcribe conversations – it not only helps me keep records of meetings at work, but also allows me to keep important conversations of doctors and relatives.
A very useful feature of most paid transcription apps is the ability to use speaker tags to keep track of who is saying what. That’s why I was thrilled to hear that Google’s free Recorder app added that feature (at least for the Pixel 6 and later). I also wondered if, as a Pixel 6 owner, I could replace Recorder with my paid Otter app, which recently raised its prices and reduced the features it offered for those prices. While Otter has allowed existing subscribers to use their features for a limited time without paying more than they had, ultimately I’ll have to decide if I can afford to stick with that service. Having an alternative that is not only cheaper but even free would be a big help.
So I thought it was time to try Recorder and see how it compares to Otter. However, during a few test shots, the app didn’t show any speaker labels – and when I went into the app settings, I couldn’t find any options to enable it. It was extremely frustrating.
Finally I found the answer in a discussion on Google’s community help site for the pixels. It turned out that in order to enable the speaker tag feature, you first had to choose which Google account you were using And agree to have your transcripts backed up to that account.
So if you have a Pixel, use Recorder and want to add speaker labels, here’s what you need to do:
Interestingly, once I used this method to enable speaker tags, I was able to stop the backup by tapping the personal icon and Backup completedwho took me to the Backup and sync page, where I could then disable the backup (for the entire account, not just the recorder). Although no longer backed up, Recorder still added speaker labels to recordings.
However, if I’ve removed my account from Recorder (by tapping the personal icon, selecting the down arrow next to my account name, and clicking Use without an account), then the next recording had no labels. So if you’re going to add speaker tags to your recordings, you can’t do it anonymously.
And by the way, while it’s nice to have the ability to add speaker tags to the recorded transcripts, it would be nicer to be able to edit and correct the transcripts. You can copy and paste it into Google Docs, where it can be edited, of course, but unfortunately the speaker labels don’t come with the transcript. So I think my Otter subscription may still be needed for now.
Janice has been with businesskinda for 5 years, writing copy for client websites, blog posts, EDMs and other mediums to engage readers and encourage action. By collaborating with clients, our SEO manager and the wider businesskinda team, Janice seeks to understand an audience before creating memorable, persuasive copy.