The Verge - Thursday, May 16, 2019 at 2:02 PM
Android’s Live Transcribe will let you save transcriptions and show ‘sound
events’
[Clapping]
When Google released Live Transcribe this past
February<https://www.theverge.com/2019/2/4/18209546/google-live-transcribe-sound-amplifier-accessibility-android-deaf-hard-hearing>,
it was a hugely important accessibility feature for people who are deaf or
hard of hearing — and it still is. The feature automatically and pretty
accurately transcribes the spoken word in near real time in up to 70 different
languages.
Now, Google is expanding Live
Transcribe<https://blog.google/products/android/new-features-make-audio-more-accessible-your-phone/>
with two new features. The first is important for extending it as an
accessibility tool: “sound events.” In a month or so, the transcripts will be
able to show text for things like “dog is barking or when someone is knocking
on your door,” Google says. It will also have indicators for things like
ringing phones, laughter, cars, or music. When one of those things happen, a
little indicator will appear at the bottom of the screen, as you can see below:
[https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/UdKR67myWYFkvbp2o5Tba9TDdBw=/0x0:1000x854/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:1000x854):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/16281769/LT01___sound_events___copy_text.max_1000x1000.png]
The second new feature takes Live Transcribe out of the realm of accessibility
and makes it potentially more useful for people who are not deaf or hard of
hearing. Google will allow users to save live transcriptions for up to three
days. Google suggests it would be useful for “journalists capturing interviews
or students taking lecture notes.” Those transcriptions are stored locally on
the the phone.
As a journalist who spends a significant amount of money on transcription
services like Otter.ai<http://Otter.ai> and Rev.com<http://Rev.com>, I would
like to agree — but those services provide what will surely be more
full-featured transcription apps which can save audio and offer transcripts
that highlight words as the audio plays. I’ll have to actually try out the new
feature on Android before I’d be willing to trust it.
When Google first launched Live Transcribe, it specifically chose not to
include the ability to save transcripts. It said the reason was that it kept
the feature “simple and easy-to-use,” though I think it might also have had
potential privacy concerns in mind.
Google also said that although Live Transcribe requires an internet connection
to work, neither audio nor transcriptions are stored on its servers. The sound
event feature, however, works locally and doesn’t require an internet
connection.
Live Transcribe is available now for most Android
phones<https://www.android.com/accessibility/live-transcribe/>. Once you’ve
downloaded it, you turn it on in the Accessibility settings. The new features
will be available “next month,” Google says.
https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/16/18628096/android-live-transcribe-save-transcriptions-show-dog-barks-claps-accessibility-deaf-hard-hearing
David Goldfield
Assistive Technology Specialist
Feel free to visit my Web site
WWW.DavidGoldfield.info<http://WWW.DavidGoldfield.info>
