The T-Mobile Smartphone Community
Review: Vito Audio Notes v1.32
What Was Wanted
I wanted an application that made recording audio as simple as possible while at the same time provide solid features, ease of use, and just plain worked. I took a good look at Vito Audio Record v1.32 to match my needs. Read on to see if it fits the bill.
Install
The install is fairly simple. You can install Over-the-Air (OTA) with cab files or through Windows Mobile Device Center/Activesync. Two program icons show up in the Start menu. One is for the application itself and another is a Quick Record. Selecting Quick Record will automatically start recording. All the options can be changed in the main application.
Settings
You can record in MP3 or Wav in Low, Medium or High Quality.
Recordings can be stored in Main Memory or on your Storage Card (I prefer the Storage Card).
You can assign a key to the Quick Record function if you want which makes recording in a pinch easy.
There is also the ability to have it record phone calls. On most Windows Mobile phones it can pick up the sound from the other end of the call on its own but with the Shadow I had to use the speakerphone option which gave surprisingly good recording quality.
Voice Activation setting (VAS) is also available, which allows you to set it to only record audio above a certain level. The great thing about the VAS is you can adjust it on the fly while you are recording for better results.
There is also an option for the Mic Auto Gain if you are trying to record an audio source that is further away from you (it also helps to point the Mic in the direction of the source J ). The Auto Gain can be set to Off, low, Medium, or High.
For those of you that prefer a different language, Vito Audio Notes can also be set for Japanese, German, French, Russian or Spanish.
Messing with it
I found Vito Audio Notes to be extremely easy to figure out and use. I only needed to reference the help file once and that was to learn more about the Call Record function. The ability to set a key to Auto Record has come in very handy several times since I installed it. You can easily press the record button while the phone is in your pocket and it will emit a soft beep if you have the Normal profile on. However if you have your Shadow set to auto key lock then you will have to unlock the phone before pressing the record key.
If you found that you recorded a file to the main memory you can easily move it to the Storage Card from within Vito Audio Notes.
You can pull up file information at any time and see the format, duration, channels, bits, sample rate, bit rate, size and when it was recorded.
One great thing I like about Vito Audio Notes is not having to open the key pad to use it; all operations can be conducted with the phone closed. You can send files from within Vito Audio Notes as well. Let’s say you just recorded a juicy lecture and need to send it off to a classmate that missed class. Easy! Just select the file from within the application, press center select, select Send and you can choose which email account you want to send it through.
Does it make the Shadow Better?
Yes, Vito Audio Notes makes any Smartphone/Windows Mobile Standard device better. The native audio recording features in Windows Mobile are limited at best. Having the ability to record long audio sessions in various formats and quality is a great plus. Even the ability to record calls is one I’ve wished for many times. This is an application that is a must have.
Pros
- Auto Record Key
- Ability to record phone calls
- Easy to use
- Records in MP3 format
Cons
- No desktop application for handling recordings when the phone is synced
- Call recording doesn’t work for both sides of a call with Bluetooth Headsets
What should the developer add to it?
Vito has a great propensity for developing great software. Innovation is a quality they will never lose. Vito Audio Notes would be even better with a Scheduled record time for automatically recording audio at certain times (for those that want to record lectures but forget to). The ability for the call recording to work when using a Bluetooth Headset would be invaluable for directions and instructions given while driving. Another great addition would be a simple desktop audio file manager that integrates with desktop mail clients such as Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail, Firebird and even web mails like Yahoo, Gmail, MSN, etc.
Is it what was wanted?
Yes, it even came with a few surprises like the VAS and the call recording ability. If you have any need for an audio recording application then I highly suggest you give Vito Audio Notes a try. You might find yourself wondering how you got along without it. You can download a trial of Vito Audio Notes from our store or purchase it for $19.95.
I give it 4 and a half Shadows.
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about 2 years ago
I not so sure about the scheduled recording idea since we’re dealing with a microphone and not tivo. You need to take your phone out so the microphone has a clear path to the audio source. Probably better to schedule a reminder for you to record a lecture.
about 2 years ago
Is there any hotfix for the Shadow phones with the Speakerphone recording issue? I have a need for this product greatly., but I’m not going to put a client on speakerphone just so I can record our conversation. If anyone knows please let me know thx.
about 2 years ago
es bueno