Olympus Pearlcorder T1000, Needs More

Author's Rating:

Pros: Inexpensive, very basic

Cons: Limited features, no recording capability

Author's Review
As you may have read in my other review, I own an Olympus T1000 transcriber in addition to my four Panasonic transcribers. While this machine is sleek and compact, I do not find it as convenient to use. I quickly discovered that there was no recording feature. Thus, I could only transcribe on it, but not do any sort of recording. This was a little disappointing as I record my own personal history each morning, but can’t use this machine for that purpose. As a result, my Panasonics are always set up for use instead of the Olympus.

The T1000 is a microcassette transcriber only and is good for back-up in my transcription business. However, it is not my first choice. It costs a little less than the Panasonics [about $200, so approximately $30 to $50 less), but I would gladly pay more for a better piece of equipment. It just doesn’t service me or my clientele the way I would like it to. I do use it for training new transcriptionists, though, and while it also came with headphones and a foot pedal, they just were not the same quality as the Panasonic machines.

In fact, it is a nuisance because it is such a stand alone machine. In other words, I can interchange the pedals and headphones on the Panasonics, but not on the Olympus. I have to use their headphones and their pedals or it just doesn’t work. I guess that makes sense to use only their product, but because of these limitations, I do not see any added value. Important in operating my small business.

Because I am a small business, I still appreciate whatever equipment I have available and I can’t say that this purchase was a waste because I can always find use for the Olympus T1000. I would recommend, however, for first time buyers, to go with a Panasonic brand. It’s well worth the investment in the long run. It's also vital that a transcriber have the ability to both record and transcribe. There are more benefits to these features. I am still happy for any equipment, however, and am grateful to have the Olympus transcriber as well.