NokosazuDownloadTranscribe an audio file or a voice note on iPhone
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In short. An audio file or a video that the iPhone can play can be imported into Nokosazu from the list menu, or sent from Files or the Share menu. If the file cannot be processed, the app explains why before creating anything.
Two ways to bring a file in
In Nokosazu, the “Import” button in the list menu opens the iOS file picker: you choose an audio file or a video, and Nokosazu extracts its audio.
The other way starts in Files or in another app's Share menu: “Open in Nokosazu”. The file arrives in the app, which examines it the same way.
A voice note, a voice message
A voice note recorded on the iPhone is an audio file. In the app where it is stored, share it to Nokosazu if the app offers it; otherwise save it to Files, then import it from Nokosazu.
The same goes for a voice message received in a messaging app, WhatsApp for example: if it can be shared or saved as a file, Nokosazu examines it. The iPhone cannot play every format and we have not tried every messaging app: if the format is unsupported, the app says so and creates nothing.
What Nokosazu checks before writing
Before writing anything, the app examines the file. It refuses it, with a message saying why, in five cases:
- it contains no sound (a PDF, a silent video);
- it is copy-protected (a purchased track): Nokosazu cannot read its sound;
- it is damaged, or in a format Nokosazu can't read;
- there is not enough space on the iPhone: the app says how much it needs and how much is left;
- it is not on the iPhone yet because it is still in iCloud: try again once the iPhone is online.
The text, and the 2 free hours
An accepted file goes through the same process as a recording: the transcript includes timestamps and speakers, and you get a summary from it. While you wait for the text, you can already play the audio.
The 2 included transcription hours apply only to files up to two hours long. A longer file is kept and can be played, but it is not transcribed using that allowance.
On the iPhone, without a network once the language is installed
The file is processed on the iPhone. Transcription works without a network once the language is installed; the first time a language is used, the app needs a connection to install it. The summary, for its part, needs a download the first time (3.1 GB: on Wi-Fi if you can).
Your recordings stay on your iPhone. By default, they go nowhere. If you turn on iCloud backup in the settings, they go into your iPhone's iCloud backup: Apple holds the key (except with Advanced Data Protection). Without this option, if you change iPhone, they are not recovered: export whatever you want to keep.
Read it through before quoting
A text written by a machine can contain mistakes, especially with proper names and rare words; a distant voice or background noise does not help. Play the important passages back before quoting them.
Depending on the country, recording a conversation may require the consent of everyone who speaks: it is up to you to ask for it when the law requires it.
Questions
- Can I transcribe a video?
- Yes: Nokosazu extracts the audio of a video, as it does for an audio file. If the video has no sound, the app refuses the file.
- Which formats does Nokosazu read?
- The ones the iPhone can play. If the format is not read, the app says so and creates nothing.
- Can I transcribe a WhatsApp voice message?
- If the message can be shared or saved as a file, Nokosazu examines it. We have not tried every case: if the format is not read, the app says so.
- Do I need to be online to transcribe a file?
- Not once the language is installed: transcription happens on the iPhone, without a network. A file still in iCloud must first be on the iPhone: the app says so and asks you to try again online.
Sources
What this page says about Nokosazu comes from the privacy policy, the support page and the app's App Store listing (plans and trial). This page is written by the publisher of Nokosazu: it is not an independent third-party review, and it is not an accuracy test.