Olympus Olympus VN-5200PC Digital Voice Recorder

Update 7/17/2009: Olympus has just introduced its new Olympus VN-6200PC Digital Voice Recorder . The VN-6200PC is identical to the VN-5200PC in function and features, but now has twice the memory, 1 GB, for the same suggested list price as the VN-5200PC. My VN-5200PC is great, but the VN-6200PC should be even better! If you need a quality, low-cost, monaural digital voice recorder that easily records and transfers Windows Media Audio (WMA) files fast via a USB 2.0 connection to your PC without any extra software, the Olympus VN-5200PC is a great choice. It outperforms the popular Olympus VN-4100PC Digital Voice Recorder in nearly every way...more storage, longer recording time, longer battery life, more folders and files, greater frequency response, greater output level. Over 221 hours in LP record mode, and you still get over 35 hours in HQ mode...that's 200-13,000 Hz range, good enough to hum or strum your spur of the moment musical inspirations if you are into songwriting. It also has variable voice activation and a dynamic display of audio recording level. About the only feature the VN-4100PC has which the VN-5200PC doesn't is timer recording and playback if you really need it. It does take a couple of readings of the instructions and a little practice to familiarize yourself with operating the VN-5200PC, but once you get the hang of it, it's really easy and intuitive to use. There are 5 folders, each able to hold up to 200 files. Every time you start and stop a recording, a new file is automatically created. The files and folders are easily transferred to your PC via the USB connection. Just plug in to your PC, and your VN-5200PC automatically looks just like any disc drive or storage device on your PC with a Windows directory displaying the files and folders. Just "select all" and move or copy the files to a disc drive to save the files in one operation. Playing the files just involves clicking on the audio file icons, and Windows Media Player pops up and goes to work. You can easily play all of the files in a folder in sequence with just one click on a Windows playing option that automatically creates a playlist of all the files. The files can easily be renamed both on the disc drive and on the VN-5200PC. They can be any name you choose. They don't have to have any specific format. Any file of any type with any name (text files, PDF files, etc.) can also be copied to and stored on the VN-5200PC. However, for an audio file to play on the VN-5200PC, it must be a WMA file and it must be copied or moved into one of the five specific audio folders on the VN-5200PC. The Olympus VN-5200PC has no editing features. You can easily place and remove index markers to quickly return to specific file locations in playback mode, but any file editing must be done on the computer. While Windows Media Player allows you to select and sequence the files via a playlist, you will need to purchase separate software if you wish to edit or combine the files or convert them to other audio file formats such as MP3 or WAV. One annoying feature of the VN-5200PC is that the earphone jack is monaural and, without an adapter, not compatible with the stereo headphones everybody has for their iPods or their old Walkman players. That's just plain stupid on the part of Olympus. Even my old mono GE microcassette recorder has a stereo earphone jack. A 1/8" stereo jack to 1/8" mono plug adapter can be bought at Radio Shack for $2.99 to solve the problem, a cost and inconvenience that should not be necessary. Another gripe is that the USB cable provided by Olympus with the VN-5200PC is only 6 inches long. This is okay for a laptop computer, but a USB extension cable may be necessary for your desktop computer. Target sells the 6 ft. Belkin USB Extension Cable (A-A) for $7.99. A type-A plug to 5-pin mini-plug USB cable can also be used. In short, the Olympus VN-5200PC is for notes, meetings, lectures, dictation, emailing audio messages, and even songwriting. Its features are basic, price is modest, and the value is good. If you are into live music and MP3, news interviews, need stereo and fancy features, then go for the higher-priced Olympus digital recorders. NOTE: Free, full-feature (not a "demo" copy), open-source software downloads to edit and convert audio files are available. SUPER© from erightsoft works on Windows platforms and will convert just about any audio file format to any other audio format. Audacity from Sourceforge is a full-featured audio file editor that works on Windows and Mac. Audacity is not licensed to directly import and convert WMA files, so it makes use of 3rd party software for WMA conversion. With Audacity 1.2, SUPER© or iTunes can be used to first convert WMA files to a format Audacity can accept, such as WAV. Audacity 1.3, a beta-test version, makes use of a free, separately downloaded ffmpeg import/export library to seamlessly import, export, and convert WMA files. (Currently, for use on the Mac, the ffmpeg library source code must first be converted to binary code... a job for "Mac-techies" only!)

The batteries were dead and needed to be removed; the battery area needed to be cleaned and new batteries inserted. The device itself was extremely complex in the program application and I have not been able to figure it out.

This is a handy little digital recorder; however, I would have liked a neck strap included with the purchase. Now I have to go out and purchase one that fits this item.

I purchased this recorder to use in university classes. I cannot keep up with note-taking, so I use this to supplement. It picks up my professors well, whether I am in the front or back of the room, even when classmates nearby are shifting books and binders. The battery life (AAA batteries) is very good. It's taken about two months to drop from three battery bars down to two, with 15-20 hours of recording a week. For classwork, I tend to save files back to my computer before playing, but I also use it for personal notes and reminders while I am driving or going to a store. Saving files back to the computer is quick and easy. It's also fairly durable. I've dropped it a few times and it's rattled around my bag. This is my second semester using it. I strongly recommend this product.

Having bought the Olympus VN-5200PC about a month ago, I am very pleased with my purchase. It is very easy to operate the basic functions, and if you do want to get into some specialized settings, the user manual explains things in simple language. It is a nice size, so it's not too bulky, nor is it too small that it can be misplaced or damaged easily. The recording quality is more than sufficient for doing straightforward recordings of classes/lectures, so I'm very happy with its performance. Battery life is good, though I have bought rechargeable AAA's since I already had a charger, so this way I don't ever have to worry about battery life. Furthermore, I was deciding between the VN-5200PC and the new, larger capacity 6200PC, and in the end, I opted for the 5200PC because I realized that there was no need for that added capacity. At the end of each week I would simply transfer all my files to my computer, and have no problems what-so-ever reaching the storage limit of the 5200PC. Of course, if you're going to be lazy and not listen to and transfer the files for a few weeks, then go for the larger capacity 6200PC, but if you plan to purchase a recorder to try and stay on top of your studies, then I'm sure you'll stay on top of transferring your files at the end of each week. The only extra thing I can suggest is to maybe purchase some sort of case for it, just so it doesn't get dirty, or you don't put it in your bag/purse and then have a pen leak on it...or any other unfortunate mishaps. Maybe if you have an old eyeglass case laying around somewhere, that would do just fine. It's not critical to have, just a little tip if you want to take extra care, especially because you don't want unnecessary fine dust/dirt particles getting into the microphone and speaker areas. Overall, very pleased with my purchase. The best feature of the Olympus VN-5200PC is it's value for money. You can't beat the features for its price. You won't need anything more than this if you're looking for a classroom/lecture recorder.