Plaud Note Pro Review – ChatGPT-Powered AI Voice Recorder

This is a condensed review of the Plaud Note Pro which is was originally featured on mightgadget.co.uk

After extensively using the original Plaud Note last year, I was curious whether the new Pro model could justify its £169 price point – just £20 more than its predecessor. Having tested it for several weeks in real-world scenarios, I can definitively say the improvements are more substantial than the modest price increase suggests.

Context and Competition

The AI transcription market has evolved considerably since my original Plaud Note review. Phone manufacturers now include built-in transcription features, and services like Otter AI dominate corporate environments. However, I’ve found significant issues with both approaches.

The iFLYTEK Smart Recorder I reviewed promised offline transcription without subscriptions for £200, but delivered terrible accuracy compared to Plaud’s ChatGPT-powered system. It works as a glorified Dictaphone, but the transcriptions require extensive manual cleanup.

Meanwhile, Otter AI presents serious privacy concerns in corporate settings. Once granted access to M365 or Google Workspace, it automatically joins and records meetings without explicit permission – a significant security risk I’ve encountered firsthand in my IT role. While Plaud still uploads data to ChatGPT, you maintain control over what gets processed and when.

Hardware Improvements

The Pro’s build quality represents a genuine upgrade from the functional-but-basic original. The aluminium alloy body with Corning Gorilla Glass feels properly premium at just 2.99mm thin and 30g. After weeks of rough handling, neither the glass nor the ripple-textured aluminium shows any wear.

The most significant addition is the 0.95-inch InstantView AMOLED display. While tiny, it provides crucial visual confirmation that recording is active – something I constantly worried about with the screenless original. The display shows recording status, battery level, and transfer modes clearly enough to be genuinely useful.

One minor annoyance: removing the device from its magnetic case requires pushing from the bottom edge rather than prying from the top. It took several attempts to master this technique, and I worry about long-term durability from repeated flexing.

Audio Performance

The upgraded 4-MEMS microphone array with “Acoustic AI-Beamforming” delivers the Pro’s most substantial improvement. The claimed 5-metre pickup range represents a significant increase from the original’s 3 metres, though in practice, audio quality degrades noticeably beyond 3-4 metres.

In team meetings, the difference is immediately apparent. Where the original Note produced muddy recordings with poor voice separation, the Pro’s beamforming technology dynamically focuses on active speakers while reducing cross-talk. I could clearly understand colleagues speaking from across the room, even with side conversations occurring.

For smaller meetings of 2-4 people, audio quality is exceptional. Voice separation remains clear, and the device handles volume changes without distortion – someone laughing or raising their voice doesn’t cause the clipping I’ve experienced with other recorders.

Phone call recording remains seamless. Simply attach the device magnetically to your phone’s back, and it automatically records calls without launching apps or pressing buttons. Both sides of conversations are captured with good balance, though the person holding the phone naturally comes through slightly louder.

Transcription and AI Features

The Pro uses OpenAI’s Whisper Large V3 model alongside Azure’s speech services, supporting 112 languages. In good conditions, English transcription accuracy approaches perfection. However, technical jargon and acronyms remain problematic – particularly frustrating in IT environments where these are common.

Speaker labelling works reasonably well, correctly identifying speakers about 80% of the time in regular meetings once you’ve manually labelled them initially. The system distinguishes between voices and assigns labels (Speaker 1, Speaker 2, etc.) that you can rename in the app.

The “Multidimensional Summaries” feature has evolved considerably. Rather than basic overviews, you can generate different summary types from the same recording – meeting notes, action items, key decisions, or speaker-specific contributions. Well-structured meetings produce excellent summaries, while rambling conversations yield predictably poor results.

The AI mind map feature attempts visual representation of discussions but often produces chaotic results for complex conversations. Without manual editing capabilities, these maps remain of limited use – a missed opportunity for what could be a powerful feature.

Subscription Model and Costs

The Pro includes 300 minutes of free transcription monthly. Beyond that, you’ll need a subscription:

• Pro plan: £8.40 monthly (annual) or £17.99 monthly – 1200 minutes
• Unlimited: £18.80 monthly (annual) or £28.49 monthly

Thankfully, free users aren’t locked out of features – all AI capabilities remain available within the minute limit. This contrasts favourably with competitors who typically paywall advanced features.

Battery and Practical Use

Battery life impresses with up to 50 hours recording in Endurance Mode or 30 hours in Enhance Mode. Recording 2-3 hours daily, I charged weekly. The 75-day standby time means it won’t die if forgotten in a drawer.

The proprietary magnetic charging cable is convenient but concerning – losing it would be problematic since standard USB-C won’t work. I’d prefer standard charging even if it meant a slightly thicker device.

The credit card form factor attached via MagSafe means I carry it everywhere without thinking. This convenience factor shouldn’t be underestimated – I record far more meetings than I would with a traditional recorder requiring conscious effort to remember and retrieve from a bag.

Privacy Considerations

Plaud emphasises GDPR, SOC II, and HIPAA compliance with encrypted transfer and storage. The 64GB local storage allows extensive recording before cloud upload, valuable in sensitive environments. You explicitly choose what to transcribe rather than automatic processing.

However, recordings ultimately reach OpenAI or other LLM providers for processing. While Plaud acts as an intermediary, those requiring absolute privacy should look elsewhere or stick to local-only recording.

Regarding phone call recording legality: in the UK, personal recording without informing the other party is legal but cannot be shared without consent. Many US states and European countries have stricter two-party consent requirements – check local laws before use.

Alternative Options and Value

At £169, the Pro costs £20 more than the original Note (£149) or the NotePin variant. Various Chinese clones like the PEDNRJFT (£79) and RECOLX (£85) offer similar features but with the same 300-minute monthly limitation despite misleading marketing claims.

Compared to Otter AI’s £8.33 monthly pro subscription, Plaud makes sense if you value privacy and data control. Alternatively, combining a high-quality voice recorder with Whisper transcription might prove cheaper and more accurate but lacks the Pro’s convenience.

Conclusion

The Plaud Note Pro represents meaningful evolution rather than revolution. For new buyers, the £20 premium over the original delivers significantly more value through improved microphones, extended range, and the AMOLED display. Current Plaud Note owners probably won’t find enough improvement to justify upgrading.

For regular meeting attendees, interviewers, or anyone frequently recording important conversations, the Pro quickly justifies its cost through time savings and transcription accuracy. The convenience of always having it attached to your phone means you’ll actually use it – I find myself recording far more than with traditional recorders.

However, for occasional use, your phone’s built-in recording capabilities will suffice without additional expense. The subscription model, while reasonably priced, adds ongoing costs that casual users won’t justify.

The Pro excels at its core purpose: convenient, high-quality recording with accurate AI transcription and useful summaries. It’s not perfect – technical terminology struggles, mind maps need work, and the proprietary charging irritates – but for its target audience of regular users, it’s the best option I’ve tested in this category.