Let me get this piece of business out of the way– as much as it pains me to admit it– Larry was right. (Wow that was hard.) Let me explain…

When Dragon Dictation was first released I was darn near giddy over how great the voice to text application was. Larry, on the other hand, was impressed but saw a major flaw with it. You see, with the Dragon application you need to dictate your text right into the application and then “send” the text to e-mail or the clipboard or the sms application. From there you need to format the e-mail with a recipient and a subject and then send it.

The multiple steps that were required to get from speaking your message to actually sending it was a bit of a challenge. For me, the speed and accuracy of the application make the multiple steps worthwhile. In addition, I have become pretty quick with the process. Larry, on the other hand, finds it remarkably annoying and, as a result, he doesn’t use the application nearly as much.

When Vlingo updated THEIR voice to text iPhone app last week it included an “in app paid upgraded” that resolves Larry’s issue. For seven dollars you can upgrade the app so that, as soon as you launch the app, you can start speaking. Moreover, you can add an email address, a subject and the message by voice and in one step. The process is simple now-

Launch the app
Say- “Send and email to YYY YYYYYY, Subject: YYYYYYYYYYYYY Message: YYYYYYYYYYYY.
Tap the large, easy to hit button at the top

Wait a few seconds for the message to be returned.
Tap “Next” and your email is sent…

I should note that you can also buy an in app upgrade for text messaging but that remains a multistep process.

I upgraded immediately and must admit that being able to launch the application, speak for up to 30 seconds and then with a single tap send e-mail off the recipient is pretty amazing. It is especially useful for short messages that need to be sent quickly.

While I have no doubt this feature will make its way into an upcoming version of Dragon (No, I do not have any inside information but assume if Vlingo can do it Nuance can too…) for now this gives Vlingo the upper hand.

Or does it?

Ease of use is nice but if the accuracy is poor what good it is? So I wanted to pit Dragon and Vlingo against one another with regard to accuracy. I decided to do a little test this afternoon. I took a few paragraphs from the our upcoming Nexus One review. I read the paragraph one sentence at a time. The first time I use Vlingo. The second time I used Dragon. The original text and both transcriptions are below. They have not been altered or corrected in any way. You be the judge…

The original text…

Number Five: Customer Service Was Awful
Seriously, the entire experience was AWFUL. I WILL NEVER USE GOOGLE CHECKOUT AGAIN… not until they implement something like Amazon’s level of care. Seriously, I had an issue with something I bought from Amazon last week and had a rep on the phone in 27 seconds. It just drove home how very bad Google was. Enough said…
No, actually, I have more to say…
This was one of the worst customer experiences I have ever had. We have documented all the ins and outs of our horror experience elsewhere on the site and so I won’t go into detail but I will say this- after everything Judie and I went through, after all of the e-mails we sent, and after the posts we put up on the site, the fact that no one from Google’s customer service has reached out to either of us once again sends the message that they just don’t care. I like giving my business and money to companies that make great products AND give two hoots about their customers. Google doesn’t. Now I’m done…

Dragon…

Number five: customer service was awful

Seriously, the entire experience was awful. I will never use Google checkout again. Not until they implement something like Amazon’s level of care. Seriously, I had an issue with something I bought from Amazon last week and had a wreck on the phone and 27 seconds. It just drove home how very bad Google was. Enough said.

No, actually, I have more to say. This was one of the worst customer experiences I have ever had. We have documented all the ends and outs of our horror experience elsewhere on the site and so I won’t go into detail but I will say this — after everything at Judi and I went through, after all of the e-mails we sent, and after the post. We put up on the site, the fact that no one from Google’s customer service has reached out to either of us once again sends the message that they just don’t care. I like giving my business and money to companies that make great products and give two hoots about their customers. Google doesn’t. Now I’m done.

Vlingo…

Number 5 Colin customer service was awful new paragraph seriously, entire extremes was awful. I will never use google check out again. Not until they intimate something like that is on the level of care. Seriously, I had an issue with something I bought from Amazon last week and had a wreck on the phone and 27 seconds. Is to just go home how very bad google was. Enough said. New paragraph no, actually, I have more to say. New paragraph this was 1 of the worst customer experiences I have ever had. We have documented all begins and out of our for experience elsewhere on the site and so I will go into detail but I will say this dash after everything Judy and I went through, after all of the email we sent, and after the post we put up on the site, the fact that no 1 from google’s customer service has reach out to either of us once again sends the message that they just don’t care. I like giving my business and money to companies that make great products and give 2 hoots about their customers. Google doesn’t. Now I’m done.

And THAT is why I am still a serious user of Dragon Dictation on the iPhone. Vlingo is great for getting a quick emails and for that reason alone it had a place on my home screen now. Dragon, however, remains one of my most used apps. It is, in my experience, faster and more accurate. Both, however, have there place and, thankfully, this is only the beginning.

Oh, and unlike Vlingo… Dragon is free.