Best Digital Voice Recorders, Top 6

Digital voice recorders are the solution for busy business people who want to record notes, meetings, and ideas without the fuss and bother of tapes. These top digital voice recorders aren't all digital voice transcriber systems, but they all have the ability to record and transfer information to your computer, making it easier to organize, edit and play back your voice files. Whether you’re looking for a professional-grade digital recorder or just something to record meetings and ideas, here are the best digital voice recorders for business and professional use.

1. Zoom H4n Handy Portable Digital Recorder

This is CNET's top choice for a professional grade audio recorder; reviewer Donald Bell says that it's "an outstanding value for musicians and podcasters who demand professional-sounding results". The Zoom H4n has the ability to record 4 channels at once and its XLR balanced inputs with +48V phantom power let you connect professional microphones to it. Of course, you pay more for a professional quality digital recorder, but at about $350.00 this one is still a bit of a bargain for the features. Auto-record, pre-record, variable speed playback, Hi-Z inputs for recording guitar and bass – this is truly a "do-it-all" machine.

2. Olympus LS-10 PCM 2GB Digital Voice Recorder

The LS-10 is Olympus' professional-grade audio recorder, and while the bundled Steinberg Cubase LE4 software for PC (48-track audio recording and production software) is of most interest to musicians, you don't have to be a musician to appreciate this digital recorder's excellent sound quality. The LS-10 offers 24 bit/96 KHz linear PCM recording and has high-sensitivity and low-noise stereo microphones that "capture every detail and nuance". Two features I really like are the multiple recording formats (you can record and playback in WAV, MP3 or WMA formats) and the 2GB built-in memory and SD removable card slot. Con: this digital recorder can be pricey.

3. Olympus DS-61 Digital Voice Recorder

Whether you want to podcast, record meetings or listen to music, this digital voice recorder will do it well. It has six recording modes (three stereo and three monaural) and a highly sensitive detachable stereo microphone coupled with four directional microphone modes and euphony, (surround sound support) guarantees quality sound. Two GB of internal memory gives up to 530 hours of recording and features such as a customisable playback speed of 50-200% and podcast function bookmarking make this digital recorder a treat to use. Another big plus: the Olympus DS-61 digital voice recorder comes with DSS Player Software (Version 7)

4. Sony ICD-SX700 Digital Voice Recorder

This digital voice recorder from Sony is another option if sound quality is important to you but you don't need a professional grade digital voice recorder. Sony's ICD-SX700 is podcast ready, has large built-in stereo microphones, multiple recording modes and noise cut for clearer speech playback. It's also packed with desirable functions such as overwrite and add which let you correct dictation after playback, a music player and includes voice and music editing software. To top it off, there's oodles of storage – up to 372 hours of recording time in LP mode. All at about half the price of the Zoom.

5. Sony ICD-U60 Digital Voice Recorder

It's sleek and stylish but that's not what earns Sony's ICD-U60 digital voice recorder a place on this list; it earns a spot because of its features. The ICD-U60 has functions such as Digital Voice Up (which increases the volume of the person speaking when recorded at a distance from the unit) and Digital Pitch Control (which lets you hear recordings at slower than normal speeds to facilitate transcribing or editing) which I find really handy. It also has 512MB of built-in flash memory, a built-in USB connector for quick file transfer, and up to 251 hours of recording time in LP mode.

6. Olympus WS-311M Digital Voice Recorder

This one makes the list of best digital voice recorders because of its combination of features and price. The WS-311M has recording features such as a built-in stereo microphone, the ability to set up to 16 index marks within a file, slow and fast playback and voice filtering that are usually only found in higher priced digital voice recorders. To transfer files, all you have to do is plug the recorder into a computer's USB port. Other features include 138 hours of recording time in LP mode, 512 MB internal Flash Memory and the ability to play and store both MP3 and WMA files. No editing software is included.