Philips Speechmike Premium - $335

This one's a thing of beauty, as well as being a top-notch microphone. The SpeechMike Premium takes dictation to a new level. It has a free-floating studio quality precision microphone, a microphone grille with optimized structure, built-in noise-reduction pop filter, antimicrobial surface and the world’s first motion sensor in a stationary digital dictation device. Programmable buttons let you automate your workflow, and the self-cleaning trackball speeds you around the page.

The microphone in the new SpeechMike Premium is decoupled from its housing for the most incredible crystal clear recording performance ever to be delivered by a desktop dictation device. The completely redesigned microphone suspension guarantees that almost no background, touch, click, air or structure-borne noise is recorded.

The hexagonal holes used for the metal grille feature three times more open surface than its predecessor, engineered to provide crystal clear recordings. Bet you didn't know that the shape of the holes mattered, did you?

The microphone area of the SpeechMike Premium is made of many different layers to make it sound as clear and original as possible. One of those is a fleece inserted above and below the microphone capsule. The fleece filters out sound distortions such as pop and hiss noise, guaranteeing perfect results even if dictating closely into the microphone. So now your microphone can match your L.L. Bean jacket.

Being on the cutting edge of technology, the Philips SpeechMike Premium comes with an integrated motion sensor, making it the first stationary dictation device that can be controlled by the movement of your hand. It detects when it’s put on the table, mutes the microphone, and once it is being picked up again it unmutes the microphone. Sort of scary, isn't it?

SpeechMike Premium USB dictation microphone
USB cable (connected to device)
Microphone holder
CD-ROM containing software and user manual
Quick start guide
Fairies and butterflies