Speech Recognition & Synthesis

Google LLC

About this app

Power your device with the magic of Google’s text-to-speech and speech-to-text technology. Google Speech-to-Text functionality
Speech Recognition provides speech-to-text functionality to Google and other third party apps to convert what you say to text. For example, it can be used by:
• Google Maps when you use your voice to search places
• Recorder App to transcribe your recordings on device
• Phone App Call Screen feature to get a real-time transcription of your caller
• Accessibility apps like Voice Access for operating your device through voice
• Dictation or keyboard apps you might use to dictate text messages through voice
• Apps that contain a search by voice feature so that you can quickly search for your favorite shows or songs
• Language learning apps that recognize what you say as you practice a new language
• …and many other applications in Play Store
To use Google Speech-to-Text functionality on your Android device, go to Settings > Apps & notifications > Default apps > Assist App. Select Speech Recognition and Synthesis from Google as your preferred voice input engine.
Google Text-to-Speech functionality
Speech Services powers applications to read the text on your screen aloud. For example, it can be used by:
• Google Play Books to “Read Aloud” your favorite book
• Google Translate to speak translations aloud so you can hear the pronunciation of a word
• Talkback and accessibility applications for spoken feedback across your device
• …and many other applications in Play Store
To use Google Text-to-Speech functionality on your Android device, go to Settings > Languages & Input > Text-to-Speech output. Select Speech Recognition and Synthesis from Google as your preferred engine.
Note, on many Android devices, Speech Recognition and Synthesis from Google is already available, but you can update to the latest version here.

Ratings and reviews

Truly abysmal speech recognition in this day and age. Misunderstands many words, capitalizes words that shouldn't be capitalized, and fails to capitalize words that should always be capitalized. Unlike much earlier versions, doesn't offer to let you choose alternate words that are similar. Doesn't recognize any formatting commands, such as "new paragraph". And many, many more grave flaws. I hate typing on my phone, but it's generally faster than correcting all the errors in what I dictated.

So I tend to experience situations where it pauses at odd times and I have no understanding of why it's doing that. Like when I said "odd" at first it put "add" before correcting itself. But many times it doesn't correct itself and I have to go in and correct it. So it's by no means a perfect system. But I do think that it's heavily utilized and so it definitely depends on the time of day that you're using it. Because later on in the evening it seems to work better.

I used to be quite pleased with this app, but something has recently been changed. I had it set to a fairly acceptable English-accented female voice (there are no Scots, don't get me started on that) and, in the last few days, it has entirely forgotten this. I've set it back to English UK countless times and I get at most one sentence out of her before it goes back to the obnoxious default US voice. If you got someone who sounded like Majel Barrett's Enterprise computer, maybe I wouldn't mind the American accent, but come on. When I go in to change it, it still shows my selection - it just doesn't honour it! How hard can it be, really?

What’s new

Your app has a new name: “Speech Recognition and Synthesis from Google”. The Speech Recognition and Synthesis from Google app not only provides text-to-speech but also empowers applications with speech-to-text functionality to convert your voice to text. Read more in the “About this app” section.