Olympus VN-480 Digital Voice Recorder

Olympus VN-480 Digital Voice Recorder

Product Description
Amazon.com Product Description
The advantages of digital voice recorders are numerous: superior sound, long recording times, and the convenience of built-in Flash memory (much handier than hauling around several microcassettes). Enter the affordable Olympus VN-480, which makes professional dictation as easy as pressing a button. With up to 8 hours and 13 minutes of total recording time in Long Play mode, the device is great for archiving long interviews or lectures. As an alternative, users can set the device to Standard Play (4 hours, 27 minutes) or High-Quality (2 hours, 57 minutes) modes, which provide crisper playback more suitable to recording soft voices or jotting down song ideas. The data stores on the recorder's 64 MB of Flash memory in ADPCM format.

The VN-480 is a breeze to use thanks to its straightforward thumbpad navigation, from which users can quickly access or move files (the recorder comes with three file folders, plus a schedule folder), set the alarm, or change the recording mode. Multitasking users will also delight in the voice activation function, which enables hands-free recording--a must when taking notes or otherwise using your hands. And when you just don't have the time to attend to the details on the spot, you can set the VN-480 to record automatically over a fixed span. Simply enter the start and end times and the timer function is ready to go. And best of all, the variety of functions come packed in a chassis that fits conveniently in your hand or pocket--quite unlike the bulky tape recorders of yesteryear.

Additional features include an LCD display that shows the date, time, battery life, and more; index markings that make it easy to quickly locate important audio files; a metal clip for transport; and earphone and microphone jacks for added flexibility. The VN-480 runs for 25 hours on a single pair of AAA batteries (included) and carries a one-year warranty.

What's in the Box
VN-480 voice recorder, two AAA batteries, user's manual.

Product Description:
Provides over 8 hours recording time voice activation mode for hands-free recording and simple-to-use thumbpad navigation making it the perfect audio solution when youre in school out of school or need a helpful reminder every now and again.Recording sound is easy with the VN-480s array of easy-to-use features and managing your files is just as simple. With four separate folders from which to store and organize audio files you can arrange your files to your liking and do so by simply moving them from one folder to another. You can even erase single files or folders as you wish.

Olympus VN-480 Digital Voice Recorder

Olympus VN-480-PC DIGTL VOICE REC ( 141725 )
Average customer rating:

Very pleased.

Surprisingly wonderful

Very good digital voice recorder

off button?

Great, but how can you do transcription?

Olympus VN-480-PC DIGTL VOICE REC ( 141725 )

Manufacturer: Olympus
ProductGroup: CE
Binding: Electronics

Digital Voice Recorders | Portable Audio & Video | Audio & Video | Categories | Electronics
Office Electronics | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics
Digital Voice Recorders | Portable Audio & Video | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics
Audio & Video | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics
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Microphone, ME-15

Product Features:

Compact digital voice recorder with 64 MB built-in Flash memory

Convenient PC Link for quick and easy downloading of audio files to a PC

Up to 8 hours recording time in LP mode, 4 hours in SP mode, and 2 hours in HQ mode

25 hours of operation on 2 AAA batteries (included); 1.54 by 3.9 by 0.85 inches (W x H x D)

Simple-to-use thumbpad navigation; handy file management with 4 file folders

ASIN: B0002V9IJG

Product Description

Provides over 8 hours recording time, convenient PC compatibility, voice activation mode for hands-free recording and simple-to-use thumbpad navigation to help make it the perfect audio solution for recording lectures at school, conversations with friends, major and minor tasks, and everything in-between. Connect easily to almost any PC to edit, email, or archive your files. Manage and store your audio files with four separate folders. Index your recordings so you can quickly locate important audio. Thumb-pad navigation makes it easy to access various features. LCD display shows date, time, battery life and more. Compact size makes it fit comfortably in hand or pocket. Earphone and Microphone Jacks for versatility Fast playback Metal clip for hands-free recording Voice Activation Speaker - 28mm diameter dynamic internal speaker Recording Format - ADPCM Recording Media - Built-in 64MB Flash Memory Recording Time - 2 hours 57 minutes in HQ mode, 4 hours 27 minutes in SP mode, 8 hours 13 minutes in LP mode Sampling Frequency - HQ 16.0kHz, SP 10.6kHz, LP 5.75kHz Overall Frequency Response - HQ 300-7200Hz, SP 300-4700Hz, LP 300-2600Hz Practical Maximum Output - 120 mW Power Supply - Two AAA batteries Two AAA batteries provide up to 25 hours of continuous operation System Requirement - Microsoft Windows 98, 98SE, ME, 2000 Professional, XP Professional, Home Edition, CPU Intel Pentium 166MHz or faster, 32MB RAM, Sound Board Creative Labs Sound Blaster 16 or 100% compatible card, Video Card and Display 800 x 600 pixels, 256 colors, 2x CD-ROM Drive, 1 free USB port, Audio Output Speaker or earphone output Dimensions - Length 3.9 x Width 1.54 x Depth 0.85 inch Weight - 2.4 ounces (68 grams) including battery

Customer Reviews:

Very pleased........2007-05-13

I bought this as a gift for my seriously tech challenged husband to use at college. Works very well, easy pc set up, very small but completely functional. An exceptional product you would never know it was "reconditioned".

Surprisingly wonderful.......2007-03-10

I bought this product for two reasons: 1. necessity. I needed a voice recorder to record my interviews for my Undergraduate Thesis. 2. It was the cheapest one that had everything I needed (namely a USB connection) and looked decent enough.

I am pleasently surprised at how well this has worked. It takes two AAA batteries to run it. I put in the two batteries that came with the recorder and went to do my first interviews. I'm now 11 interviews in (each being somewhere between 1/2 hour and 1.25 hours) and still on the same batteries!!! And it doesn't look like I'm going to replace them any time soon either. The sound quality is incredible as well. I've been recording on High Quality and have had no problem understanding the recordings later even when the interviewee was mumbling and stuttering. It does a pretty good job of cutting out background noise too. The program that comes with it is very easy to work, which makes for an easier time transcribing.

Overall it was quite a deal considering the price (about $[...]) I certainly recommend this product, it's well worth it.

Very good digital voice recorder.......2006-11-27

It has every thing you need: Nice voice quality, good speaker, nic and earphone entries. It's small, light, good design and PC connection via mini USB. You can have up from 3 hours (best quality) or 8 hours (worst but very acceptable) of recording.
The 4 stars is because data transfer via USB is slow. Even on USB 2.0 connections, it takes 7 minutes to transfer a 25 MB file to the PC (1.5 hours in best quality, wav format) and you depend on the software because you don't see the device in Windows like USB flash memories.

off button?.......2006-07-08

i just got it,and i like what i've seen so far, but i can't find an off button and i can't find anything in the instruction manual on how to turn it on/off. it turns on automatically when you put in batteries. do i have to take out the batteries every time i want to turn it off?
(holding down the stop button doesn't work)

Great, but how can you do transcription? .......2006-02-09

Just purchased this product a few hours ago and actually did
an interview. Playing it back on the voice recorder sounds
GREAT! I downloaded the interview onto my computer & I
can play it back in "real time." Problem is that I need
to type the interview on the recording & so I need to
play the recording back SLOWER than "real time."

I was hoping to be able to play it and have it automatically
rewind a few seconds & play again, so that I can type along.
I don't think there is a way to do that -- does anyone know
if there is?

Besides this major disappointment, I am QUITE pleased for $60.
Thanks!
Beth :)

Remanufactured Olympus VN-480-PC Digital Voice Recorder

Average customer rating:

vn series connect to pc's
Just awful
I bought it for the PC connectivity and Olympus won't support it
Nice Outside, Ugly Inside -ZERO Star if there is one
Voice recorder fine, but PC drivers don't work

Remanufactured Olympus VN-480-PC Digital Voice Recorder

Manufacturer: Olympus
ProductGroup: CE
Binding: Electronics

Digital Voice Recorders | Portable Audio & Video | Audio & Video | Categories | Electronics

Voice Recorders | Olympus | Brands | Electronics Features | Electronics

Office Electronics | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics

Audio & Video | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics

Voice Recorders | Olympus | Camera & Photo Brands | Camera & Photo Features | Electronics
Product Features:

Remanufactured to like-new condition; includes 90-day warranty
Compact digital voice recorder with 64 MB built-in Flash memory
Convenient PC Link for quick and easy downloading of audio files to a PC
Up to 8 hours recording time in LP mode, 4 hours in SP mode, and 2 hours in HQ mode
25 hours of operation on 2 AAA batteries (included); 1.54 by 3.9 by 0.85 inches (W x H x D)

ASIN: B0009N5OCW

Amazon.com Product Description

The Olympus VN-480PC Voice Recorder provides over 8 hours recording time, convenient PC compatibility, voice activation mode for hands-free recording and simple-to-use thumbpad navigation to help make it the perfect audio solution for recording lectures at school, conversations with friends, major and minor tasks, and everything in-between. It offers USB connectivity, enabling you to transfer files to almost any PC to edit, email, and/or archive your files. Index your recordings so you can quickly locate important audio, and organize and/or store up to 100 files in each of four folders.

Features include:

Up to 8 hours (480 minutes) of recording time in LP mode.
Convenient PC link for quick and easy downloading of audio files to a PC.
4 folders (3 file folders plus a schedule folder).
Thumb-pad navigation makes it easy to access various features.
Quick, easy file management.
3 recording modes (HQ, LP and SP).
Alarm Playback Function.
LCD display shows date, time, battery life and more.
Voice Activation.
Timer recording lets you set the start and end times for a recording so it can be captured automatically.
Earphone and Microphone Jacks for versatility.
Fast playback.
Two AAA batteries provide up to 25 hours of continuous operation.
Compact size makes it fit comfortably in hand or pocket.
Metal clip for hands-free recording.

What's in the Box
VN-480PC voice recorder, two AAA batteries, USB cable, Digital Wave Player Software (CD-ROM), user's manual.

Customer Reviews:

vn series connect to pc's.......2006-06-29

It turns out that the Olympus instructions omit the second part of installing the drivers that allow download. I found instructions on another site.

1) Install the software from the CD.

2) LEAVE THE CD IN THE DRIVE FOR THE FIRST CONNECTION

3) Connect the VN device. If the Windows "found new hardware" routine comes up automatically, then just work through that. Choose "automatic" when it asks where to look for the drivers.

4) If the "found new hardware" doesn't come up automatically, use the "add new hardware" feature in the control panel.

5) My installer found two different possible infs - one was the VNUSB the other was oem... Use the one that is highlighted by the installer, which for me was not the VNUSB

6) The hardware installer will complete as usual and recognize the device.

It still has a clunky file and folder structure, but will do for voice recording.

Michael

Just awful.......2006-06-17

1. Olympus doesn't provide drivers online. Why not? It's not like they have any value if you haven't purchased the player already.

2. The VN series is evidently not compatible with Windows Vista. It won't let me reinstall the drivers.

3. The forced file hierarchy (A, B, C groups) is dumb and causes problems. Why can't I just plug it in and drag/drop your files in Windows Explorer?

4. When you speak, S's pop even when you're a couple of feet away.

I wish I had purchased another brand.

I bought it for the PC connectivity and Olympus won't support it.......2006-04-29

If you go to Olympus' website, you'd expect to find the driver for this DVR, but no...not Olympuss. Spend your money on a product that is supported...always. It's easy to google and see if they support their stuff. If support is the most difficult thing about them, there is a reason.

Nice Outside, Ugly Inside -ZERO Star if there is one.......2006-04-20

I document meetings at work so we got an Olympus VN-480-PC Digital Voice Recorder at work. It did not last one day before I got an "ERR" message. It never worked again. We returned it and will never get one ever.

Voice recorder fine, but PC drivers don't work.......2005-11-12

If you can get the driver for this to install on Windows XP Pro, you're a better man than I. The CD software seems to install OK but then when you connect the recorder to the PC with the USB cable, the PC wants to install a driver manually. If you tell Windows not to install the driver (since, I thought, it was already installed off the CD), Windows doesn't recognize the recorder and the Digital Wave player software doesn't see any of the files on the recorder. On the other hand, if you do tell Windows to install the driver and manually point it to the VNUSB.INF file on the CD, it comes back with an error message and the Digital Wave player software still doesn't see the recorder. This is what it did on my PC at work; on my PC at home, results were even worse--it froze that PC so I couldn't even shut it down normally, but had to hit the reset button. It's been several years since I've seen a driver this kludgey.

Average customer rating:

Not that i wanted
Great recorder
I Use OLYMPUS To Record My Keynote Presentations...

Olympus VN-480 Digital Voice Recorder

Manufacturer: Olympus
ProductGroup: CE
Binding: Electronics

Digital Voice Recorders | Portable Audio & Video | Audio & Video | Categories | Electronics

Voice Recorders | Olympus | Brands | Electronics Features | Electronics

Office Electronics | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics

Audio & Video | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics

Voice Recorders | Olympus | Camera & Photo Brands | Camera & Photo Features | Electronics

Olympus VN-480-PC DIGTL VOICE REC ( 141725 )
Olympus VN-960PC 128 MB Digital Voice Recorder with PC Link

Accessories:

Memorex High Performance AAA Alkaline Battery 8 Pack

Product Features:

Compact digital voice recorder with 64 MB built-in Flash memory
Up to 8 hours recording time in LP mode, 4.5 hours in SP mode, and 3 hours in HQ mode
Simple-to-use thumbpad navigation; handy file management with 4 file folders
Voice activation for hands-free recording; automatic timer recording and alarm functions
25 hours of operation on 2 AAA batteries (included); 1.54 by 3.9 by 0.85 inches (W x H x D)

ASIN: B0001W1I62

Product Description

VN 480 provides over 8 hours recording time, voice activation mode for hands-free recording and simple-to-use thumbpad navigation making it the perfect audio solution when you're in school, out of school, or need a helpful reminder every now and again.

Amazon.com Product Description

The advantages of digital voice recorders are numerous: superior sound, long recording times, and the convenience of built-in Flash memory (much handier than hauling around several microcassettes). Enter the affordable Olympus VN-480, which makes professional dictation as easy as pressing a button. With up to 8 hours and 13 minutes of total recording time in Long Play mode, the device is great for archiving long interviews or lectures. As an alternative, users can set the device to Standard Play (4 hours, 27 minutes) or High-Quality (2 hours, 57 minutes) modes, which provide crisper playback more suitable to recording soft voices or jotting down song ideas. The data stores on the recorder's 64 MB of Flash memory in ADPCM format.

What's in the Box
VN-480 voice recorder, two AAA batteries, user's manual.

Customer Reviews:

Not that i wanted.......2007-01-31

I'm sure that Olympus VN-480PC is great voice recorder, but this is usual Olympus VN-480 (don't understand why people put here reviews about PC, but ok).

I got this recorder from my dad, who never knows what he buys - main it was cheap. First i was very glad with this recorder. In box was instruction, recorder itself and a cable (!). I made some records and wanted to transfer it to my comp. Well, doesn't matter what i wanted, but it don't works.

I searched for all possible and impossible information about this recorder in all 5 languages i know, but all i found was also forums where people had the same problem that me. Why the hell they put cable then? So i just gave up and sold this recorder.

Sound was ok, but also not perfect.
So, if you wanna connect recorder to comp - you need PC version, if you
not gonna use comp - then this is your voice recorder.

Great recorder.......2006-07-15

Bought this recorder over a year ago and use it for an average of 15 hours per week to record school lectures. I love the fact that I can down load it to my computer nightly and have it ready to record again the next day. I can put each of my classes into a separate folder and each lecture is stamped with the date and time. The only problem I have had is in a classroom where the air conditioner has been on and I have been closer to it then the instructor - this makes the recording very unclear. I would suggest to sit as close to the speaker as possible or at least not sitting where there is a lot of background noise.

I Use OLYMPUS To Record My Keynote Presentations..........2005-04-18

I pick up my VN-480PC by OLYMPUS and I begin to record. It's just that simple.

WHAT I REALLY LIKE ABOUT IT: Great Benefits!

The record quality at HQ is far more superior then what I had.

I can download it to my PC, send it via email or upload it to my website.

The Display screen is bigger, clear and easy to read.

The construct of the recorder is sturdy with a strong plexi-glass overlay on the front to offer good protection for the screen.

The batteries are locked in tight and don't move around like my old RS digital recorder. Moving batteries can blow your recording especially when you're trying to record a motivational presentation and that really smarts.

One more great thing I like about the VN-480PC is the fact that it won't allow you to erase so easily. After you press the erase button you actually have to press YES or No to erase and you even use separate buttons to do so (YESSSssss). You might think this is more cumbersome but I'll explain why this is a great feature to have below.

Why is this important...I'll give you two reasons
1. My other digital recorder did not have a separate button for erase and I think having a separate button makes it easier for you to avoid erasing on accident.

2. Because pressing one button by accident is so unforgiving. As a result of only having one button on my old digital recorder to press (I'd press it for one second to erase my current recording or I'd press it for 3 seconds to erase a whole folder worth of recordings). Well you guessed it I erased a whole 89 separate recordings of songs it took me 6 months to record because I pressed it too long.

With my new OLYMPUS VN-480PC this just can't happen. Now this erase mode allows me to walk away with peace of mind I could not ever develop with my old digital recorder. I like my VN-480PC and if you get one I hope you like yours too.

WHY DIDN'T I GIVE IT 5 STARS...One reason I did not give it 5 stars is because although the record quality on High is great (and I really mean that) the record quality on low has much to be desired. So I recommend you either record High or Medium unless you want a sound quality like old radio.

Remanufactured Olympus VN-480 Digital Voice Recorder

Average customer rating:

Not that i wanted
Great recorder
I Use OLYMPUS To Record My Keynote Presentations...

Remanufactured Olympus VN-480 Digital Voice Recorder

Manufacturer: Olympus
ProductGroup: CE
Binding: Electronics

Digital Voice Recorders | Portable Audio & Video | Audio & Video | Categories | Electronics

Voice Recorders | Olympus | Brands | Electronics Features | Electronics

Office Electronics | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics

Audio & Video | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics

Voice Recorders | Olympus | Camera & Photo Brands | Camera & Photo Features | Electronics
Product Features:

Remanufactured to like-new condition; includes 90-day warranty
Compact digital voice recorder with 64 MB built-in Flash memory
Voice activation for hands-free recording; automatic timer recording and alarm functions
Up to 8 hours recording time in LP mode, 4 hours in SP mode, and 2 hours in HQ mode
25 hours of operation on 2 AAA batteries (included); 1.54 by 3.9 by 0.85 inches (W x H x D)

ASIN: B0009N5OAE

Amazon.com Product Description

What's in the Box
VN-480 voice recorder, two AAA batteries, user's manual.

Customer Reviews:

Not that i wanted.......2007-01-31

Great recorder.......2006-07-15

I Use OLYMPUS To Record My Keynote Presentations..........2005-04-18