The Recorder app records up to 18 hours, so one lecture can be a very long file.
Lecture, step by step
How to transcribe a lecture
How to transcribe a lecture: the steps that take the recording of the lecture and turn it into text, with the export that comes back. Free $0, 3 files a day.
3 files a day up to 30 minutes, free99+ languagesSpeaker separation and timestamps
In short
For how to transcribe a lecture, the text comes back as a document that can be searched, quoted and handed over. The file of the recording may be 30 minutes, and the free plan is $0 with 3 files a day.
How to transcribe a lecture, step by step
- 1
Record the room
A lecture is recorded with the Voice Memos app of a phone, with the Recorder app, or with a meeting platform.
- 2
Find the file
The recording of the Recorder app is in the Files app of the phone.
- 3
Mind the length
The Recorder app records up to 18 hours, so one lecture can be a very long file.
- 4
Name the file before you send it
Give the file of the recording of the lecture a name that says what is inside it: the name travels with the export and saves a search later.
- 5
Check the length of the recording
One file may be up to 30 minutes, on every plan. A longer the recording of the lecture is cut into parts before it is sent here.
What comes back from the engine
- TXT
One segment per line, the way a person wrote it down. It is the format to paste into a ticket, a chat or a document.
- TXT, CSV
The start and the end time of every segment, and the speakers named separately when you ask for it.
- SRT, VTT
SRT and VTT with the time of every line, so the recording can carry its own subtitles.
- Markdown, DOCX
The transcript is edited through the API and exported as Markdown for a wiki, or as DOCX for a review.
How Phone recorder stores the file, and what it says about it
up to 30 minutes on the free plan, no minute limit on Pro
$0: 3 files a day, up to 30 minutes per file, no card
The case
What the recording does not give you
For how to transcribe a lecture, it is a file problem first and a text problem second. The first half hour after a meeting is spent looking for what was said, and the looking is done by ear. The engine takes the recording of the lecture, reads it once, and hands back a text that can be searched.
Tips
Turn on the split by speaker when more than two people talk in the recording of the lecture.
Give the speakers of the recording of the lecture their names in the editor, one time, and export again.
Send the audio track of the recording of the lecture when the platform gives you both.
The audio of the recording of the lecture is smaller than the video of the same call.
Export SRT when the recording of the lecture has to become a subtitled video.
Questions about how to transcribe a lecture
Can I search the text after I transcribe a lecture?
Our own engine reads the recording of the lecture and gives the text back; the part the platform decides is only the download.
What are the steps to transcribe a lecture?
For how to transcribe a lecture, the text comes out of one upload: the file of the recording of the lecture goes to the engine and the text comes back.
What do I need before I transcribe a lecture?
The recording of Phone recorder is enough for the engine, and the text of it comes back with the time of every line.
Do I need an account to transcribe a lecture?
Upload the recording of the lecture and read the result: our own engine writes down what it hears, with the time of every piece.
What is in the file after I transcribe a lecture?
The file is all it takes: the recording of the lecture goes to our own engine and a document comes back.
Related pages
Lecture recording to text
Lecture recording to text: the steps of the platform, and what comes back from the engine.
Lecture recording to notesLecture recording to notes: the file of Phone recorder, the limits of it and the price of the service.
Best lecture transcription appBest lecture transcription app: what Phone recorder says about the recording, and what the engine adds to it.
Transcribe a lectureA room, a microphone and a text that can be read the next morning.
Sources
- SGoogle Pixel help: the Recorder app (read 2026-10-24)support.google.com · checked
- TTranscription service page (read 2026-10-25)transcrib.si · checked
- TPricing page (read 2026-10-25)transcrib.si · checked
Reading: 4 minutesUpdated Transcribsi editorial team
Drop a recording — the text arrives in a minute
Speakers by name, a time on every line, export to TXT, SRT, VTT, CSV and Markdown.
3 files a day up to 30 minutes, free99+ languagesSpeaker separation and timestamps