Product Reviews

Great form factor (I have two). Really didn't use it until Covid hit here in America. Now tape record all weekly Teams meetings. Very easy to use. Intuitive. 32 gig memory card records several hundred hours. USB port allows for copying and then archiving each recording to a hard drive. Little bit of an issue with skidding past the time mark I was looking for, but other than that, it has exceeded my expectations.

My mother bought this for me as a gift on Amazon in 7/2019. A few weeks ago the recorder stopped working properly shutting itself off and not allowing me to get to the recorded files when plugging it into the USB port. I did drop it a couple times and one of those times I was particularly concerned about because the USB male end was extended on the recorder at that time. I thought maybe the USB male adapter extension (that comes out of the unit) may have somehow gotten damaged. I later discovered if I removed the SD card that came with it as a package the unit seemed to begin to work again. It seemed maybe it was somehow a corrupt SD card. However, now today on 7/9/2020 the unit now powers itself off intermittently and won't stay connected via USB even without the SD card. I am quite heartbroken because this seemed to be one of the best personal recorders I've had as far as the sound quality (especially the bass), but it's obviously not good workmanship if it can't last more than just over a year with a few drops.

My Minidisc died recently and I needed something to record concerts... Bingo...

I bought this having read a number of reviews where this product came out as best in class. However, i have found the recording capabilities to be poorer than expected in a 6 person meeting around a standard table where the recording outcome was much quieter than expected - despite using the recommend setttings,

This recorder is generally the bees-knees but, there always is a but, the auto-off feature appears to be brain dead. This operates on a timer regardless of whether or not you are playing or recording. (I have not made a recording as yet as I mainly use it for playing items). The recorder just turns itself off after the time expires. Whoever designed this feature obviously does not use the device. The auto-off timer (as in most other devices) should only activate when the device itself is not active. Thus you would expect the auto-off timer to start after playback or recording is finished or stopped. As it is, the auto-off just kills the device during playback or record when the time expires. Dumb!. To guarantee not being interrupted during playback you have turn off auto-off. The same logic applies to sleep mode. Then you have to leave the display turned on so as to not to forget to turn it off and kill the battery. Dumb! Otherwise a very good unit, you can even turn the beeps off!

It's small but packs a lot in. Sounds great. A lot of useful features. Simple buttons so no confusion. I love the A-B repeat, it's great for transcribing. I also bought a phone mic so I can record telephone tutorials with a tutor on a distance learning course I'm studying and the recordings are so clear it's as if I had the tutor in front of me. Very impressed. This voice recorder and the accompanying software does everything I want and does it well.

unfortunately, I can't find the FM radio feature in the device

this little gem is so easy to use, love the fact that it is compact, love the fact that the audio quality is clear and crisp...would buy 2 more if i needed

Makes meetings MUCH easier to capture. Highly recommend.

This is a great voice recorder i have mainly used to take my notes but I have tested it and it records a room picking up all the voices

I desired a digital recorder to take ideas down and transfer to text. So I was going to go high end with with Olympus DS-2500 systems that was about $375 purchase for Amazon. But Amazon new delivery system lost my package and during that time I realize that the it did not do what I wanted - It did not have transfer to text - but I look around and decided to purchase this Sony device from local BestBuy - I was able to use it and transfer it Dragon without even using the directions. But I got a good surprise with this device and that it can also be a Music player - I yet figured out to transfer audios - to 64G micro SD - but it would be perfect if it could also work with Alpine Stereo in my Tundra.

I bought this mainly for my class lectures. I was amazed by the clarity of this recorder. The battery seems to last a lot longer than expected. I love the feature of quick charge. But I always make sure that this is always fully charge because my class lasts for more than 2 hours. I watched some unboxing in youtube and saw it came with a pouch. I was 100% sure that the recorder I bought is not an open item and I was unsure why mine doesn't have the pouch. Hence 4 stars.

I was a little resilient to go with a voice recorded that was above £50 but the difference is literally clear. The sound quality is really good and definitely lives up to the CD quality it is quoted as being.

The Recorder is so good, easy to use, fantastic sound, just what I wanted, thanks.

The Screen is very hard to read in any case - IMPOSSIBLE TO READ IN SHADE - forget about sunlight. BETTER SCREEN AND A ZOOM FEATURE - those letters are like 6pt!! The all important record button and stop button are impossible to find by touch. Seriously - needs a raised center dot. The built-in mics are actually better than any other unit I have used - including the top of the line Tascams. They do not require the use of a wind screen. The menu-driven features cannot be faulted. The mic volume level feature works very well. THEY DELETED THE SLEEVE CASE - have to make my own!! Good alternative competitive with Tascam and Zoom for quality - and at this price point can't be beat.

I've been testing out a new Sony ICD-UX560 Digital Stereo Voice Recorder to add to my Digital Audio Recorder Arsenal. :) Very easy to use has great functionality, amazingly thin and has good battery life once fully charged. The menu is well thought out intuitive and easy to navigate. The various recordings modes work flawlessly whether you're just recording notes, lectures, meeting or using it for interviews. This is what I would expect from Sony. I have other Sony products and I have never ever had cause for complaint. I also bought a Sony lapel stereo microphone as I can easily fit this smart digital voice recorder in my cotton shirt pocket and clip the microphone to my shirt collar. This device is so light it doesn't cause my cotton shirt pocket to bulge or sag. I have seen people compare this recorder to a smartphone with a dictation app saying why bother buying the Sony? Well, I disagree this unit runs for hours and the microphone FOCUS on sound in its different modes is optimised for many different recording situations. The various modes take the guesswork out of all your voice recording situations so you can concentrate on your work. It has expandable storage with the addition of a micro sd card and your voice audio is easily manageable on the device and with the free software. It has a convenient pop-out USB connector so you can connect straight to your PC or Laptop. You can store your music library on this device which supports many different formats, unlike others that only support MP3 and WAV.

i bought the product 1 week ago, fantastic. i always will buy Sony

The first few weeks were great. Then I get "memory full" error even though all my files are erased. Won't let me reformat. Had this issue with an older model as well. Next purchase will be a different brand without these issues.

Still learning how to use. Is not very complicated but could be simpler. I like the sound quality as touch deeper than real voice. Would be better if supplied with paper manual.

This little recorder is spectacular! I use it as a recorder, for transcriptions, and as an MP3 player. It is compatible with the Dragon Natural Speaking software that performs unattended transcription from previously-recorded content. I purchased a Sony stereo lapel microphone to go with it and it's a perfect match! With the expansion memory (I'm using a 64GB Sandisk Ultra micro SD card), there seems to be no limit to the songs, speech and other files I can store on this device. I use it as an MP3 player and appreciate the fact that the recorder has built-in speakers for playbackm of music and speech. The player has forward and reverse indexing, as well as repeat to make it easy to rehear any difficult phrases. The clarity of recordings made with this, is amazing. There is a playback speed control that allows accelerated playback without changing the pitch of the recorded sound. There is also an audio equalizer built in, which enhances the listening experience through headphones or external sound amplifying equipment. The microphone input provides power for electret mikes that might need it, and will also accept line inputs without distortion. The audio output can drive headphones or can be used as a line output. All this capability assembled into a case the size of two paper matchbooks placed end to end! I also cannot believe how little power this thing uses. It can run all night, the next day and the next night without needing a recharge. Recharge time is less than thirty minutes from any USB power source. It even has the USB plug built into the case! I'll likely buy more of these as gifts for my techie friends. I've been looking for this recorder all my life.

Purchased for podcast and interviews. Works great for both.

I am happy with this product. It looks good and the recording quality is great.

I bought this without seeing it because I needed it in a pinch. I had to record an all-day training that I could not attend and gave it to a colleague to use, along with the instructions. She did a great job even without knowing exactly what she was doing. The quality is excellent, found the files easily and you really don't need to even have instructions. What was best for me, and what I love, is the supporting software that slows down the very fast speakers at the training so that I can hear what is said in the echoing environment of the room. I haven't even used to it to operate on my own - so this is just phenomenal to me. I have a very hard time hearing and I think that I will use this all the time now in situations that are hard for me to hear, as my hearing declines. Amazing product, easy to use, easy to navigate without even using the very simple directions.

I am so surprised with the sensitivity of this recorder. I thought I would need an external microphone. I did not! Where can I purchase a case for this device?

Great audio quality great battery life good display also works as a mp3 player if your in to that so glad it has a micro sd card slot.

This is one of the most amazing pieces of tech I have come across in recent times. I have a couple of other recorders, but I was looking for a CD quality capable recorder in a small package and this is it. It is unusual from my previous recorders in that most of the set up choices are set up in the software on board, rather than with small slider switches on the outside of the case. This undoubtedly improves the reliability of the unit (less mechanical parts) and the menu system is very intuitive. It is well worth taking a good read through the help file that is available for download online. Not the start up guide supplied with the unit but the linked and bookmarked pdf file, which has a lot more in depth information on how to operate the recorder. It is particularly useful to research and investigate the various recording settings available in the recorder. This is not just the easily selected 'scenes' but rather the settings for microphone sensitivity and directionality, which I have used to get some amazingly atmospheric stereo recordings in large indoor spaces. Make some test recordings for yourself with different settings. It is impressive what can be achieved. The speaker on this recorder is very modest and really requires headphones to get a true sense of the playback quality, or use the supplied Sound Manager software to transfer the recordings to your pc to listen to them or burn them to CD etc. The one reservation I had was that the battery is an on board rechargeable, and so if you are out and about for long periods you need access to a USB socket to recharge the unit, as opposed to simply buying or carrying a couple of AAA cells with you to get you going again. Time will tell if that proves to be a real limitation. Not so much for me I think as I will be able to take one of my other recorders with me for those sort of outings. Very pleased with this.

I bought this for recording research interviews. Makes a real difference. First and foremost the quality and clarity of the recordings are excellent. Doesn’t sound so on the internal speakers but channel it through an amp or headphones and the difference to other dictaphone is striking. The other strength is usability. Setting up folders and choosing which to use is so easy. So is seating the quality- this one does lossless recording, no use for interviews but when I have an idea in the guitar I can just hit record on this and sketch it out, brilliant and in lossless good enough to bounce into a deck as the starting track. Live it more the more I use it, and the bonus is it is very very classy, looks great and is so small, but perfectly formed.

Good sound quality; noise cancelling is great, even on the outdoor conditions. Very simple navigation and manipulating of the controls. All control buttons on their places. Recording starts almost instantly, when the power is on. The power on has delays about 0.25~0.5sec; which is quicker than on my older voice recorder. I would definitely recommend this product.