Philips SpeechMike Premium

Philips SpeechControl for Mac Update

This year, April is the kindest month. As if the abatement of winter were not enough reason to celebrate, the latest release of Philips SpeechControl for Mac has landed. For Mac users with SpeechMikes, it’s definitely worthy of a “woo hoo!”

Not sure what SpeechControl is?

Philips SpeechControl for Mac (also known as the Device Control Center) is the piece of software that allows you to program the buttons on your Philips SpeechMike.

As promised, Philips has released version 3.1. Why is this important, you ask? Well, if you are a Mac user, and you prefer to employ a Philips SpeechMike III or Premium, you know that there were some compatibility issues between SpeechControl for Mac v3.0 and OS X Mavericks 10.9. Essentially, the programmable buttons were not functional; at the time, we advised you to continue using the mic, but to hold off on using the buttons in all of their functional glory.

The wait has ended. You can now use your SpeechMike just as it was intended to be used. Philips has addressed the compatibility issue, and you are now able, through SpeechControl4Mac v3.1, to configure the buttons to do what you need them to.

 

Six Degrees of Specification

  • Philips SpeechControl for Mac version 3.1 is compatible with Dragon® Dictate Versions 2.5 through Version 4.
  • It has been tested on both Mountain Lion 10.8 and Mavericks 10.9. If you run Mac OS X 10.6 or 10.7, you should actually stick with SpeechControl4Mac v3.0.
  • It is compatible with Dragon® Dictate Medical for Mac v3.0.5.
  • It supports these series SpeechMikes: 3200s / 3300s / 3500s / 3600s.
  • As in previous versions, SpeechControl4Mac does not support the SpeechMike II or SpeechMike Air.
  • If you use a SpeechMike III, you must use firmware v1.14 or later.

 

Platform Swapping Pointers

If you decide you want to use your SpeechMike between both Mac and Windows operating systems, you’ll need to be aware of a tricky little configuration step.

  1. Under the Advanced Settings tab, find the Target OS section. Make sure you click the Mac OS radio button. Otherwise, you could get audio distortion.
  2. If you want to use the same SpeechMike on a Windows machine, you’ll need to change the target OS —and you’ll need to do it before you switch to the Windows platform. You cannot change the target on a Windows box, and it may not recognize your SpeechMike if your target is set to “Mac OS.”
  3. Whichever operating system you decide to use, you’ll need to click “Save to Device” to upload your settings to the SpeechMike.

 

New And Improved

Philips has included three device profiles for you to choose from. That way, if you don’t want to think too hard about how you’d like the buttons to operate, you can just pick from the list. Or maybe you just need a base configuration to start with, which you can then mold to your specific needs.

Pro Tip

Philips recommends that when dictating, you “wait until all text has been completely recognized” before turning off the SpeechMike —because if you don’t, your dictation could get swallowed up in the digital ether.

 

Where Do I Get the Update?

You can access the update directly from the Philips website, or if you are one of our reseller partners, you can access the download from the eDist FTP Server.

Need Help With SpeechControl?

Let one of our technicians assist you

If you need assistance updating SpeechControl for Mac, or using the Philips SpeechMike on your Mac computer, we’d love to help. Click the button below to get started.