AI voice recorder: Plaud, Pocket, TicNote and Soundcore compared

What is an AI voice recorder?

An AI voice recorder is a small recording device, often the size of a credit card or a coin, that records conversations and has them transcribed and summarised by AI through an app. You pay once for the device, and a subscription once you record more than the free plan allows.

The difference from a regular voice recorder is the step after recording. The device sends the recording through your phone to the maker’s cloud, where it is transcribed with speaker labels and summarised with action items. You read the result in the app or on the web. That is why there is almost always a subscription: transcription costs the maker money per minute.

They come in two shapes. Credit-card-sized recorders, such as the Plaud Note, Pocket and TicNote, which stick to your phone with a magnet or lie on the table. And wearables, such as the Plaud NotePin and the Soundcore Work, which clip to your clothes or hang around your neck. Plaud also makes earbuds that record, the Plaud One.

Which AI voice recorders and AI note taker devices can you buy?

The best-known AI voice recorders are the Plaud Note, Note Pro and NotePin, Pocket, TicNote and the Soundcore Work. In the US stores they cost between $129 and $189 on 17-10-2026. The Plaud One earbuds, at $249.99, could not be ordered that day.

US prices come from the makers’ US stores, European prices from the European stores of Plaud, TicNote and Soundcore and the Dutch store of Pocket, all checked on 17-10-2026. Offers change, so check the price at checkout. What Pocket does in detail is in the Pocket AI review. Plaud and Pocket side by side, with what each costs over a year, is in Plaud vs Pocket vs Ajora.

How much does an AI voice recorder subscription cost?

A paid plan for an AI voice recorder costs roughly $79 to $240 a year in the US. Plaud Pro is $99.99 a year, Pocket Pro $239.88, Soundcore Pro $99.99, and TicNote Professional $199, or $79 in the App Store for TicNote owners. On the free plan alone, you pay only for the device.

In Europe Plaud Pro is €110.99 a year and Pocket Pro €255. None of these plans include calling minutes, because a recorder does not place calls: you still call through your own carrier.

Which AI voice recorder works without a subscription?

Every AI voice recorder in this overview works without a subscription, on a free plan. Pocket gives the most: unlimited transcription, with summaries kept for 30 days. TicNote gives 600 minutes a month with the device, Plaud and Soundcore 300.

300 minutes is five hours a month, about fifteen minutes per working day. If you record a few meetings a week, that is enough. If you record conversations every day, you hit the cap halfway through the month, and the subscription becomes the biggest part of the cost. So work it out over a year: in the US a Plaud Note with Pro costs $258.99 in the first year, bought separately, and a Pocket with Pro $368.88.

Can an AI voice recorder record phone calls?

Some AI voice recorders do record phone calls: the Plaud Note, Note Pro, Pocket and TicNote read the call from the body of your phone, and the Plaud One earbuds capture both sides. In every case you start each recording yourself. The Plaud NotePin has no phone call mode, and Soundcore lists none for the Work.

iOS and Android do not hand the audio of a call to any app. A recorder therefore picks up the call as vibration in your phone: Plaud and TicNote with a vibration sensor, Pocket with a contact microphone. It works, but quality depends on your call volume, your case and how the recorder sits. For the Note Pro, Plaud asks for a call volume of at least 80 percent and no thick case. If you call with earbuds in, the sound never passes through the phone’s body: Plaud does not support it, and TicNote only works when you call without Bluetooth.

The Plaud One earbuds do record both sides of a call with earbuds in, because the earbuds are the recorder. You still start each recording yourself, with a button or by saying ‘Hey Plaud’. They cost $249.99, in a run of 2,000 units, and could not be ordered on 17-10-2026.

When is an app better than an AI voice recorder?

An app is the better fit when your conversations are mostly phone calls. Ajora is a Dutch app that joins your phone calls and writes up a summary with action items: outgoing calls go through the app, incoming calls through call forwarding, and there is nothing to start per call, even with earbuds in.

A recorder stays the better choice if you mostly record in a room, with several people around a table, or if you want to listen back to the audio. At Ajora the recording is deleted automatically after transcription, within 24 hours at the latest. Transcripts and summaries are stored encrypted in Germany. Ajora costs €19 a month, or €15 a month on a yearly plan, with 600 calling minutes included and no free plan. Ajora works with Dutch and English, among other languages, and incoming calls rely on call forwarding with your carrier. If you sit in many meetings and make many calls, you can use both: a recorder for the room, Ajora for the line. More alternatives side by side are in Plaud alternative.

Which AI voice recorder is right for you?

Get a Plaud Note Pro if you mostly record meetings around a table, Pocket if you want the cheapest with free unlimited transcription, and a TicNote if you want more free minutes than Plaud gives. If you are mostly on the phone, skip the recorder and use an app that joins the call, such as Ajora.

The Soundcore Work weighs 10 grams and clips to your clothes or hangs around your neck, but Soundcore lists no phone call mode. The same goes for the Plaud NotePin. Pick one of those two if you mostly record on the move, not on the phone.

Jort van Meenen

One of the three co-founders of Ajora. Jort focuses on user experience and growth.

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