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There were a couple recording applications released recently and last month I looked at Vito Sound Explorer. I was very impressed with the quality and functionality and didn't think anything else could top it. Resco makes some excellent applications and I use Resco Explorer 2003 daily. Resco recently released the Resco Audio Recorder that competes directly with Vito Sound Explorer and in my opinion, is even better in all aspects but one.
Main program display controls
I started out with an early version of Audio Recorder and after first launching the application you were taken to a screen that showed the graphical controls for recording. I was then at a loss of what to do since tapping the buttons did not seem to do anything and there was no help file or manual. I fed this information back to Resco and they quickly came out with updated versions that cured those early release issues. Now, the first screen to pop up is the testing prompt where the program asks if you want to test your storage media for recording capabilities and it then runs through a diagnostic test. You can then select your associations for WAV, MP3, and RAF files in the first options screen.
Panel controls
After the initial setup screens, every time you launch Audio Recorder the application starts you off in the explorer view where there are two menu options; New and Tools. You can tap directly on a file to play the recording or music file. Tapping New will launch the recorder screen I mentioned above. Tapping Tools will bring up choices to recieve via IR, export, schedule a recording (this can be important for meetings or when you are spying on someone:), and the options menu. In the options area you can choose where to save your recordings, although you cannot specify a folder and only a location (main memory, storage card). This is one area where I prefer vito's product and it would be nice if Resco could implement this functionality. You can also choose two WAV recording modes, 11025 and 22050 kHz, for SP and five modes for LP, MP3 16,32,64 kbit/s and ADPCM 44 and 88 kbit/s. Vito Sound Explorer doesn't record at these high quality levels. This screen will also show you how much time you have left to record with your selected quality and storage medium. The options menu accesses the testing and association tabs in case you want to change your initial settings later.
Options
Tapping New brings up the actual recording interface. The control buttons are along the bottom and above them is the quality and volume controls. The window give you the status of the modes and a timer for your recordings. I couldn't get the application to record anything for a few days until their technical support pointed out the right slider bar that controls background noise allowance or sound levels. In a loud environment you move it up and in a quiet environment it should be all the way down. Moving it all the way down allowed me to make a recording. I work in a very quiet office and wasn't able to record with the slider up over halfway. The select menu takes you back to the explorer view. There is also a Tools menu here to turn off the display, edit the tags in your files, and access the options screens.
Main recording interface
Both recording programs have about a short 1-3 second delay in starting recordings after you press the record button and both applications can both be assigned to the record hardware button. I like the way you press record once to launch, again to record, and again to stop. This prevents accidentally recording while your device is in your bag.
Testing results
Earlier versions of the application also did not come with a help file and I think many people were a bit lost about what to do, especially concerning the right slider Voice Activation System. This system is actually very cool in that you can start your recording and nothing will start until the sound exceeds the threashold where you set the slider. When the sound level goes below this then the recording will pause until it picks up again. They also have digital gain to assist with the built in microphone's recording ability.
Another feature that is better than the Vito product is the ability to set up scheduled recordings so the device will start recording when you need it to even if you are not present or forget to start a recording. This can be useful for classroom and lecture recordings.
Scheduled recordings
I give 5 stars to this program since they have a large recording quality selection and some great advanced features including the VAS which should be very helpful for classroom or lecture recording. The application would be perfect if you were able to designate where the recording is stored and I hope they can put this a future update. After figuring out the background noise slider and downloading the latest version I am very impressed with this product and highly recommend it. iPaq 1910 owners need to get this program to play their MP3 files, if they don't want to use the WMP.
Availability
You can purchase Resco Audio Recorder from the Pocket Gear site. There is also a free 14-day trial that I recommend you take for a spin before buying the product. | 
