A foot pedal specifically for transcriptions allows the typist to pause, rewind and fast-forward the recording using the pedal. This saves a lot of time because the typist can keep their hands, and concentration, on the typing in question. The pedal lets typists pause the audio file using their foot, while continuing typing to catch up with the recording.
How well any device suits a person is often partly personal choice, and this is no different. The other two deciding factors when buying a foot pedal are functions and price.
Infinity USB Digital Foot Control with Computer Plug (in-USB2) seems to be favourite among users.
It is compatible with different software, (even music), as well as both PCs and Macs. It is easy to set up and the pedals are large, for ease of use. The pedal is sturdy, so stays firmly in place while in use. With a very competitive price, what more could you ask?
Olympus AS-2400 PC Transcription Kit
While it really is a ‘kit’, including a wired headset and software the pedal is great, but there is a rather large problem. This only works with Olympus software, so if you use any other, or even might use another product in the future, this is not for you. It is also slightly dearer than the Infinity Pedal.
Philips Transcription Foot Control / Pedal LFH2310 (LFH-2310)
The Philips Transcription Foot Pedal is great. It is ergomatic, can be personalised to suit individual needs, and is easy to set up and use. Sound good? Well, yet again it only works with one software and that is Speechexec Pro Software. It is also quite a bit dearer than the Infinity one – and the Olympus too.
Vpedal Wireless Transcription Foot Pedal, 3 Function
Before going any further; yes it will work with a variety of software applications.
This is a Wireless Transcription Foot Pedal with a remote receiver connecting to a USB port, (the same as keyboards and a mouse). It works with both PCs and MACs and has the classic three pedal foot control function. The main complaint about this by users is that the USB connection hangs down instead of sticking out like a normal USB receiver does. This apparently means it sometimes loses the connection. At more than three times the price of the Infinity USB Digital Foot Control, you really cannot see where the extra money went on this pedal.
All in all, while there are a number of different foot pedals on the market, few are really of much use. All the makes offer the same three pedals for play/pause, rewind and fast forward, so no difference there. The main differences are compatibility and most of them only work with limited programmes. Even if you use that programme now, should you wish to change, your pedal will no longer work. For that reason it is better to buy a Transcription Foot Pedal that is compatible with multiple programmes, and with that in mind, Infinity seems to come out on top.