I tried Plaud's new NotePin S at CES - and it might be the Otter.ai replacement I've been looking for
The AI wearable keeps the sleek pill form factor and adds some useful upgrades.
Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET
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ZDNET's key takeaways
- Plaud.ai launched its latest AI wearable, the Plaud NotePin S.
- Plaud Desktop, a desktop app, also launched at CES.
- Now users can get summaries in person and online.
Since the explosion of generative AI, AI wearables have become increasingly popular, and Plaud has been one of the companies leading the charge. At CES, the company introduced two new products to its lineup, designed to take AI note-taking a step further.
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Plaud NotePin S
The Plaud NotePin S retains the same minimalist and sleek design of its predecessor, featuring a smooth, elongated pill shape. It can be worn in a wristband, necklace, pin, or clip for easy recording at all times. However, the company said Plaud NotePin S offers "more seamless capture," thanks to a clickable button in the center of the device.
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With the click of the "instant-highlight button," previously available only on the Plaud Note Pro and Plaud Note, users can tell the AI which moments are the most noteworthy, thereby informing the insights that the device delivers. That same button can be used to begin capturing content.
During the demo, I clicked the button and was pleased with how tactile it felt, as well as the haptic feedback I experienced when I started recording. The demoer told me that this was a frequently requested feature in the predecessor, which lacked a button, and left people unsure whether it had begun recording.
Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNET
I was also impressed with the battery life, which Plaud says can last up to 20 continuous hours and 40 days standby. If that's accurate and if you only use it intermittently, then its battery could last for several weeks.
Pricing
The Plaud NotePin S retails for $179, which is $20 higher than the Plaud NotePin's price. This includes a free starter plan with 300/minutes per month, including transcription, which users can upgrade if they require additional minutes or wish to access more advanced AI features.
Plaud Desktop
The company also launched Plaud Desktop, which allows users to record online meetings. However, unlike other online meeting tools, such as Otter.ai or Fireflies.ai, this is a native recording experience that doesn't send bots to the call.
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Rather, Plaud said that the application detects when an online meeting is happening on platforms such as Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, and it allows the user to begin a "secure, real-time audio capture." There is also the option for multimodal input, where you can add other inputs, such as visuals, and even add text.
Plaud Desktop is available as part of the Plaud ecosystem. All recordings from both the wearable and desktop apps can be accessed through any of the central hubs, including Plaud Desktop, Plaud App, and Plaud Web. ZDNET is going hands-on with the NotePin S this week, so stay tuned for an update to this article with our hands-on experience.