Recolx vs. Plaud: What’s the Best AI Voice Recorder and Note-Taker?

You Googled “Recolx vs. Plaud” because you’re looking to buy an AI voice recorder or AI note-taker. You want something that records clean audio, turns conversations into usable notes, and doesn’t fall apart once you actually start using it. 

Let’s clear something up about the Plaud vs. Recolx debate.

Recolx and Plaud are very similar in terms of performance. They both record audio, transcribe, and summarize conversations in an app. They’re built to solve the same problems in the same ways. 

But there is a huge difference in what you get for your money. Plaud has superior hardware, more AI features on the free plan, and top-rated customer support. You may pay a higher price up front, but you get much more for your money, and you won’t end up paying unreasonable subscription fees. 

Recolx seems cheaper upfront because the hardware costs less. But you also get less. If you record often, removing its limitations can turn this “cheap” recording device into something that’s a bit more expensive. 

If you are serious about recording meetings, interviews, calls, or lectures on a regular basis, Plaud is the clear winner, even if Recolx looks like the cheaper option.

Don’t get us wrong. Recolx has its benefits too, especially for casual voice recording. We’ll cover that next.

Below, we’ll break down Recolx vs. Plaud feature by feature and explain which one is best depending on your recording and note-taking needs.

Recolx vs. Plaud: Which Voice Recorder is Best for You?

Plaud is the best AI voice recorder for most people, especially if you record regularly and want to use those recordings later (for example, for training materials or making a searchable database). 

Both Plaud and Recolx record audio, transcribe speech, and generate summaries. Actually, they share many of the same AI core features. But Plaud gives you fewer limits, more templates, more storage, and more affordable subscription options than Recolx. Over time, that’s more important than a lower upfront hardware price.

Again, we don’t want to say that it’s bad. We just think our devices are much better for daily, professional use.

Recolx may cost less, but that’s because we believe it doesn’t offer as much. 

Here’s why Plaud is better than Recolx for recording, transcribing, and note taking. 

• More storage from day one: The Plaud Note device includes double the device storage of Recolx Tap and unlimited cloud history on its free plan. That means fewer forced syncs and less micromanagement as your recordings add up. Recolx provides just 5 GB of cloud storage on its free plan. 
• More features for free: Plaud’s free plan includes all of its AI features, including many that Recolx lacks, such as custom templates, multimodal inputs, a desktop app, and more. To get all of Recolx’s features, you need to subscribe to the Pro Plan. 
• Unlimited transcription plan: This is a big one for anyone who transcribes regularly. Recolx does not offer unlimited transcription on any plan. That means you need to pay for more minutes, which can really add up. Plaud’s Unlimited Plan offers unlimited transcription minutes for just $19.99 a month. 
• Better customer support: Plaud includes lifetime support, 24/7 for all users. And we actually respond when you need something. That’s pretty important for people who are new to AI note-taker apps. Recolx claims to offer 24/7 support, but some users have said it falls short. 

Is Recolx a bad voice recorder? Not at all. It’s actually quite similar to our line of products. But due to its storage and transcription limits, it’s just not ideal for business users. If you record casually and not very often, Recolx is fine. But for professional and regular use, Plaud is better. 

Of course, we don’t expect you to take our word for it. Allow us to break everything down for you side-by-side, and then you can make your decision.

Features Comparison

Let’s take a look at Plaud and Recolx by the numbers to see how they square up. 

What is Plaud?

Plaud Note is a credit-card-sized AI voice recorder that captures conversations, meetings, and phone calls and turns them into organized, searchable notes. It pairs with the Plaud app to transcribe speech in up to 112 languages, generate summaries, and store audio files in the cloud.

Plaud is known for its high transcription quality, professional templates for different industries, and strong data security, which is why it’s the AI voice recorder of choice for over 1.5 million professionals. 

Plaud Pros

• Audio recording for in-person conversations, phone calls, online meetings, and field recordings
• Transcription accuracy up to 98%
• Free plan includes all AI features, 10k+ templates, and 300 transcription minutes out of the box
• Unlimited transcription plan available 
• More built-in storage than Recolx (64 GB), and unlimited cloud storage for free 
• Multimodal inputs allow you to add images to transcripts and notes 
• Top certifications for data security and compliance (GDPR, HIPAA, ISO 27001, and more)
• Highly rated service (4.6 stars on TrustPilot) 

Plaud Cons

• Hardware is more expensive than Recolx 
• Slightly heavier than Recolx

Plaud is designed for professionals who need the most accurate transcription features on the market, plus security and convenience. That’s why it costs a bit more. You get more security assurances, storage, AI features, and support. It’s ideal for businesspeople, medical professionals, legal professionals, journalists, students, and anyone who records often. 

What is Recolx?

Recolx Tap is a compact AI voice recorder with AI features like transcription and summarization. It supports recording in multiple environments, including in-person situations, phone calls, and virtual meetings. It then uses AI to help turn your audio into basic notes via the Recolx app.

Recolx is known for its easy-to-use app and quality AI features. Its reputation comes partially from a YouTube video where a reviewer compared Recolx to Plaud. He praised Recolx for its “Ask AI” feature, but what he failed to mention was that if you want to use that feature with the latest AI models, you have to pay… and Plaud offers the same feature (Ask Plaud) for free. 

Recolx Pros

• Simple app that’s good for beginners 
• AI-powered transcription and summaries are quick 
• Ultra-light design  
• Low initial price

Recolx Cons

• Low device storage and very low cloud storage on free plan
• Free plan excludes several features, like custom templates 
• No unlimited transcription plan. You have to keep buying minutes, which can get pricey
• No web or desktop app
• No multimodal inputs
• Very few templates (22 on free plan, 71 on paid plan)
• Limited to older AI models on the free plan (can affect accuracy, performance) 

Recolx is a pretty good AI voice recorder for what it is: a budget product. If you don’t need to record often, you’ll be fine on the free plan. But if you want to record and transcribe regularly, you’re going to end up paying a lot more than you would have for Plaud.  

Recolx vs. Plaud Head-to-Head

Plaud and Recolx are both good AI voice recorders, but when you take a closer look, the specs don’t lie. Plaud is the best AI voice recorder and AI note-taker for business, and you’ll see why in the head-to-head feature comparison below. 

AI Transcription 

Winner: Plaud

Plaud and Recolx transcribe recordings well and offer wide language support (112+ languages), and both have speaker separation and labeling. They also both offer 300 minutes of free transcription per month. 

But overall, Plaud is more consistent across longer recordings and multi-speaker conversations (which is why it’s so popular for long meetings). Plaud also uses more advanced AI models on its free plan (Recolx uses older models and limits you to using OpenAI models). 

Why does that matter? It’s because better AI means smarter AI summaries and more accurate transcripts. That’s how we get to 98% accuracy! Although this may reduce the transcription speed. 

Recolx has mixed reviews on its transcription abilities. Users are happy that it transcribes quickly, but this is typically because it’s using an older AI model. For single-speaker situations, that might be fine. But when audio becomes more complex, Recolx may have issues. One user on Reddit gave Recolx a brutal review: 

Further Reading: Read our guide on how to transcribe an interview with AI to learn about transcription tools, tips, and more.

AI Summaries

Winner: Plaud

Again, both tools summarize well. But Plaud lets you do a lot more with the information in your notes and summaries. 

Plaud gives you 10,000+ pro summary templates, and you can make your own custom templates on the free plan. That means you can decide how the AI delivers summaries, notes, and key points. Set it to prioritize certain info or create a template for branding or compliance purposes. That can save a ton of time, especially if you need to share meeting notes with colleagues or create them using a standardized format. 

Recolx offers just 22 templates and no custom templates on its free plan. And the paid plan has only 71 templates. It’s a far cry from Plaud’s 10,000+. 

Advanced AI Features

Winner: Plaud

It’s really hard to consider Recolx a better AI recorder when it uses outdated AI models. This is cheaper for Recolx, but it doesn’t offer the best possible experience. Plaud gives you the option to use the latest AI models across LLMs, including GPT, Claude, and Gemini.

In terms of advanced features, Plaud has more than Recolx. Not just on the free plan, but overall. Plaud offers more AI templates, multimodal inputs, multidimensional summaries (so you can generate multiple summaries tailored to specific needs), and more. We are also committed to giving you the latest AI tools, so we’re constantly adding new features and updating available AI models for all users. 

And you get everything for free with Plaud. You only upgrade to a paid plan if you want more transcription minutes.    

Phone Recording

Winner: Tie

Plaud and Recolx handle call recording in the same way, using a special mic that captures vibrations from your phone. You can switch to call recording mode at the push of a button to capture audio clearly for personal and professional calls. 

This is ideal for recording interviews over the phone or personal conversations you want to record without switching to speakerphone.

Further Reading: If you plan to purchase a voice recorder to record calls, we suggest you read our guide's on recording calls on iPhone and Android. We find people normally make mistakes when recording calls. Make sure you get it right.

Hardware

Winner: Tie

Recolx Tap and Plaud Note look nearly the same, but there are some differences in their hardware. Recolx is a bit lighter than Plaud, which makes sense because it has less internal storage. Plaud has 64 GB of internal storage, which is double that of Recolx. 

Both recorders can eliminate background noise for clearer audio. Both are also made of tough aluminum alloy, so you can take them just about anywhere without worrying about damage. 

In the end, it comes down to your preference. Recolx is lighter, but Plaud has more storage.

Both companies offer additional hardware options, too. Plaud’s wearable Plaud NotePin is a much smaller and more discreet recording option you can wear on your shirt, wrist, or lanyard. Recolx makes a pair of smart earbuds called Recolx Echo that offer real-time transcription and translation for video content. 

Pricing

Winner: Tie

Recolx is a lot cheaper than Plaud out of the box. We won’t deny that. If you need a budget AI recorder and don’t plan to record more than a few hours a month, choosing Recolx will save you some cash. 

But if you need to record, transcribe, and summarize often, you’ll probably save more money with Plaud. 

Plaud’s plans are cheaper than Recolx’s. If you upgrade to the Pro Plan on both devices, Plaud will save you over $50 a year. And if you need unlimited transcription, you can get that on Plaud for cheap. Recolx will make you buy minute packages that can add up quickly.

Plaud also gives you 100% of its AI tools with the free plan. Unlike Recolx, you don’t need to upgrade to unlock features or different AI models. 

Reputation

Winner: Plaud

Plaud is the world’s #1 note-taking brand. We lead the industry in accuracy, AI features, privacy, and customer support. And we’ve been recognized for that again and again. We’re proud to have a 4.6-star rating on TrustPilot, the independent customer review site. Recolx doesn’t have a TrustPilot score (as of when we wrote this). 

We’re also trusted by 1.5 million professionals who use Plaud devices every day. 

We’ve shown our commitment to privacy and security by achieving data security certifications recognized globally, including ISO 27001, ISO 27701, GDPR, HIPAA, and EN 18031. We know that when it comes to serious use cases like clinical research and legal recording, certifications mean more than just a promise to “comply.” 

Plaud And Recolx Alternatives

In the spirit of fairness, we want to provide you with some alternatives to Plaud and Recolx so you can find the right product for you. Of course, we want you to get Plaud, but if it’s not for you, we understand.

Here are a few alternatives.

• Otter: Otter.ai is an AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes online meetings for Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams. It’s a software-only solution, so it can’t record in-person meetings or phone calls. It’s also not very discreet, and it doesn’t include as many AI features as Plaud. Read our full comparison of Plaud vs. Otter here. 
• Limitless: Limitless is a wearable AI recorder designed for continuous audio capture. It’s meant for taking voice notes and improving your memory, as you can view transcripts of everything you said throughout the day on the app. Limitless lacks productivity-focused features like Plaud, and as of writing this article, it has been discontinued.  Read our full Plaud vs. Limitless comparison here.
• Chimenote: Chimenote combines AI note-taking with real-time transcription and translation, which can be useful if you're attending multilingual meetings or just traveling abroad. It’s more complex and expensive than both Plaud and Recolx. While it offers strong language features, it uses older AI models and has limited AI features. 
• Bee: Bee is similar to Limitless in that it listens to everything you say and creates transcripts and notes based on your conversations. It’s intended as a memory device and not a productivity tool like Plaud. Bee is quite cheap, but requires a $19 monthly subscription to make the most of its key features. 
• Fieldy: Fieldy is another always-on smart recorder that captures everything you say. It then transcribes and summarizes your conversations to help you remember them. Fieldy has a long battery life for an ambient recorder (about 3 days) and cheaper unlimited plans starting at $15.99/month. But it doesn't have organization features, call recording, and templates like Plaud.  

Verdict: Plaud or Recolx?

In our opinion, we believe Plaud is a better AI voice recorder than Recolx. 

Both recorders offer reliable AI transcription and summaries. But Plaud has more storage, more AI features, cheaper plans, more AI models, stronger security, and better customer support.

Ok, we’re a bit biased, but facts are facts.   

Recolx is about $80 cheaper, and we know that’s a big deal for some. But if you’re actually going to use Recolx to record and transcribe, it will probably cost you more in the long run. 

Recolx is designed to push you to subscribe for a better experience and full access to AI features. Plaud (both our Note and NotePin models) gives you 100% of its AI features + unlimited storage + 300 minutes of transcription per month for free. Is that worth paying more up front? We think so. 

If you’re looking for a budget recorder to make to-do lists, capture voice memos, and record a random conversation here and there, go ahead and get Recolx. You can stick with the free plan and save a bit of money. 

But if you’re a professional person who prioritizes accuracy, security, and productivity, Plaud was made for you.