Transcription

Transcription Modes (Online vs. Offline)

Online Mode (Deepgram)

• Default mode using Deepgram's cloud service (Nova-3 model) for optimal accuracy and low latency.
• Requires an active internet connection.
• Available on all plans (Free, Plus, Core).

Offline Mode (MLX-Whisper)

• Runs Apple's MLX framework (Whisper Large V3 Turbo model) locally on your Mac.
• Ideal for environments with unreliable or no internet access.
• Available on the Plus and Core plans.

Switching Transcription Modes

Go to Settings > Audio > Transcription Mode to switch to online (cloud) or offline (On-device) mode. Pewbeam will automatically restart the transcription process while preserving your selected microphone and gain (microphone sensitivity) settings. A toast notification will also confirm the change on the app.

Internet & Network Requirements

• Minimum Speed: A basic internet connection (1 Mbps upload) is sufficient.
• Latency & Connection Type: Wired Ethernet is strongly recommended over Wi-Fi to prevent delays on congested networks.
• Handling Interruptions: Brief drops auto-reconnect. If internet drops completely, online transcription pauses, but manual Bible search and verse display continue to work locally.
• Best Practice: Keep a mobile hotspot backup or pre-load planned verses into the Queue before service.

Transcription Status & Confidence Indicators

Real-time speech detection displays visual confidence indicators:

• High (Green, 80%+): High accuracy.
• Medium (Yellow, 60–80%): Mostly accurate; minor word deviations possible.
• Low (Red, <60%): High noise level or unclear speech.

Transcription Session Controls & Idle Timeout

• Starting/Stopping: Click Start transcribing in the Live Transcript panel. Stopping a session automatically saves it to your local Transcript History.
• Idle Timeout: If no speech is detected for 10 minutes, transcription automatically pauses. Click Resume on the toast notification to restart.

Local Transcript History & Security

Every session is automatically recorded locally on your device with key metadata (duration, word count, confidence scores, and STT provider). Transcripts remain strictly on your local machine and are never uploaded to external servers.