Ploud has updated its compact Notepin AI recorder. The new Notepin S is almost exactly the same as the original except for one big difference: one button. This includes a new Ploud desktop app for recording audio in online meetings, which is free for any Ploud Note or Notepin owners.
The Notepin S has the same Fitbit-esque design as the 2024 original and comes with a lanyard, wristband, clip, and magnetic pin, so you can wear it any way you want — all now included in the box, whereas previously the lanyard and wristband were sold separately.
It’s about the same size as the Notepin, comes in the same colors (black, purple, or silver), offers similar battery life, and still supports Apple Find My. Like Notepin, it records audio and generates transcriptions and summaries, whether they’re meeting notes, action points, or reminders.
But now it has a button. Whereas the first Notepin used haptic controls, relying on a long squeeze to start recording, with a short sound to let you know it’s working, the S switches to something simpler. A long press of the button starts recording, a short tap adds highlight markers. Plad’s explanation for the change is simple: the buttons are less obscured, so you’ll always know when you’ve successfully pressed it and started recording, whereas original Notepin users complained that they sometimes failed to record because they didn’t press properly.
These kinds of AI recorders live or die by ease of use, so removing a little friction improves Ploud’s chances of survival.
Along with Notepin S, Ploud is launching a new Mac and PC application for recording audio from online meetings. The plaid desktop runs in the background and activates whenever it detects a call from apps including Zoom, Meet, and Teams, recording both system audio and your microphone. You can set it to automatically record meetings or require manual activation, and unlike some alternatives it doesn’t create a bot that joins the call with you.
Recordings and notes are synced from Ploud’s line of hardware recorders, with the same model used for transcription and generation, creating a “seamless” library of audio from your meetings both online and off.
Ploud Desktop is available now and is free for those who already have a Ploud Note or Notepin device. The new Notepin S is also available today for $179 — $20 more than the original, which Ploud says will now be phased out.
