SR-7 is a personal recorder, a dictaphone in lineage and spirit, for iPhone, iPad and Mac. It records your own voice, transcribes it on the device and writes a title and a one-sentence summary with Apple Intelligence. On the Mac it also keeps each recording as a markdown file and runs a local MCP server for AI tools. It costs $7.99 once.
MacWhisper is a transcription workbench for the Mac: you feed it audio or video files you already have, and it turns them into text with speaker labels, subtitles and batch export options. MacWhisper itself is a Mac app; its maker also makes a separate iPhone and iPad app, Whisper Transcription.
Side by side
| Point | SR-7 | MacWhisper |
|---|---|---|
| Interface | A list of recordings, each with its transcript and, with Apple Intelligence, a title and a summary | A transcription queue you feed files into, with batch jobs and export options built around files you bring |
| Job | Recorder first: capture your own voice, then transcribe and summarize it | Transcription workbench: turn audio or video files you already have into text |
| Price | $7.99 once, for iPhone, iPad and Mac | Free tier; Pro €64 once, lifetime updates (as of August 2026; no USD price shown on the official site) |
| Platforms | iPhone, iPad and Mac, on iOS 26, iPadOS 26 or macOS 26; the Mac needs Apple silicon | Mac (iPhone and iPad via the separate Whisper Transcription app) |
| Where transcription runs | On device, with Apple's speech framework | On device (Whisper, Parakeet and other local models); optional cloud AI if you add your own API keys |
| Recording | Built-in recorder with pause and resume, a live level meter and a waveform | Can record meetings and microphone audio, but the core job is transcribing files you already have |
| AI summaries | Automatic title and one-sentence summary for every recording, on device, with Apple Intelligence | None; AI features only run if you connect your own cloud API keys |
| What you get out | On the Mac, a markdown file with YAML front matter for every recording, in a folder you choose | Exports .srt, .vtt, .txt, .md, .pdf, .html or .docx per file; no ongoing archive or library |
| AI tool access | Local MCP server with 20 tools, on the Mac | None |
| Search | File names, titles, summaries and full transcripts | No library-wide search; search happens inside one file at a time |
| Sync | iCloud through CloudKit, off until you switch it on, per device; audio optional | None; no library, no cross-device sync |
| Speaker labels and subtitles | No | Yes: speaker recognition and subtitle generation, plus meeting recording for Zoom, Teams, Webex and Discord |
| Batch processing | Partly. Transcribe All works through every recording in a project, and a multi-file import transcribes each file in turn. No watched folders | Yes: watched folders and workflow automations for processing many files unattended |
| Accounts and telemetry | None. The App Store privacy label reads Data Not Collected | None documented for the core app; optional cloud AI features use your own API keys |
What you see when you open each app
Open SR-7 and the record button is waiting. The list you land on holds your recordings, each with its transcript and, with Apple Intelligence, a title and a summary.
Open MacWhisper and there is nothing to record yet: you drag a file in, or point it at a folder, and it queues that file for transcription. That is a deliberate, well-built interface for a different job. MacWhisper exists to process audio that already exists, not to capture new audio in the moment.
A recorder, not a workbench
SR-7 is a dictaphone at heart. It is built to capture your own voice and thoughts on the device in your hand, then keep the result in an archive you can search later. It is not a meeting tool, and while it imports files from other recorders, it is not built to process audio you did not record yourself.
MacWhisper's job starts once a file already exists, and that is where it excels: file and batch transcription, speaker recognition, subtitle generation, meeting recording for Zoom, Teams, Webex and Discord, and watched-folder automations for processing many files without touching each one. Its developer reported 250,000 downloads by mid-2024, and it is a constant presence in Mac and indie-developer circles for good reason.
What each one costs
SR-7 is $7.99 once, for iPhone, iPad and Mac. MacWhisper has a free tier for basic transcription, and its Pro license is €64 once with lifetime updates, priced in euros only on the official site, with no US dollar figure shown, as of August 2026.
Neither price is a fair stand-in for the other, because the apps do different jobs. MacWhisper's Pro price buys a deeper transcription pipeline for files you already have; SR-7's price buys a recorder that lives in your pocket in the first place.
Which one to use
Choose MacWhisper if
- You mainly transcribe existing audio or video files, or recorded meetings, on a Mac.
- You need speaker labels, subtitle generation, or unattended batch jobs across many files.
- You want deep export and automation options, such as watched folders and formats like .srt and .docx, for a transcription pipeline.
Choose SR-7 if
- You want the same recorder on your iPhone, iPad and Mac, bought once.
- You want every recording to arrive with a title and summary already attached, and on the Mac as a markdown file, instead of a transcript you export and file yourself.
- You want AI tools to reach your archive directly, through the local MCP server on your Mac.
Also compare: Apple Voice Memos, Otter and Just Press Record. All five apps side by side are on the home page.
Signal Recorder SR-7
A dictaphone for thinking out loud. It records your voice and transcribes it on your iPhone, iPad or Mac.
$7.99 once for iPhone, iPad and Mac. No subscription.