How in the H do I choose a writer?!

I've just recently hit my 180's, and I think it may be time to start thinking about moving away from my worn, yet loved, Stentura 400 SRT. 

I tried writing on a friend's Wave and thought -- oh my! It's so easy and wonderful! Maybe this is the reason I haven't passed a 180...eh? Eh?

What I'm really looking for is like a side-by-side comparison of professional writers. I think that'll help me decide what I can and can't live without, and help me find a used one (who can afford brand new, anyway?). Does anyone know of where I can find such a chart? Does anyone have strong opinions about their writers? Anyone LOVE or HATE their writer and feel the need to share their feelings? I'm open! 

Oh, excellent time to be asking this question.  I just went through this same "H"!!!  The biggest mistake I made was waiting until I started working to buy a writer, because not only am I now trying to learn everything you don't get taught in school about being a reporter, but I'm also trying to learn how to use my new machine to its fullest. 

I drove myself crazy deciding which writer to buy.  I Googled and read everything I could about all the writers.  You can find nightmare stories on all of them, except not as many on the Passport.  You will certainly find nightmare stories about Stenograph's customer service.  I was even told by a reporter friend of mine that when I call Stenograph for service, if the guy answers, basically just make something up and get him off the phone as soon as possible because he's very difficult to deal with. 

Anyway, my friend has a Passport and she loves it.  I had actually decided on the Passport because she told me that she's had none of the customer service issues with Advantage that I'd heard so much about with Stenograph.  However, after leaving three phone messages for the Passport rep and an e-mail message and not getting a return call, I defaulted to my second choice, which was a Diamante.  Three weeks later, I stil have never heard from the Passport rep. 

Since I have CaseCat, the Diamante was probably a better choice for me anyway, since at least getting software and hardware together was basically seamless.  So I've had my writer since Monday and so far I really like it.  Making key adjustments is super easy.  Of course going from a 400 Stentura to a Diamante is improvement beyond words. 

Whatever you end up choosing, definitely do it while you're in school, that way you have the time to learn how to use your writer and that's one less thing you have to worry about when you're trying to produce perfect transcripts.

Test drive as many as possible.  You're in luck.  The CCRA convention is next week in San Diego, not too far from you.  Most, if not all of the main vendors should be there.  I would strongly encourage going and test driving all of the professional machines so that you will know that you are making an informed decision when the time is right.

Agree with Mikey, if you can test drive, do.    All three of those writers you mention will work seamlessly with CaseCat.  I chose the Diamante because it is the latest model and the price difference was just not enough to convince me to buy one of the older models.  The Miras at this point are all refurbished, but sold with warranty, so not a risk.  However, the price was not much lower than the Diamante.  I'm not sure if the Fusion is refurbished, but the price is almost as high as the Diamante.  SG offers a decent discount if you buy the Diamante.  I have friends that have the Mira and they all love it, but they also plan on buying the Diamante as their next writer.  The Fusion is not paperless; the Mira and the Diamante are. 

Hello.

Mikey's right -- nothing quite like a side-by-side comparison.

In the meantime, I have a couple of articles with brief overviews of the writers up to the Diamante.  You can find the first one here:

http://www.cheapandsleazy.net/technolust.html

There's a link to the second one at the end of that article, and that article includes a comparison table I borrowed from Jason Pardikes, the head man in charge at the Neutrino Group (the folks that make the Gemini and Infinity Traditional writers).

You can also find reviews of the Passport, the Stylus, the Flash, the LightSpeed, and the Gemini on the site, as well as a rather lengthy piece on the new Infinity Traditional writer.

Good luck to you ....

--gdw
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"For a Good (steno) Time ...."
http://www.cheapandsleazy.net

I've used the Gemini machine since 2003.  Started on a Gemini2 and then the Revolution Grand and now have my Inifinity.  The 'smartness' in this machine is incredible!!  It has morphed into an awesome machine!  I have the Ergonomic one but there are 'regular' ones that are 3.5 lbs.  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Infinity-Traditional/112900958759905