Recording a meeting, interviews, and ideas can be easily done with most smartphones and usually, that would suffice, after all, those sounds are just for reference. However, if a high-quality audio recording is what you are after, then perhaps you will need a dedicated recording device, such as the Teenage Engineering TP-7 Field Audio Recorder you see here.
This super sleek and futuristic device is engineered from the ground up to do just one thing and that is to record sound. It will let you record sound, music, interviews, and important ideas with “zero friction, in the highest possible quality” while offering a tactile feel that has been lost in the smartphone era.
The device fits in the palm of your hand and allows your fingers to naturally adopt the controls. For example, the index and the middle finger trigger the fast forward and rewinds, respectively, while the thumb can hit the memo record button that turns on the device and starts recording, and the pink selects the mode. Though I would imagine the latter may not be the most comfortable for all users. The Teenage Engineering TP-7 Field Audio Recorder is kind of like a quick-draw sidearm of a soldier.
One of the star features, IMHO, is the tactile feel offered by the motorized tape reel, which is the large, circular thing in the center of the device. A brushed motor with ball bearings worked in sync with a sensitive hall sensor to lets you virtually grab your recording.
The reel is a homage to the reel on the tape recorders of the olden days. It provides a gentle visual cue during playback and recording much like tapes. The reel is also used for scrubbing, pausing, and menu navigation. During a recording or playback, gently placing a finger on the reel will pause the recording or playback.
In addition, you can use the side-mounted rocker to quickly scrub through the audio. Oh, did we mention that when you are scrubbing through the audio, not only will you be treated to the wheel spinning visual but you can also hear the tracks scrub in “hyperspeed”. Also, yes, it does have an onboard speaker as well as a built-in mic.
Another key feature is its ability to turn audio into text. All you have to do is to connect your phone to TP-7 via Bluetooth LE or USB, open the TP-7 app, press transcribe, and voila! The job is done. There’s a catch though. The app is available for iOS only for now.
The TP-7 boasts quite a number of I/Os, including 3 stereo two-way jacks which can be used as inputs or outputs, for connecting external mics, headphones, studio monitors, or any other audio equipment like the OP-1 Field, TX-6, or CM-15 Field Microphone with all 6 stereo channels. There’s also a 24-bit/96 kHz USB audio interface and the device further touts 128 GB internal storage and a 7-hour rechargeable battery.
The new Teenage Engineering TP-7 Field Audio Recorder will be available this Summer for a cool US$1,499. Meanwhile, you may learn more over at the product page.
Images: Teenage Engineering.
