Introducing the M6650 speech recognition notebook computer by M-Tech

Introducing the M-Tech M6650

Introducing The new M6650 notebook computer by M-Tech

Designed specifically for speech recognition

 

In order to obtain optimal performance from speech recognition software, one needs a high speed computer. Until now, that generally meant a gaming computer. Unfortunately, gaming computers typically cost $4000 and up, coming in beyond the means of many users. Enter the new M6650 by M-Tech, designed specifically for speech recognition. What does that mean, exactly? The M6650 starts off under $1000 but to acquire the configuration we tested, with a fast quad core Ivy Bridge i7 3610QM 2.3 GHz notebook computer with 16 Gb of RAM, and a solid-state hard drive you would likely to pay closer to $1800.

 

Too good to be true, right? But, what if? So, when M-Tech asked us to test the M6650 for speech recognition, we jumped at the chance.

 

In December of 2011, we had purchased Lenovo's W520 i7 Sandy Bridge 2960XM Quad core 2.7 GHz flagship notebook computer for just under $4000. Considering the price difference, we didn't expect the M-Tech unit to best Lenovo’s W520. Well, it did. (See a printout of our actual test scores at the end of this revue.) The Lenovo W520 turned out a very respectable 6.9 average performance rating, while the M-Tech M6650’s average was 7.2. And keep in mind that the M6650’s score would have been even higher were it not for the 1 Mb video card, which is ideal for just about everything other than extreme gaming. (So we then looked at the numbers, minus the graphics scores, and found the Lenovo W520 with an average rating of 7.0 compared to the M-Tech M6650’s average of 7.7.)

 

Note that the Lenovo's weakness is its hard drive transfer rate, which is due to the legacy 7200 RPM hard drive. The M6650 has the advantage of a faster access SSD.

 

It should also be noted that we only performed these tests with NaturallySpeaking 11.5, since our only interest in this computer is speech recognition.

 

Results

To be frank, while we expected the 5.9 pound M6650 to perform well, we didn't expect it to be faster than our Lenovo W520. When dictating into Microsoft Word 2010 on the M6650, our dictation appeared instantly, smoothly, and without delays. Dictation on the W520 was not quite as smooth, taking approximately one second to land in the document. Although a one second delay is certainly acceptable, seeing our dictation appear instantly (without perceptible delay) on the M6650 was an absolute treat. The longer it takes for dictation to hit the page, the more distracting/frustrating it can be. Ideally, we all want our dictation to appear in our documents instantly. This helps us to maintain our concentration and dictation continuity. We suspect the new Ivy Bridge processor is responsible for the increase in dictation speed.

 

The only negative thing we can say about the M6650 is that the video display is just slightly dull compared to our W520, but this was a minor inconvenience considering that the M6650 is priced at only one quarter the cost of the W520. (You’re an ABSOLUTE perfectionist? You could always upgrade the video card and still purchase the M6650 at very substantial savings…) We also particularly appreciate that before shipping the M6650, M-Tech further prepares it for speech recognition in the following ways:

 

  • Presets it for fastest performance
  • Disables the User Account Control settings (an unnecessary utility that can interfere with a number of applications, including NaturallySpeaking and KnowBrainer)
  • Turns on ClearType (to improve text displays on LCD monitors)
  • Turns off Windows page file, which should be done on any computer with 6 Gb or more of RAM


We feel it is worth mentioning that all M-Tech notebook and desktop computers are assembled in the United States. Other popular notebook computers, such as Dell, Gateway, Lenovo, HP and Alienware, are made in China or Taiwan.

 

We have a great deal of respect for the fact that M-Tech doesn't employ commissioned salespeople. When you speak with an M-Tech employee, you're speaking with the person who will oversee the assembly of your computer and handle your future technical support. A discussion with anyone at M-Tech is more of a consultation (as opposed to talking with a salesperson who can only reel off a list of preset features).

 

If we’re sounding somewhat like a crushing adolescent, we must admit to being just a wee bit smitten. We’ve been in the speech recognition industry for a very long time, so it doesn’t often happen that a product comes along that combines both performance and price in a way that knocks our socks off.

 

We are not compensated in any way to recommend M-Tech computers, but we appreciate their work to the degree that we currently purchase all of our desktop computers from M-Tech. And, while we're in no way dissatisfied with our Lenovo W520, it now appears that our next notebook computer will also be made by M-Tech.

 

The Specifications and Benchmarks (as tested)

 

M-Tech M6650

Processor Calculations Per Second 7.6
Memory (RAM) Memory Operations Per Second 7.7
Graphics Desktop Performance for Windows 6.5
Gaming Graphics 3D Business and Gaming Graphics 6.5
Hard Drive Disk Transfer Rate 7.9

 

Processor Intel (R) Core(TM) i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30 GHz
Installed Memory (RAM) 16 GB (15.9 GB usable)
Operating System Type 64-bit

 

 

Lenovo W520

Processor Calculations Per Second 7.6
Memory (RAM) Memory Operations Per Second 7.6
Graphics Desktop Performance for Windows 6.9
Gaming Graphics 3D Business and Gaming Graphics 6.9
Hard Drive Disk Transfer Rate 5.9

 

Processor Intel (R) Core(TM) i7-2960XM CPU @ 2.70 GHz
Installed Memory (RAM) 16 GB (15.9 GB usable)
Operating System Type 64-bit

 

Contact Us

Knowbrainer, Inc.

718 Rogue Forks Rd.
Bethpage, TN 37022

P.615-884-4558
E.lunis@knowbrainer.com

 

For over 20 years KnowBrainer has been bringing customers the latest and most comprehensive suite of speech recogntion hardware and software, including the entire line of Nuance Dragon NaturallySpeaking products. We also offer our own KnowBrainer Command software that extends the capabilities of NaturallySpeaking into full PC automation that is capable of controlling nearly everything that you do on your PC using just your voice. To get you the greatest success, KnowBrainer also offers a full line of hardware and support services for your speech recognition requirements.

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