Parlo has three surfaces built on one shared engine: the iPhone keyboard, the iPhone app, and Parlo for Mac. The tables below list each major feature, which surfaces have it, and a short note where the two surfaces differ.
iPhone keyboard
| Feature | iPhone | Mac | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dictate by voice | yes | yes | The keyboard opens Parlo to record; Mac records straight from the hotkey |
| Full Access handoff | yes | n/a | Shares your dictated text between the app and the keyboard through a shared container |
| Swipe back to insert | yes | n/a | Manual, since iOS requires it before a keyboard can insert text |
| Insert only where you left off | yes | yes | Results expire and never insert twice; Mac confirms the target app is frontmost first |
| Autocorrect and suggestions | yes | n/a | Runs in the keyboard only, with next-word suggestions as you type |
| Custom dictionary | yes | no | Edited on iPhone; guards the keyboard's autocorrect only, does not change dictation or cleanup |
| History panel in the keyboard | yes | n/a | Recent notes, tap to insert, swipe to delete, no search yet |
| Action Button and Shortcuts dictation | yes | n/a | Opt-in, off by default. A press brings Parlo to the front and starts recording; press again or use the Live Activity's stop button to stop. Leaving the app or locking the screen ends the recording |
| Live Activity while recording | yes | n/a | Shows while you record and ends when the text is ready |
Dictation and cleanup
| Feature | iPhone | Mac | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| On-device transcription | yes | yes | Apple's SpeechAnalyzer and SpeechTranscriber, the only engine |
| On-device cleanup | yes | yes | Removes filler sounds, false starts, and repeated words |
| AI cleanup toggle | yes, on by default | yes, off by default | Off still strips filler and applies spoken commands on both surfaces |
| Spoken formatting commands | yes | yes | New line and new paragraph work with cleanup off; quote commands need cleanup on |
| Cleanup invention guard | yes | yes | Falls back to the deterministic text if the model output is implausibly long |
| Text transforms (Email, Bullets, Shorter, Fix) | yes | yes | Applied by hand from a note, with a one-level revert |
| Sign emails as | yes | yes | Optional setting for the Email transform's closing line |
| No speech detected state | yes | yes | An empty recording is never saved as a note |
| English-first | yes | yes | Falls back to en-US; no language picker yet |
Notes and history
| Feature | iPhone | Mac | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dictation feed | yes | n/a | The app home is a feed of your notes |
| Notes window | n/a | yes | A searchable window with the same transforms as iPhone |
| Semantic on-device search | yes | yes | Keyword match, then meaning, then recency, all on-device |
| Keyboard history search | no | n/a | The keyboard panel is a flat list, listed below under what is not here yet |
| Dictate to append to a note | yes | no | No Mac equivalent yet |
| Edit a note by hand or transform | yes | yes | A saved edit keeps the dictated words for one-level revert |
| Trash with 30-day recovery | yes | yes | Device-local, never synced |
Mac app
| Feature | iPhone | Mac | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Menu-bar hotkey dictation | n/a | yes | Hold Option, speak, release; double-tap locks hands-free |
| Custom shortcut | n/a | yes | Recordable in Settings in place of Option |
| Insert at your cursor | n/a | yes | Confirms the target app is frontmost, then pastes; falls back to the clipboard |
| First-run onboarding | yes | yes | Walks through permissions and setup on each surface |
| Launch at login, Dock and menu-bar icon | n/a | yes | Settings toggles; the menu-bar icon stays available either way |
| Sound on insert | n/a | yes, off by default | Plays once text lands in the app you were using |
| Update check | n/a | yes, on by default | Notify-only; tells you when a new build is out |
| Automatic updates | n/a | needs enrollment | Sparkle updates, approved through /mac |
Privacy and sync
| Feature | iPhone | Mac | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audio never persisted | yes | yes | Captured, transcribed, and discarded |
| History encrypted at rest | yes | yes | A device-only key that never leaves through iCloud Keychain or a backup |
| History sync | yes | yes | On by default, end-to-end encrypted, off in Settings |
| No Parlo account required | yes | yes | iOS offers optional Sign in with Apple; Mac keys off the system iCloud account |
| Local-only mode | yes | yes | Nothing syncs unless the device is signed into iCloud |
| Delete synced data | yes | no | iPhone Settings deletes synced dictations, dictionary, and preferences from iCloud; local notes stay. No Mac control yet |
| Data collected by Parlo | none | none | Your content lives in your iCloud, not on a server of ours |
Export and connections
| Feature | iPhone | Mac | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Markdown export | no | yes | Deterministic filenames, Export All, and an auto-export toggle |
| MCP server over history | no | yes | Search and read your dictations over stdio, installed from Settings |
| Prompt refresh | TestFlight builds only | no | The iPhone beta fetches transform prompt text once a day, carrying no user data; the Mac beta and App Store builds never fetch |
| Notion export | no | no | Not built yet, listed below |
Beta and price
| Feature | iPhone | Mac | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | free | free | No account, no subscription, during the beta |
| Install | TestFlight | notarized download | Both linked from the beta page |
| Feedback | beta@parlokey.com | beta@parlokey.com | Every reply reaches the team and shapes the next build |
What is not here yet
- Search in the keyboard's history panel. It shows recent notes only.
- Custom dictionary editing on Mac. Terms are edited on iPhone today.
- Markdown export on iPhone. It ships on Mac only for now.
- Notion export, on either surface.
- A language picker, or any language other than English.
- Background recording that continues after you leave the app or lock the screen.
- An MCP server on iPhone. It runs on Mac only.
- Dictate to append to a note on Mac. iPhone only today.
- Deleting synced data from Mac. Use iPhone Settings today.
Common objections, answered
Is it accurate enough compared with cloud dictation?
Parlo transcribes with Apple's on-device speech engine, the same engine behind the newest system dictation, then cleans the text with an on-device language model. It removes filler sounds and false starts and applies spoken commands like new paragraph. A custom dictionary keeps the keyboard's autocorrect from changing your names and terms. It is English-first and it is a beta, so expect rough edges and tell us about them.
Why not just use Apple's built-in dictation?
Apple dictation types what you say. Parlo also cleans it up, keeps a searchable history of every dictation, and on Mac inserts into any app from a hold-Option hotkey. History syncs through your private iCloud, end-to-end encrypted, and you can turn that off in Settings.
The keyboard asks for Full Access, and Mac asks for Accessibility. What do those grant?
Full Access lets the iPhone keyboard share your dictated text with its companion app through a shared container. It cannot record audio, since iOS does not allow that. Accessibility lets Parlo for Mac paste text into the app you were using. Parlo uses neither permission for anything beyond handing your text back to you.
Where does my audio go?
Nowhere. Audio is captured, transcribed on your device, and discarded. Parlo never stores a recording. The first run may download Apple's on-device speech model, and iPhone beta builds fetch prompt text once a day, carrying no user data. Your transcripts stay on the device, encrypted at rest, and sync through your private iCloud, end-to-end encrypted, if sync is on.
Is a beta safe to rely on?
It is a beta. Dictation, cleanup, the feed, and the Mac hotkey work every day for our testers. The tables above and the list of what is not here yet are both honest about the rough spots. Your notes are encrypted on the device and, if sync is on, in your private iCloud, so a bad build does not expose them. Send feedback by replying to beta@parlokey.com.
What does it cost?
Nothing during the beta. There is no account to create and no subscription. Install on iPhone from the public TestFlight link and on Mac from the download on the beta page. Sync uses your own iCloud.
Frequently asked questions
Does the custom dictionary improve dictation accuracy?
No. It only guards the iPhone keyboard's autocorrect against changing words you type. It does not change dictation, cleanup, or the Mac app.
Is AI cleanup on by default?
On iPhone, yes. On Mac, it is off by default. Turn it on or off in Settings on either surface at any time.
Can I search dictations from the keyboard?
Not yet. The keyboard's history panel shows recent notes with no search. Use the app feed or the Mac Notes window to search.
Is history sync on by default?
Yes. It is end-to-end encrypted through your private iCloud. Turn it off in Settings, or do not sign in with Apple, if you want local-only history.
What is Action Button dictation?
A setting you turn on yourself, off by default. Press the Action Button or run the Shortcut and Parlo comes to the front and records. Press again or use the Live Activity stop button to finish. Leaving the app ends the recording.
Does Parlo export notes on iPhone?
Not yet. Markdown export, with Export All and auto-export, is Mac only for now.