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How to Get Talk-to-Text on Your Jailbroken iPhone with the Siri Clone Sara

Feb 19, 2013 10:55 PM
Voice dictation interface on a mobile device.

My obsession with Siri is well documented, and after I jailbroke my iPhone 4 recently, I thought I would finally be able to rekindle our imaginary love. But, when I downloaded the Siri Port, I found that the app was buggy and super slow.

You lucky iPhone 4S and 5 users have Siri and talk-to-text baked into your systems, but those of us with the iPhone 4 or 3GS have to look elsewhere for a similar function.

And that's when I found Sara.

Sara Dictation keyboard can be found in the Cydia store with a quick search. Now, there are a ton of personal assistant alternatives, but very few, if any, create the talk-to-text button on your keyboard.

Voice dictation feature on a smartphone.

This feature is by far one of the most useful features of the Siri function. I always text and drive (I know...tsk tsk), but with the Sara Dictation keyboard, all I have to do is tap the mic button and say what I need to say. Once I'm done talking, I hit OK and wait for Sara to take note.

She is pretty accurate, but there was really no chance she was going to get my name right, so I give her a pass on that.

Voice dictation feature on a smartphone screen.
Text message composition screen on a smartphone.
Voice dictation feature on a smartphone screen.
Text message composition screen on a smartphone.

Sadly Sara has no voice, which is one of the drawbacks I have with her. When you tap the mic icon you simply speak and she will then translate, there is no voice interaction which would have been nice.

Overall, the tweak is still very legit for those of us that do not have a Siri enabled device, and it's completely free to boot.

Settings menu with various app options including "Sara Dictation" highlighted.
Language selection menu on a mobile device displaying various language options.
Settings menu with various app options including "Sara Dictation" highlighted.
Language selection menu on a mobile device displaying various language options.

Settings for Sara Dictation can be accessed from the Settings app on your iPhone. From there, you can pick between a ton of different languages.

The next big software update for iPhone is coming sometime in April and will include a Food section in Apple News+, an easy-to-miss new Ambient Music app, Priority Notifications thanks to Apple Intelligence, and updates to apps like Mail, Photos, Podcasts, and Safari. See what else is coming to your iPhone with the iOS 18.4 update.

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