Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Notewise: Handwriting and PDF note-taking app for Apple devices with AI audio transcription for lectures and meetings. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Alter when freelancers and consultants privately capturing client calls without a visible bot matters most, and Notewise when annotating course pdfs and slides with synced audio matters most. Run both through a week of actual calls to see which suits your workflow.
macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required.
Handwriting and PDF note-taking app for Apple devices with AI audio transcription for lectures and meetings.
Alter is a native macOS application that records, transcribes, and analyzes meetings directly on the user's Mac without sending a bot into the call. Instead of joining a meeting as a visible participant, Alter captures audio from the system output and microphone, so it works across Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, WhatsApp, FaceTime, Skype, Discord, and in-person conversations. Transcription runs through on-device models, with a choice of an optimized Parakeet model for major languages or Whisper for broader language coverage, and speaker identification is performed locally. Because processing happens on the device, recordings and transcripts stay on the Mac and the app can operate without an internet connection. Beyond raw transcripts, Alter generates summaries and action items, lets users chat with their meetings, and connects to tools such as Notion, Slack, Linear, Asana, and Jira. It targets solopreneurs, freelancers, consultants, and other professionals who want private, bot-free meeting capture on macOS. The product is actively developed and operating in 2025 and 2026. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Notewise is a note-taking app for iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Vision Pro that combines handwritten notes and PDF annotation with AI features for students and other learners. It offers low-latency handwriting with palm rejection, multiple pen and highlighter styles, shape and table tools, and image insertion, alongside PDF markup and annotation. Its AI capabilities include audio transcription that turns lectures, meetings, and memos into text, with the transcription synced to the moment in your handwritten notes so you can tap a note and hear what was being said. Notewise also provides handwriting OCR across more than 20 languages, letting users search across handwriting, typed notes, audio transcripts, and PDFs in one place. Additional AI tools include a chat interface to query your notes, context-aware question answering on highlighted content, and auto-generated audio summaries of notes. Real-time collaboration in shared notebooks and cloud sync across devices round out the feature set. Notewise is well suited to students who take handwritten lecture notes on an iPad and want recorded audio transcribed and tied back to what they wrote, with export to PDF and other formats. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Alter is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Notewise is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Alter | Notewise |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | On-device transcription using built-in Whisper and Parakeet models | AI audio transcription of lectures and meetings synced to handwritten notes |
| Standout feature | Bot-free capture of system audio and microphone across any meeting or call app | Low-latency handwriting with palm rejection plus PDF annotation |
| Team usage | Automatic speaker identification performed locally | Handwriting OCR across more than 20 languages with unified search |
| Integrations | AI summaries, action items, and chat-with-your-meeting Q&A | AI chat to query notes and context-aware Q&A on highlighted content |
| Languages & capture | Integrations with Notion, Slack, Linear, Asana, Jira and other tools | Auto-generated audio summaries of notes |
| Best-fit workflow | Offline operation with recordings and transcripts stored locally | Real-time collaboration in shared notebooks and cross-device cloud sync |
Alter
Choose Alter if you need freelancers and consultants privately capturing client calls without a visible bot — strengths include local processing keeps recordings and transcripts on the user's own mac.
Notewise
Choose Notewise if you need handwriting lecture notes on an ipad while recording and transcribing class audio — strengths include ties lecture audio transcription directly to the moment in handwritten notes.
Alter
Notewise
It depends on your workflow. Alter is strong for freelancers and consultants privately capturing client calls without a visible bot, while Notewise is strong for handwriting lecture notes on an ipad while recording and transcribing class audio. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Alter is a free tier with paid upgrades and Notewise is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
You can — some teams pair them when each covers a different part of the meeting workflow.
More head-to-head comparisons involving Alter and Notewise.
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