Buzz: Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper. Reflect: Networked note-taking and second-brain app with AI that transcribes voice notes and extracts action items from meeting notes. This comparison weighs them on pricing, features, and everyday workflow fit.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Buzz when transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline matters most, and Reflect when transcribing and summarizing voice notes captured on the go matters most. Try them side by side on real calls before deciding — needs vary by team.
Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper.
Networked note-taking and second-brain app with AI that transcribes voice notes and extracts action items from meeting notes.
Buzz is a widely used open-source desktop application that transcribes and translates audio offline on the user's personal computer, powered by OpenAI's Whisper. It is MIT-licensed and actively maintained, with v1.4.4 released in March 2026, and it has grown a large community with roughly 19.7k GitHub stars. Buzz runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux, with installation options including Flatpak, Snap, and PyPI. It supports both importing existing audio and video files and real-time transcription from microphone input, and it can export results in formats such as TXT, SRT, and VTT for subtitling and documentation. The app includes an advanced transcript viewer with search and playback controls, a watch folder for automatically transcribing new files, and a command-line interface for automation. It offers GPU acceleration through CUDA for Nvidia cards, Apple Silicon support, and Vulkan for many other GPUs, which makes faster transcription practical even on laptops. Buzz also provides speaker identification and speech separation for noisy audio, plus a plugin system that adds capabilities like AI-generated summaries. Because all processing happens locally, recordings and transcripts remain on the user's machine rather than being uploaded to a cloud service. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Reflect is a minimalist note-taking and second-brain application designed for capturing ideas, linking thoughts, and building a connected personal knowledge base over time. Its core is a networked notes system with backlinks, daily notes, and instant cross-device sync, with end-to-end encryption for privacy and an iOS app that works offline. Reflect layers AI on top of this foundation: it can transcribe voice notes, generate outlines from scattered thoughts, suggest tags, summarize long entries, and list key takeaways and action items from meeting notes. It integrates with Google Calendar and Outlook so calendar events appear inside the note system, making it convenient to attach notes to meetings and follow up afterward. While Reflect is not a dedicated meeting-bot transcription service, it is well suited to professionals and knowledge workers who take meeting notes, journal, and want their captured audio and writing turned into organized, searchable knowledge. It appeals to people who value a calmer, more intentional workflow and want AI assistance for summarizing and connecting their own notes rather than automating an entire meeting pipeline. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Reflect is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Buzz | Reflect |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Offline transcription and translation using OpenAI's Whisper | Networked notes with backlinks and daily notes |
| Standout feature | Real-time transcription from microphone input | AI voice note transcription and summarization |
| Team usage | Speaker identification and speech separation for noisy audio | AI extraction of key takeaways and action items from meeting notes |
| Integrations | Exports to TXT, SRT, and VTT | Google Calendar and Outlook integration for meetings |
| Languages & capture | Watch folder for automatic transcription and a command-line interface | End-to-end encryption with instant cross-device sync |
| Best-fit workflow | GPU acceleration via CUDA, Apple Silicon, and Vulkan | iOS app with offline access and browser/Kindle capture |
Buzz
Choose Buzz if you need transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline — strengths include fully offline so audio and transcripts stay on the user's computer.
Reflect
Choose Reflect if you need taking and linking meeting notes within a connected knowledge base — strengths include combines a second-brain knowledge base with ai meeting summarization.
Buzz
Reflect
It depends on your workflow. Buzz is strong for transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline, while Reflect is strong for taking and linking meeting notes within a connected knowledge base. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades and Reflect is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
Often yes: teams combine tools when one handles capture and another handles analysis.
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