Handheld: Offline Voice Typing

Your voice, typed. Offline.

Handheld turns speech into text on your Android phone. Use the in-app microphone for a quick note, or turn on the floating mic bubble to dictate into supported text fields in other apps. Speech recognition runs on your device — not on a cloud server.

SPEAK WHERE YOU TYPE
Tap the floating microphone, speak, then stop. Handheld transcribes your words and inserts them into the text field you selected. Useful for messages, notes and email. Some apps and custom text fields may not support direct insertion; copy and paste is also available.

OFFLINE BY DESIGN
Download a speech model once, then dictate without an internet connection — including in aeroplane mode. Handheld has no accounts, ads, subscriptions, analytics or cloud transcription. Audio and transcripts stay in your app’s local storage unless you choose to copy or share them.

MAKE IT YOURS
Choose Aurora, Ink or Pop, each with light and dark appearances and a matching floating bubble. Add custom words to help with names and specialist terms.

CHOOSE YOUR MODEL
Pick from Whisper and Parakeet speech models. Smaller models use less storage and are usually faster; larger models may be more accurate. Language support, speed and accuracy depend on the model and your phone.

KEEP THE WORDS THAT MATTER
Find previous dictations in History, star useful transcripts, copy or share text, and optionally keep recordings to replay or transcribe again. Delete your history, recordings and downloaded models whenever you want.

GETTING STARTED
1. Choose a style and allow microphone access.
2. Download a speech model. Wi-Fi is recommended.
3. Tap the microphone and start speaking.
4. Optionally enable the floating bubble after reading its separate disclosure.

ACCESSIBILITY SERVICE
The optional floating bubble uses Android’s AccessibilityService API to detect a focused text field, position the microphone and insert your dictated text. To insert at the cursor, it reads the focused field’s text and cursor position. It does not store or transmit that field’s existing text, ignores password fields, and does not autonomously send messages or operate other app controls. You can disable the service in Android Settings at any time.

GOOD TO KNOW
• Requires a compatible 64-bit ARM Android device.
• Models need additional storage; larger models also need more memory.
• Please check important text before sending it. Recognition can make mistakes.
• Hugging Face hosts model downloads and receives normal download connection information, such as your IP address. Voice recordings are not uploaded.

Handheld is an independent Android port of Handy by CJ Pais. It is not made, endorsed or supported by the Handy project. Please contact Handheld’s developer for support.