Conversa Messenger 2.11

by CONVERSATIONAL COMPUTING CORP

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00002S77M
• Item model number: 200RM0211
• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 10, 2002
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #36,481 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #24 in Software > Business & Office > Communication > E-mail > E-mail Clients
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Whether in front of your PC or on the run with your cell phone, you can access e-mail, voice mail, and faxes by voice. Conversa Messenger is the perfect desktop messaging system for home or small businesses. Take control of your messages and take control of your life. Access your address book using simple voice commands. When on the road, a single call gets you that address and telephone number you've been searching for. Faxes appear graphically so you can read them from your inbox. This software package is packed with useful tools and is easy to install and use.

From Winmag®

Accessing your e-mail from the road can be a challenge, but Conversa Messenger offers a solution. This program serves as a personal assistant for e-mail, voice mail, faxes and personal address information. It allows you to call in to your desktop PC and access information over the telephone by employing text-to-speech technology.

The program operates in two modes. Desktop mode is a hands-free personal desktop assistant, which allowed me to open e-mail and initiate calls via voice commands as I sat in front of my PC. For remote access, Answering Machine mode acts as a fully functional voice-mail messaging system. It responded well to spoken commands when I called from a low-noise environment, and also responded to touch-tone commands when conditions didn't permit easy voice recognition. The preset voice commands Conversa Messenger recognizes are intuitive and easy to remember. In addition, the program supports any MAPI-compliant messaging client, imports Outlook personal address books, and accommodates incoming voice mail, e-mail and faxes in a Unified Message Inbox.

One major drawback is that you must exit the program and restart it in order to switch from Desktop mode to Answering Machine mode. Also, I wasn't impressed with the quality of the text-to-speech voice engine. Although I could adjust the speed and pitch of playback, I wasn't able to tweak the voice engine enough to improve the clarity of narration.

For business travelers who absolutely need to be connected no matter where they are, Conversa Messenger offers great functionality. However, I'd wait until Conversa improves the text-to-speech engine and fixes idiosyncrasies such as having to relaunch the app every time you switch between its two modes.