Idea Capture Tool: Digital Voice Recorder

I mentioned before that I was using an old-school tape recorder to capture ideas—while walking, while in the shower, while sitting at my desk, wherever. Having happily used it for nine months, but experiencing some glitches, I decided that I deserved an upgrade to a digital one (also recommended by Doug in the comments).

I got the $80 Sony one, which has great reviews on Amazon. There's a $60 Sony one as well, but it doesn't have a USB connection, which actually came in handy for me once so far. The digital has a lot of advantages over the analog, including: a battery indicator, no cassette door that could be partly open, ability to replay/delete individual notes, 5 folders, consistent playback quality.

For me, a dedicated voice recorder is the fastest way for me to jot down an idea—faster than writing it down in my wallet pad; more space than on my cell phone recorder; no need to enter a password as I would with my PDA.