I bought this based on some good reviews. It turned out to be a total waste for me. I needed something I could use to record class room lectures. I can't hear A THING that the instructor said. And my classroom is not a huge lecture hall either, it is in a lab room w/about 24 students. Suffice it to say, I gave it to my kids to play with..it does work if you talk directly into the recording device. Otherwise, it is not sensitive enough to pick up a lecture. Try the Sony one w/the red button, it is very effective and comparable in price. That is the one I inevetibly had to purchase.