Offline Dictation: Voice-to-Text That Works With Wi-Fi Off

What has to be on disk first

VeloxWaves ships a bundled Tiny Moonshine floor so first record can work without a download. Larger speech, translation, or local AI models download only when you ask. Once those files are on disk, inference does not need the network.

If a tool fetches weights while you speak, it is not offline dictation. If it transcribes locally and later syncs text to a cloud, the typing path may be offline while the archive is not.

What still uses the network

The same split as the Trust & Privacy guide:

• Account, trial, and subscription checks.
• Consented model downloads you start yourself.
• App updates.
• Optional support reports you submit.

None of those carry dictation audio. The transcription path is documented on how on-device dictation works.

Airplane mode, hospitals, locked-down networks

After install, hold the shortcut on a plane, in a basement, or on a network that blocks outbound APIs. Voice typing still inserts at the cursor. Signing in to refresh a trial, paying for Pro, or downloading a larger model waits until you are online again.

Tools that are actually offline

Handy and VoiceInk are local by design. Spokenly is offline when you use local models or Local Only Mode, not when cloud engines are on. Voibe is offline in Apple Silicon on-device mode, not on Windows. Apple Dictation can be offline for supported languages on Apple silicon.

VeloxWaves has no cloud transcription mode to forget to disable. That is the product difference, not a claim that Handy is less local.