While the on screen keyboards of the iPhone and iPad are perfectly useable, they are by no means as fast to type on as a standard keyboard. Even the fastest of typists will have noticed that using the keyboard slows them down.

A far quicker way to input text is to dictate it. Dragon Dictation is a free iPhone and iPad app that can be used to convert the spoken word in to text. However fast a typer you may be, speaking is always faster and the accuracy level of Dragon Dictation means that the app provides a quick and easy way of reproducing long passages of text.

The app is slightly unusual in that, unlike other speech to text tools, conversion is not performed on the fly. Instead, you must dictate passages in their entirety and conversion will then be performed. Accuracy levels are very high, but voice controlled corrections are available if any mistakes are made.

In itself, simply converting speech to text is not particularly useful, but Dragon Dictation provides links that enable the text to be sent to other applications. Using the slide up option drawer, text can be used to create a text message, email or Facebook or Twitter status. There is also a copy option so that text can be copied and pasted into other apps that aren’t directly supported.

Dragon Dictation is a genuinely impressive program, particularly when you consider that the app is available completely free of charge. If you find that on screen keyboards are fiddly to use, or just fancy the idea of being able to type hands-free, Dragon Dictation is well worth downloading.