The Plaud Note Pro is the latest evolution of Plaud’s AI-powered meeting assistant, building on the foundation of the original Plaud Note with meaningful hardware and software upgrades. After using it extensively across calls, boardroom meetings, and daily workflow planning, we found it to be a polished, capable, and thoughtfully refined tool for professionals who rely heavily on accurate meeting documentation.

Design & Build Quality

At first glance, the Note Pro maintains the compact form factor of its predecessor, weighing just 30g. However, the design has been refined with a sleeker profile and a sculpted front texture that improves grip and overall handling. The device feels more premium without adding bulk, and its execution is clean and well-considered.

A key visual upgrade is the addition of a small AMOLED display on the top panel. It replaces the simple LED indicator found on the original model and provides clear, at-a-glance information such as recording status, battery level, highlight markers, and transfer progress. During use, the display briefly lights up at the start of a session before dimming to avoid distractions—an effective and unobtrusive design choice.

The magnetic case attachment returns and remains compatible with most iOS and Android smartphones. Charging still relies on a proprietary adapter, which works reliably but may not be ideal for users who prefer universal USB-C solutions.

Features & User Experience

Like the original Plaud Note, the Note Pro records conversations, transfers them to the Plaud app, and generates AI-driven transcriptions, summaries, action items, and mind maps. These core features remain intact, but the Pro model enhances nearly every aspect of the process.

Automatic Mode Detection
The physical toggle for switching between call recording and ambient recording is gone. The Note Pro now detects whether you’re on a phone call or in a meeting and switches modes automatically. This simplifies operation and reduces the chance of missing recordings due to an incorrect setting.

Four-Microphone Array
Audio capture is a significant improvement. The original Plaud Note used a dual-mic setup; the Note Pro doubles this to four microphones, resulting in clearer speech, better noise filtering, and wider pickup range. The device can now capture voices effectively from up to 5 meters away—an advantage in larger meeting rooms or group discussions.

The upgraded mic system also helps isolate overlapping voices and suppress background noise, producing cleaner raw audio that benefits both transcription accuracy and post-meeting review.

Recording Highlights & Multimodal Notes
Users can now press the main button during recording to highlight an important moment. This creates a timestamp that appears directly in the final summary—a helpful tool for long sessions.

The Pro also supports multimodal note-taking. You can insert photos, typed notes, and additional context into the Plaud app during a meeting, enriching the final AI summary and improving clarity for follow-up actions.

Transfer Speeds & Connectivity
Connectivity upgrades make a noticeable difference in daily workflow:

Dual-band Wi-Fi (2.4/5GHz) achieves transfer speeds up to 2.2 Mbps—roughly twice as fast as before.
Bluetooth 5.4 improves reliability and connection stability.
Apple Find My support allows the device to be tracked if misplaced.

In practice, audio files transfer significantly faster than on the original Plaud Note, especially over Wi-Fi. Large recordings become immediately available for transcription.

Battery Life

Battery life is one of the strongest improvements. Plaud claims up to 50 hours of continuous recording and 60 days of standby. After daily use over two weeks, we saw minimal battery drain, making the Note Pro dependable for extended workdays or travel.

The AMOLED screen also enables quick battery checks directly on the device, eliminating the need to open the app for basic information.

Software Experience & Security

The Plaud app remains the center of the experience, providing:

Full transcripts with speaker differentiation
Summaries and key takeaways
Action items
Searchable meeting history
Mind maps

The AI assistant (“Ask Plaud”) can query past conversations and pull out relevant details using contextual understanding, which is useful for ongoing projects or follow-up tasks.

Plaud also emphasizes security, offering compliance with SOC 2, GDPR, HIPAA, and EN18031 standards. For users handling sensitive information, this adds confidence that recordings and summaries remain protected.

Subscription Model

The device works on a free plan that includes 300 minutes of transcription per month. Heavier users may need to upgrade to:

Pro Plan: 1,200 minutes/month
Unlimited Plan: Unlimited transcription

The added cost—starting at around $8 per month—is an important consideration, especially for users who plan to rely on the device daily.

Verdict

The Plaud Note Pro takes everything that worked well on the original Plaud Note and enhances it with better hardware, faster transfers, more intelligent recording, improved audio capture, and a refined user experience. For professionals who attend frequent meetings or rely on accurate, structured documentation, the Note Pro offers substantial value.

For just around $20 more than the standard model, the improvements justify the price difference. The subscription requirement may not suit everyone, but for heavy users, the performance gains and dependable accuracy make the Note Pro a compelling choice.

Overall, it is a well-executed upgrade that streamlines note-taking, reduces friction during meetings, and integrates smoothly into a productivity-focused workflow.