Fix "Taking longer than usual" and transcription errors

Mac / Windows

1. Click the Flow icon (menu bar on Mac, system tray on Windows).

2. Select Check for Updates.

iOS / Android

1. Open the App Store (iOS) or Google Play Store (Android) and search for Wispr Flow.

2. Tap Update if available.

Mac

1. Press Cmd + Q to quit Flow.

2. Reopen Flow from your Applications folder or Spotlight.

Windows

1. Right-click the Flow icon in the system tray (bottom-right of the taskbar).

2. Select Quit.

3. Reopen Flow from the Start menu.

iOS

1. Swipe up from the bottom of the screen (or double-click the Home button).

2. Swipe up on Flow to close it, then reopen it from your home screen.

Android

1. Open recent apps (swipe up and hold, or tap the square button).

2. Swipe away Flow, then reopen it from your home screen or app drawer.

Mac

1. Go to System Settings → Network → Firewall.

2. Confirm Wispr Flow is listed and allowed.

Windows

1. Go to Settings → Privacy & security → Windows Security → Firewall & network protection.

2. Click Allow an app through firewall.

3. Confirm Wispr Flow is listed and allowed.

iOS

1. Go to Settings → General → Background App Refresh.

2. Confirm Wispr Flow is enabled.

Android

1. Go to Settings → Apps → Wispr Flow → Battery and set battery usage to Unrestricted.

2. Check Settings → Network & internet → Data Saver and confirm Wispr Flow has unrestricted data access.

Mac / Windows

1. Open Flow and go to History.

2. Find the failed transcript (look for Error or Empty status).

3. Click Retry next to the recording duration for Error or Empty status, or Recover at the end of "This transcription was dismissed." for Dismissed or Processing status.

iOS

Retry a failed transcript in one of three ways:

• Tap a failed transcript to retry it. Tapping a successful transcript copies its text; tapping an empty non-failed transcript does nothing.

• Swipe left on a history item for Report, Retry, and Copy. Copy appears only when the transcript has text.

• Long-press a history item for Copy, Retry, Report, and Delete. Copy shows only for successful transcripts with text; Retry and Delete are disabled while a retry is in progress.

Android

1. Open Flow and go to History.

2. Find the failed transcript.

3. Tap Retry transcript from the three-dot menu.

What does "Taking longer than usual" mean?

On Mac and Windows, Flow shows this in the Initializing, Stopping, or Processing states when it needs extra time, with the body text "Your audio is saved for retrying." Causes are temporary server load, slow internet, or VPN/firewall interference. It never appears during retries, and Don't show again hides it permanently.

What does "Flow was processing your last transcript" mean?

It appears when you start a new dictation or Wispr Lens action — including a retry from History — while a previous transcript is still processing. Wait for it to finish, or press the dismiss shortcut (default Esc) to cancel the in-progress transcription. Cancel in the notification dismisses only the notification.

What does the "Is your internet connected?" notice mean?

On Mac and Windows, this warning card carries the message "Your audio will be saved for retry if the transcription fails." It is advisory only — dictation proceeds normally. If you are genuinely offline, your audio is saved automatically; open History and use Retry once your connection is restored.

What do the microphone error notifications mean on Mac and Windows?

If Flow can't access your microphone when you start dictating, it dismisses the session immediately and shows one of the following:

• No microphone detected: No connected microphone was found. Click Open Sound Settings to check your input devices; on Windows this opens the legacy Sound control panel Recording tab.

• Selected microphone is unavailable: The microphone selected in Flow is no longer connected. Click Choose Microphone to pick another.

• Microphone unavailable: Another app may be using the microphone exclusively, or there's an audio driver issue. Click Troubleshoot. Appears only on a repeat failure within a short window.

• Microphone error: An unexpected problem prevented microphone access. Click Troubleshoot. Appears only on a repeat failure within a short window.

• Microphone Permission Required (macOS): Flow lacks microphone permission. Click Grant Permission.

• Microphone access is disabled (Windows): Microphone access is off in system settings. Click Open Settings.

What do the error messages mean during iOS onboarding?

On your first dictation during iOS setup, Flow shows a message at the top of the screen if something goes wrong:

• "Oops, we didn't hear you... Get closer to your mic and try again!": Flow picked up no audio. Move closer to your microphone and try again.

• "Poor connection! Tap the mic to try again": Flow couldn't reach the transcription service. Check your internet and tap the mic to retry.

• "Your mic is being used by another app. Close other apps and try again!": Another app has exclusive microphone access. Close other apps and dictate again.

• "Enable microphone access to use Flow": Go to Settings → Privacy → Microphone and enable access for Wispr Flow.

• "Oops, something went wrong... Tap the mic to try again!": An unexpected error occurred. Tap the mic button to try again.

Why are filler words like "um" missing from my transcripts?

Flow's Smart Formatting removes filler words by design.

Why do transcripts fail?

• Network timeout: Your internet dropped or was too slow.

• Server processing error: Occasionally the service can't process audio.

• Audio quality issues: Very quiet, distorted, or noisy audio may not process correctly.

• Microphone unavailable: Flow couldn't access your microphone at the start of dictation.

What happens if I lose connection during a long dictation?

• Mac and Windows: Flow processes the remaining audio after the drop and pastes your transcript a few seconds later. If the audio can't be recovered, a transcription error appears — use Retry from History.

• If recovery runs long: Whatever was transcribed up to that point is pasted. Check History for any remaining audio to retry manually. Dismissing Flow or starting a new dictation stops the in-progress recovery from pasting.

• iOS: Recorded audio may be preserved in History, and iOS transcribes what it captured. Check History after reconnecting.

• Android: A lost connection may fail the transcription — retry from History.

What is Turtle Mode and how do on-device drafts work?

Turtle Mode (enabled in Settings) saves an on-device draft of every dictation to History alongside the normal cloud transcription. Drafts are never pasted automatically. If the cloud is unreachable, tap the "Add draft" pill in the keyboard controls row to insert the rough draft once. When the cloud is reachable again, it upgrades the History entry with the full transcription without inserting text a second time.

What's the maximum recording length?

• Mac and Windows: 20 minutes. A warning appears at 19 minutes; at 20 minutes the session stops and your transcription is submitted.

• iOS: 5 minutes per session — recording stops automatically and the transcript is saved to History. Recording also auto-stops after the period set in Settings → Disable Flow Session (default 5 minutes) once the app is backgrounded.

• Android: No fixed limit; recording continues until you stop it. Break very long content into multiple sessions.

What does the Android Flow Bubble show during errors?

• Failed to transcribe: The bubble shows a Retry button with the toast "Failed to transcribe. Saved in the app." The audio is preserved in History; tapping the Wispr icon starts a fresh dictation.

• Failed to paste: The bubble shows a Paste button and the text is already on the clipboard. Tapping the Wispr icon dismisses the error.

What is Android automatic timeout recovery?

On Android, if Flow appears stuck during initialization or processing, it recovers automatically after a short time so you can dictate again.