Earscribe in loud places, does the noise reduction help?

Worked fine in a crowded bar once, but that was mostly because the person I was talking to spoke slowly and faced me directly. The noise reduction does something, sure, but it is not magic. If you are in an airport cafe with people talking over each other and announcements in the background, expect it to stumble.

The bigger issue is that it picks up whoever is closest to the mic, so if someone next to you is laughing or talking loud, that can mess things up. I had a conversation where random background chatter got translated instead of what the other person actually said. That was annoying.

For a busy airport cafe, I would say try it but keep your expectations low. It might work if you are in a quieter corner. If you are right in the middle of everything, do not count on it being clear.

I’ll say this: mine handled a noisy train station way better than I expected. The noise reduction isn’t magic, but it did cut enough of the rumble and crowd noise that the app actually caught what I was saying. I wouldn’t rely on it in a screaming crowd, but a busy cafe should be fine.

Airports are a whole different beast though. The echoing and the constant PA announcements seem to mess with it more than regular crowd noise. I’d say keep it for the conversation but have your phone ready as a backup if it starts struggling.

I think it really depends on the kind of noise more than the volume, if that makes sense. I tried mine in a busy food court once, not an airport, but it was that same kind of chaotic mix of people talking over each other and chairs scraping and plates clattering. The noise reduction definitely toned down the general rumble, but it didn’t do much for sudden sharp sounds. Like, someone dropping a tray right next to me still came through and seemed to trip up the translation for a second.

The bigger issue for me was that I had to speak a bit louder and slower than I normally would, and even then I felt like I was over-enunciating like an idiot. It worked, don’t get me wrong, but it wasn’t effortless. I guess I’d say the noise reduction helps enough to make it usable, but it won’t make a loud place feel quiet. If you’re expecting it to cancel everything out, you might be disappointed.

Noise reduction definitely helps, but I would not expect it to filter out everything around you. I used mine at a packed pub during a rugby match and the person I was talking to came through clear enough for the translation to catch it. The key is speaking at a normal pace and not mumbling, because the mics still need to hear you over the crowd.

I’ve worn mine around a busy shopping district during some kind of street festival, which was honestly about as chaotic as it gets for sound. Lots of chatter, music from different stores spilling out, cars honking. The noise reduction does something, but for me the bigger factor was how close the other person was standing. If they were right next to me and speaking at a normal pace, it picked things up fine. If they were a bit farther away or talking over their shoulder, it started guessing wrong.

What threw me off was that it handled the constant rumble of crowd noise way better than sudden loud bursts like a siren or someone yelling nearby. Those seemed to punch through and confuse it for a second. Also, I noticed I had to speak a little more clearly myself. I tend to mumble when I’m distracted, and in a loud place that habit caught up with me. When I made an effort to talk a bit slower, the translations got noticeably better.

I wouldn’t say the noise reduction is a miracle or anything, but it’s not useless either. It just buys you a bit more room to work with. If the airport cafe is mostly steady background noise, you’ll probably be okay. I’d just keep your expectations in check and maybe have your phone ready as a backup if you’re translating something important.

I have used mine in a few noisy spots and the noise reduction is fine, but it won’t do the heavy lifting for you. If you mumble or talk too fast, it still struggles no matter how good the filtering is. Just speak clearly and you’ll get by, but it is not some magic bubble of silence.

Noise reduction helps but it’s not a magic filter. I used mine in a busy food court and it caught most of what I said as long as I didn’t talk too fast. If there’s a sudden loud announcement or someone shouts right next to you, it’ll struggle. Airport cafe should be fine.

I can see why you’d be curious about that. I’ve used mine in a couple of loud spots and it does cut down the background hum, but it’s not like the noise just disappears. As long as I’m not trying to talk over a sudden crash or someone shouting right next to me, it picks me up fine. I think you’ll be okay at an airport cafe.