If writing has become slow, a diary you can talk to is easier to keep. Shaterian is one. You tap once and speak, and what you said is kept on your iPhone as text, ready to read again or to ask about later.
In short
- On the Today screen, tap Tell me your story and talk for as long as you like. Tap again when you have finished.
- Your words are turned into text, tagged with the people, places and feelings in them, and filed for you. The recording itself is not kept.
- It is kept on your iPhone. There is no account to create, and no server of ours.
Why speak instead of write?
Talking is quicker than typing. It needs no keyboard, no spelling and no small buttons. Parkinson's can make handwriting small and typing slow, and for many people living with it, and for many older adults, speaking is the easier way to keep a diary at all.
I began building Shaterian because Parkinson's was slowly taking away my memory, my orientation, and pieces of who I am. My letter, Why I'm building this, tells the rest.
How to keep a voice diary in Shaterian
- Open Shaterian and tap Today at the bottom of the screen.
- Tap Tell me your story and talk. Your words appear under it as you speak. There is no need to hold the button down, so take as long as you like.
- When you have finished, tap the button again: it now says Tap when you're done. What you said is saved as a memory.
If you would rather type, tell Smith instead: type it in the box on his screen, and it is kept as a memory too.
What happens to what you say
- It becomes text on your iPhone. Your iPhone turns your voice into text on the phone itself wherever it can. On the rare occasion it cannot, for some languages or before iOS has fetched what it needs, Apple's own speech recognition does it instead.
- The words are kept, not the recording. Shaterian does not keep the audio.
- It is filed for you. Each memory is tagged with the people, places, themes and feelings in it and added to your Memory Universe. There is nothing to organise and no forms to fill in.
- You can change it. If a word came out wrong, open the memory in the Memory Universe and tap the pencil to change what it says.
Where your diary is kept
On your iPhone. There is no account to create and no password to remember, and there is no server of ours for your diary to go to. Nothing is sold, nothing is used for advertising, and nothing is used to train anything.
If you have more than one iPhone, you can switch on Sync with iCloud. It is off unless you turn it on. Your memories, but not your health notes, are then kept in your own iCloud, and memories you add or remove on one iPhone reach the others. The privacy policy lists everything that ever leaves the phone, and when.
Reading it back, and asking about it
Your memories gather in the Memory Universe: the people, places and themes that come up most often, drawn as a constellation. Tap any point to read the memories behind it. The Map of Life shows the places in them on a globe.
Or ask: “When did I last go to the harbour?” Smith, the companion inside Shaterian, answers from your own memories and shows which ones he used. Ask your own memories explains how.
Questions people ask
Is the recording kept?
No. Shaterian keeps the words, not the recording.
Does my voice leave my iPhone?
It is turned into text on your iPhone wherever that can be done. On the rare occasion the iPhone cannot do it, Apple's speech recognition does. Shaterian has no server of its own.
Do I need an account?
No. There is no account to create and no password to remember.
Can I type instead?
Yes. Type it to Smith, in the box on his screen, and it is kept as a memory too.
What does it cost, and which iPhones does it work on?
Two weeks free, then $2.99 a month, through the App Store. It needs an iPhone with iOS 17 or later.
