Blogev805

Whether you prefer articles read to you while you do something else or trying to grasp a new foreign language or even for specially abled students, TTS (short for text-to-speech) has proved to be very useful.

This PDF Converter for Mac comes with OCR features, assisting you to convert scanned and native PDF into DOCX, Writable PDF, KEYNOTE, EPUB, HTML, PPTX, PAGES, XLSX, RTFD, TEXT and Image. With Cisdem PDF Converter OCR, you will never worry about how to type on a PDF on Mac. PDF is widely used in business since it is easy to read. We design a Text to PDF for Mac software to convert any text files to PDF format on Mac OS X, so you can view the PDF files with Adobe PDF. Well, I'd forgotten about textutil as well. You could convert doc and docx files to pdf indirectly by first converting them to rtf format, with the following modifications: on open theFiles set oldTID to AppleScript's text item delimiters repeat with thisFile in theFiles - get file path as posix path set inputFilePath to POSIX path of thisFile set AppleScript's text item delimiters to '.' This Mac download was scanned by our built-in antivirus and was rated as clean. The program is categorized as Productivity Tools. PDF to Text is compatible with Mac OS X 10.6 or later. This free Mac application was originally developed by SeaSky Software.

In our previous articles we saw some of the best text to speech apps for Windows and Android. And today, we take a look at some of the best TTS options available for Macs.

Text To Speech For Mac

1. macOS TTS

Before we get too ahead of ourselves and start downloading third party apps, it is very trivial to know that macOS itself comes with a built-in TTS and you can use it anywhere on your computer from the Notes app to any browser.

To get started, highlight or select the text which you want to be read and then right click, go to Speech and then to Start Speaking; and your Mac should start reading the text to you. It also supports a lot of other languages other than English and there are a lot of voices to choose from in all the languages. To change the language option simply go to Accessibility > Speech. Although some voices are very robotic, there are a few which aren’t and sound more like a human.

But the TTS is far from perfect; it is very basic and barebones and lacks options like pause/play, picking up from a selected word instantly and a lot more.

Quick Tip: It blew my mind and might even blow yours to know that the native TTS on Mac also supports converting your text into audio files. Just select the required text, right click and go to Services > Add to iTunes as a spoken track. The text will be converted to an audio track and added to your iTunes library.

Pros:
– Built-in system wide
– Lots of voice options
– Converting text to iTunes track

Cons:
– No Pause/Play
– Have to select manually all the words to be read
– No instant pickup

Verdict:
Overall, the TTS that comes with macOS is very barebones without all the bells and whistles and should be perfect for somebody looking for a basic TTS experience without even buying or installing any third party software.

2. Invicta TTS

Invicta TTS is a very simple free Text To Speech app available on the Mac App Store.
Once you open up the app, it presents you with a text box where you can enter or paste any text which will be then converted to speech. The app is very lightweight and minimal in nature with everything being to the point.

Although the app is very basic, unlike the built in TTS of Mac OS, it does add the option of playing or pausing the audio which becomes crucial when listening to long texts or articles. The voice settings cannot be changed but the in built voice does the job pretty good enough.

Pros:
– Minimal and Light
– Play/Pause Option

Cons:
– Cannot read documents automatically
– Supports only English

Verdict:
If you need a simple and light TTS app and might be listening to long articles, Invicta TTS does the job pretty well but do remember that it can only read English.

Link: Get Invicta TTS on the App Store

Price: Free

3. Natural Reader

The next app on our list is Natural Reader which is an extremely powerful TTS software available not only on Mac OS but also on Windows, iOS, Android and even has an online reader.

The app comes in many flavours, each with its fair share of features for the price. The free version comes with basic TTS features along with the ability to read directly from file formats such as Docx, PDF, ePub and Txt. It also has a floating bar which can be used to read text while you are in other applications. The next option or the Personal version, at a steep $100, allows you to read web pages directly, converting text to audio files and syncing everything between your phone apps. There are also Professional and Ultimate versions which add OCR support and a bunch of natural voices.

Pros:
– Support for file formats
– Convert to audio files
– Cross Platform
– OCR Support

Cons:
– Pricey
– No instant pickup

Verdict:
All the features of Natural Reader definitely come at a price and you should be able to decide whether it is a suit for you with respect to your investment in TTS, but even for a casual user the free version works really well. Overall, Natural reader is not just best text to speech software with natural voices, but since it also support PDF, it’s also a good option for those who are looking for PDF Voice Reader for macOS.

Pricing Options: Pricing for Natural Reader

Link: Download Natural Reader from here

Convert Pdf To Text For Mac

4. Read Aloud

Read Aloud is not exactly a stand alone Mac app but instead a Chrome extension which might appeal to some people. Considering how many posts and articles are read on the internet everyday, we had to include Read Aloud.

It is completely free and once you install it, its icon will appear in the extension bar which you can now use to read any webpage or any online article, just by a single click. When it is in work, you get a play/pause button along with a forward or rewind button which can be used to advance or backtrack paragraphs. Considering it is free, the voice options are really good and feel very natural and premium.

Pros:
– Great natural voice
– Forward or rewind by paragraphs
– Listen to webpages

Cons:
– Works only on Chrome

Verdict:
Suggesting Read Aloud is very straight forward; if you are someone who reads a lot on the internet and are looking for a free TTS software for that, nothing beats Read Aloud.

Price: Free

Link: Download Read Aloud from the Chrome Store

5. Capti Voice

Capti Voice is probably the most polished and well rounded TTS software available for the Mac and the award are only there to justify that. Starting off, Capti Voice uses your browser for the app to function instead of a stand alone Mac application. Don’t worry, you can still use it while you are offline as it stores all its data locally and personally I have had no issues.

Capti Voice has a subscription based model and even the free version has a lot to offer from various file format supports to text search while the premium versions add features like creating playlists, OCR Support and intelligent dictionary lookup. The voices offered across all the platforms are very high quality and commendable.

Quick Tip: Don’t forget to use the Chrome extension which allows you to save articles or webpages to be read later by Capti Voice.

Pros:
– Cross platform with mobile apps
– Create Playlists
– Dictionary lookup
– Shortcuts to get around

Cons:
– No standalone app
– Syncs only when you add to cloud storage

Verdict:
Overall, Capti Voice is a really compelling app with features packed to the brim and is very similar to natural Reader but with a subscription based model. It is really the best TTS experience you can get on Mac OS.

Pricing Info: Pricing Options for Capti Voice

Link: Download Capti Voice from here

Insert Text To Pdf Mac

6. Honorable Mentions

CereProc has some of the most natural sounding computer speeches available on the market, which you can use to replace the default voice on your Mac (also available for other platforms). There are a lot of high quality voice packs to choose from and each costs around $35.

Zamzar is a free online service which you can use to convert your text to audio files or mp3s. Unlike the iTunes spoken track which you can use only on Apple devices, you can use it on any platform without any hassle.

Wrapping up: Best Text to Speech for Mac

So these were some of the TTS software available on the Mac and we hope we made your decision a little bit easier. If you are someone who reads mainly on the internet, Read Aloud is by far the best free option. Although a little limited, the built-in TTS feature seems to work just fine, but it can be a pain for long stretches of texts or long articles for which there is Invicta which is also free.

Natural Reader and Capti Voice both are spectacular TTS apps with a lot of plans to choose from, but I guess what it comes down to is the paying model. Natural reader is a one time purchase and should be better if you feel you will be invested in TTS for a long time whereas Capti Voice follows a subscription based model also with a one week free trial. Thanks for reading and do comment below which one is your favorite TTS app on Mac OS.

Read: Make your Devices Read Out Text, With Text to Speech

Nov 02,2012 19:39 pm / Posted by Hall Paular to eBooks Topics
Follow @HallPaular

PDF file is one of the most comment documents for business and personal information sharing and storage. It is popular for its good compatibility and high encryption standard. However, you must encounter such kinds of situations that you need to insert text into PDF files in order to make the PDF information more complete. But as we know, PDF is a readable format and is unable to be edited. Here is your one-stop shop for PDF tips on how to edit and reuse your PDF files, including image and scanned PDF.

Do you know the Preview is not just an image and PDF reader, but also an amazing PDF annotator that defaultly built in all Macintosh computers? It allows users to annotate PDF files on Mac OS X easily. However, it has some other interesting features. PDF Editor Pro for Mac also gives you the ability to add text to PDF on Mac OS X. The 'Text' annotation tool can add PDF text at any point on a PDF document in the full range of fonts installed on your system.

Here in this article, we will describe in details to show you how to use Preview and PDF Editor Pro for Mac to add text files to PDF.

Method 1: Preview

1. Use the 'Add Text' tool:

- Go to the location of the PDF file in the Finder. Control-click on the file and highlight 'Open With'. Select 'Preview' from the list of options.
- Choose 'Add Text' on the toolbar, and then click on a blank area on the page, you can add text toPDF on Mac.

2. Use the 'Annotate' tool

- Click the 'Annotate' icon from the toolbar at the top of the Preview window. The annotation toolbar that supports to add PDF text will appear at the bottom of the window. Click on the 'Text' tool. It is on the fourth from the left as above indicated.
- Use the cursor to draw a text box. Type in the text box to add your needed text to PDF and you can change the dimensions later if needed.

Method 2: PDF Editor Pro for Mac

First of all, you shoud get the Mac tool downloaded and installed on your Mac computer.

Open a PDF file with PDF Editor Pro for Mac. Click 'Convert' on the toolbar, you can quickly convert the current PDF file to editable Ms Word document. Then you can add any text in the converted file without any problem.

This is an efficient way as most people who have used the professional Adobe Acrobat say, it doesn't allow you to edit PDF text in fact, it just does as the Preview does.

Related Guides: