FastRecorder

Quick, efficient voice memo recorder

Free Developer Artem Iakovliev, skyhighapps.com Platform iPhone, watchOS Requirements iOS 9 or later

Although watchOS 3 fills in a few of the remaining holes in the Apple Watch built-in software lineup, one skill that remains missing is the ability to quickly record voice memos with just a tap. While there are a few third-party apps that perform this task, few do it with the speed and agility of FastRecorder.

This free app works on both iPhone and Apple Watch, allowing users to quickly and easily record short voice memos. Thanks to support for Complications, recording is no real-world complication at all – launch it right from your favorite watch face, tap Start Recording, and you’re capturing whatever the built-in microphone can hear.

When a recording is finished, you can play it back right from your wrist. The M4A-format audio files are quite clean and play back clearly at a good volume. While you can’t share recordings from Apple Watch, it’s easy to do from either the connected iPhone or using iTunes File Sharing.

The iPhone app also makes it a snap to record voice memos, with 3D Touch support to get started without even launching the app. Regardless of which device you used to record, files can be played back with a tap; there’s also gesture support for renaming or deleting individual files.

Given that it’s free, FastRecorder does a nice job of recording or playing back voice memos in a simple, intuitive way. Our only real complaint is the default file name has an embarrassing typo (“Recordered” instead of “Recorded”), confirming the developer’s native language is not English.

the bottom line. Tap and record voice memos with ease, and it’s all free.