# Speech Central – Voice Reader — PDF, ePub, Web Text to Speech

> Text-to-speech reader for documents, web, and books with AI voices. (iPhone/iPad app by Labsii.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-voice-reader/id1127349155 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Labsii](https://appshunter.io/developer/1127349154)
- Category: Productivity, Books
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.60/5 from 1,541 App Store ratings · 464 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 17.0 · 34 MB
- Languages: Korean, Dutch, German (Germany), Romanian, Vietnamese, Swedish, European Spanish, Arabic, American English, Italian and 11 more
- Released: 2016-09-29
- Data updated: 2026-08-27
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-voice-reader/id1127349155/reviews.md

## What is Speech Central?

Speech Central is built for focused, serious reading — across PDFs, web articles, books, and documents.

Designed for productivity and accessibility, it combines powerful controls, deep customization, and seamless integration across Apple devices.

No subscription. A one-time upgrade unlocks unlimited use. Free access is available for blind users with VoiceOver and for schools deploying the app through Apple School Manager.


READING WITHOUT DISTRACTIONS

Optimized PDF & Web Reading
• Accurate reading order and navigation
• Optional cleanup to reduce distractions such as headers, footnotes, citations, and links
• RSS support and easy sharing from Safari and other apps

Broad Document Support
• PDF (including scanned PDFs with two-column layout)
• EPUB
• Word (.docx)
• PowerPoint (.pptx)
• OpenOffice formats
• HTML, TXT, RTF, Markdown, and more


VOICES: OFFLINE AND CLOUD AI

• Use high-quality Apple system voices offline
• Supports compatible system-wide voices from third-party apps, including offline neural voices from Piper - Neural TTS app
• Connect cloud AI voices (OpenAI-compatible APIs, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, xAI) using your own API keys
• Proprietary enhancement layer improves realism and streaming playback
• Optional AI summarization tools help you review content more efficiently


BUILT FOR THE APPLE ECOSYSTEM

• Sync reading position and playlists across iPhone, iPad, and Mac
• CarPlay support for listening and control in your vehicle
• Independent Apple Watch app — listen without your iPhone nearby
• Optional Health integration to track mindful listening time


ACCESSIBILITY FIRST

• Dedicated profiles for ADHD, dyslexia, and low vision
• Interface and reading behavior adapt for reduced distraction and improved comprehension
• Fully accessible with VoiceOver


STUDY & KNOWLEDGE TOOLS

• Annotate while reading
• Export annotated text to .docx
• Export text to audio files for offline listening


PRIVACY BY DESIGN

• No ads
• No tracking
• No usage analytics


WHO USES SPEECH CENTRAL

• Students and researchers
• Professionals converting reading into listening time
• Users who rely on assistive reading tools
• Anyone who prefers distraction-reduced, hands-free reading

Notes:
- Free version limited by the number of daily articles; unlimited access available with Pro upgrade.
- Some features require the latest OS version.
- License is valid only on iOS/watchOS; separate licenses required for other platforms.
- DRM-protected books (e.g. Kindle) are incompatible.
- AI features may occasionally perform unexpectedly.

## Key features

- Optimized PDF & Web Reading
- Broad Document Support (PDF, EPUB, DOCX)
- Offline and Cloud AI Voices
- Cross-device Sync
- CarPlay & Apple Watch Support
- Accessibility Profiles
- Annotation and Export Tools

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**One-time purchases**

| Purchase | Price | Type |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Speech Central Pro | $9.99 | one-time |


## What do users think of Speech Central?

Overall sentiment: positive

**Pros**

- 🚀 Life-saving app
- 👍 Nice app
- 👍 Great app
- 👍 Affordable and full-featured
- 👍 Excellent app for accessibility
- 👍 Highly recommended
- 👍 Fantastic app
- 👍 Amazing app

**Cons**

- 🐛 Not great
- 🐛 Trash
- 🐛 Robotic voices
- 🐛 Terrible voices
- 🐛 Buggy
- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- 🐛 Pauses reading unexpectedly
- 🐛 Unreliable performance

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Crashes when changing advanced settings
- Inconsistent behavior when importing documents
- Fails to recognize some file formats
- Playback issues with high-speed mode
- Repeating chapters unexpectedly
- Scrolling issues with long documents

**Most requested features**

- Add more natural-sounding voices
- Improve chapter/section navigation
- Allow custom pronunciation of words
- Add support for more languages
- Integrate with Bookshare library
- Improve PDF formatting and layout
- Add more customization options
- Improve sync between devices

## Recent user reviews (10 of 464)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-voice-reader/id1127349155/reviews.md

### 5/5 — best app on text to speech

*2026-08-26, version 17.8.0*

customizable And now with the new sounds that you can download the other app, it is really really fantastic. The sound are genuine and they're good. They're very good actually. -

### 1/5 — Terrible reader

*2026-08-16, version 17.7.2*

On a basic level, it can’t even download PDFs in a way that the text can be read. Sentences in words are all stacked together without space in between them. As a result, the reader just spells out sentences instead of reading word by word. It’s even worse is that it leads out components of sentences cuts off paragraphs.
The reader is terrible. The voice is not smooth and cannot distinguish acronyms from words. I wish I never paid money for this garbage.

### 4/5 — No title just make it stop

*2026-08-16, version 17.7.2*

Yup good app. Want the rate and review pop ups to stop

### 1/5 — Nagging for review = one star.

*2026-08-04, version 17.6.1*

See title.

### 3/5 — Good but some words are badly pronounced

*2026-07-27, version 17.6.0*

This is actually an app for turning PDF and other files into audio files. 

However, there are some glaring mistakes with pronunciation of very common words like “reached” or “sunshine” that you think would not be difficult to pronounce even for an AI bot but they apparently are.

### 5/5 — Accessible, intuitive, and easy to use

*2026-07-17, version 17.5.0*

Came across this app and now absolutely love it! I find it to be the easiest way to save webpages and news articles and other things I want to go back to and look at and use as references for things like books movies other lists of information that I want to keep for the future

### 5/5 — Men

*2026-07-16, version 17.5.0*

Dmdndn

### 1/5 — Scrambles document text and becomes unintelligible

*2026-07-11, version 17.4.7*

There has always been a minor issue with the document import where it would drop the odd word but it’s gotten significantly worse lately where it moves whole sentences around and the audio becomes a bit of a garbled mess - please fix!!

### 3/5 — Rating glitch

*2026-06-23, version 17.4.6*

This app has asked me to rate it SEVEN TIMES!!!

It use to have a four star rating, but this constant need for validation glitch has cost the app a star

### 5/5 — Great for dyslexia

*2026-06-14, version 17.4.6*

I have severe dyslexia and I struggle ate reading this app makes it very easy to go through my favourite fanfics or books

## Frequently asked questions about Speech Central

### What file formats does Speech Central support?

Speech Central supports a wide range of formats including PDF (including scanned PDFs), EPUB, Word (.docx), PowerPoint (.pptx), OpenOffice formats, HTML, TXT, RTF, and Markdown.

### Does Speech Central have ads?

No, Speech Central is ad-free and does not track user activity or collect usage analytics, ensuring a private reading experience.

### How does Speech Central handle voices?

It offers high-quality Apple system voices for offline use and allows connection to cloud AI voices (OpenAI-compatible, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, xAI) using your own API keys.

### Can I use Speech Central on my Apple Watch?

Yes, Speech Central has an independent Apple Watch app, allowing you to listen to content without your iPhone nearby.

### What is the pricing for Speech Central?

The app is free to download and use, with a one-time upgrade available for unlimited access. Free access is provided for blind users with VoiceOver and for schools.

### How often is Speech Central updated?

The app was last updated on June 13, 2026, indicating regular maintenance and updates to ensure functionality and compatibility with the latest OS versions.

### Does Speech Central offer offline reading capabilities?

Yes, Speech Central allows you to use high-quality Apple system voices offline for reading documents and other content.

### What are the user reviews like for Speech Central?

Speech Central has a positive overall sentiment with a 4.6-star rating from 1,494 ratings. Users frequently praise its accessibility features and functionality, though some mention occasional issues with voice quality or reliability.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 17.8.0 — 2026-08-25

Redesigned player toolbar

### 17.7.2 — 2026-08-12

Instant mode supports Audio File Export

### 17.7.0 — 2026-08-06

The app has migrating to new iOS 17/macOS 14 foundations and implemented new frameworks that should lead to significant performance boost and battery savings. It is not supported on iOS 16/macOS 13 anymore.

### 17.6.1 — 2026-08-01

Improvements in ADHD mode

### 17.6.0 — 2026-07-22

- Two-fingers customizable gesture - by default swipe with two fingers up/down to speed-up/slow-down
- Complex layout support (e.g. two columns) for scanned documents
- Extracting and displaying tables form ePubs and web on the screen

## Apps similar to Speech Central

| App | Rating | Price | Category |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Speechify – Text to Speech PDF](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speechify-text-to-speech-pdf/id1209815023) | 4.7 (515,593) | Free | Productivity |
| [Peech: Text to Speech Reader](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/peech-text-to-speech-reader/id1429704005) | 4.4 (8,374) | Free | Productivity |
| [Voice Aloud Reader](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/voice-aloud-reader/id1446876360) | 4.6 (18,809) | Free | Productivity |
| [Text to Speech PDF Reader](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-pdf-reader/id1519637964) | 4.5 (551) | Free | Productivity |
| [Text to Speech Reader: ReadBit](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-reader-readbit/id1545366628) | 4.3 (240) | Free | Productivity |
| [Text To Speech - Odiofy](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-odiofy/id1499125748) | 4.2 (799) | Free | Productivity |

## More apps by Labsii

- [Speech Central: Book Aloud](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-book-aloud/id1290457452)
- [PDF Extract Text](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pdf-extract-text/id1348486686)
- [Truck Cargo Packing](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/truck-cargo-packing/id1353125711)
- [Country Code Fixer](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/country-code-fixer/id1397075939)
- [Speech Central: News Reader](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-news-reader/id1485119486)

All apps by Labsii: https://appshunter.io/developer/1127349154

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-27.*