Device ▲

Product ▲

Subscription ▲

First year ▲

Owner ▲

Status ▲

Open ▲

Battery ▲

Always‑on

Self‑host

Adopts LL

OmiBased Hardware

$179

None

$179

Independent

Active

✓

1 day

✓

Pros

Only device here whose hardware, firmware, app and backend are all published (MIT)
Free tier is genuinely usable — unlimited transcription on your phone
The only one that will adopt a Limitless Pendant and import its transcripts
Can be pointed at a server you own, so no company sits in the middle

Cons

Rough around every edge; expect to do more yourself
About a day of battery — a missed charge is a missed day
The entire store has been out of stock for weeks
Support is a Discord channel and an inbox, not a help desk

Full rundown on Omi →

Product $179 · subscription None/yr · first year $179

Limitless PendantLimitless

—

None

—

Pros

Capture and transcription are genuinely good
Single press stars a moment — the most underused feature in the category
Existing owners are on the paid plan free until it ends
Export tool still works, for now

Cons

Support ends 31 December 2026
No longer sold to anyone new
Already dead in Brazil, China, the EU, Israel, South Korea, Turkey and the UK
Nothing was published, so nobody else can keep it alive

Full rundown on Limitless Pendant →

Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —

BeeBee

$50

None

$50

Amazon

Amazon-owned

7 days

✓

Pros

Cheapest hardware in the category by a wide margin
About a week per charge — roughly seven times its rivals
No button and no wake word; genuinely ambient
Connects to Gmail, Calendar, contacts and health data

Cons

Owned by Amazon and folded into the Alexa business
Closed; no published code and no self-hosting
Raw audio is not meaningfully yours
Repeats exactly the ownership mistake that stranded Limitless owners

Full rundown on Bee →

Product $50 · subscription None/yr · first year $50

Plaud NotePin SPlaud

$179

$100

$279

Independent

Active

3 days

Pros

Cleanest, most predictable transcripts and structured notes here
Serious compliance paperwork — ISO 27001, SOC 2, GDPR, HIPAA
Ships with pin, clip, lanyard, wristband and dock in the box
It simply works, which is rarer in this category than it should be

Cons

Closed source; no self-hosting option at all
Free tier is only 300 minutes a month
Over three years the subscription costs more than the device
Same structural risk as Limitless — an independent company today

Full rundown on Plaud NotePin S →

Product $179 · subscription $100/yr · first year $279

FriendAvi Schiffmann

$249

$120

$369

Independent

Active

1 day

✓

Pros

Talks back — version 2.0 added a speaker and a spoken personality
Genuinely good at being present rather than useful
Remembers the last 30 days without paying anything

Cons

Not a notetaker; the wrong tool if you want searchable transcripts
Price has gone $99 to $129 to $249 in two years
Memory beyond 30 days needs the $10 monthly plan
Research has linked always-on companions to deepening loneliness

Full rundown on Friend →

Product $249 · subscription $120/yr · first year $369

FieldyFieldy

—

None

—

Independent

Active

1 day

✓

Pros

Straightforward: buy it, install the app, get on with it
Short readable summaries rather than walls of transcript
Ask the app in plain words and get a plain answer

Cons

Notes live in the maker's app and cloud
No published code and no self-hosting
Nobody local to help when it misbehaves
Check current pricing with the maker — it moves

Full rundown on Fieldy →

Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —

Humane AI PinHumane

—

None

—

Dead 28 Feb 2025

—

Pros

Nothing. Listed as history and as a warning

Cons

Shut down 28 February 2025, days after HP bought Humane for $116m
Cloud off; calling, messaging and AI queries all gone
Owner data erased after the deadline
Nothing was open, so no community could keep it running

Full rundown on Humane AI Pin →

Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —

RewindLimitless

—

None

—

Pros

Nothing. Shut down outright

Cons

Killed 19 December 2025 as part of the Meta acquisition
No migration path and no successor product
Died the same day the Limitless wind-down began

Full rundown on Rewind →

Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —

Reading the chart

Sort by first year and the picture changes.

Most comparisons stop at the sticker price, which flatters anything with a subscription behind it. Sort the First year column and the real order appears: Bee at $50, Omi at $179 with a free tier that actually works, and Plaud at $279 once you add the plan that makes it worth having.

Then sort by Open. Exactly one device comes to the top, and it is the same one that will adopt the Limitless Pendant sitting in your drawer. That is not a coincidence — open software is what makes hardware outlive the company that sold it.

We build the Keeper on that open hardware, so weigh our enthusiasm accordingly. Every device links to its own full rundown, and every maker’s site is linked from there.

Every device, every number.

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Sort by first year and the picture changes.

We’ll tell you honestly which one fits.

Device ▲	Product ▲	Subscription ▲	First year ▲	Owner ▲	Status ▲	Open ▲	Battery ▲	Always‑on	Self‑host	Adopts LL
OmiBased Hardware	$179	None	$179	Independent	Active	✓	1 day	✓	✓	✓
Pros Only device here whose hardware, firmware, app and backend are all published (MIT) Free tier is genuinely usable — unlimited transcription on your phone The only one that will adopt a Limitless Pendant and import its transcripts Can be pointed at a server you own, so no company sits in the middle Cons Rough around every edge; expect to do more yourself About a day of battery — a missed charge is a missed day The entire store has been out of stock for weeks Support is a Discord channel and an inbox, not a help desk More Full rundown on Omi → Product $179 · subscription None/yr · first year $179
Limitless PendantLimitless	—	None	—	Meta	Dies 31 Dec 2026	✕	1 day	✓	✕	✕
Pros Capture and transcription are genuinely good Single press stars a moment — the most underused feature in the category Existing owners are on the paid plan free until it ends Export tool still works, for now Cons Support ends 31 December 2026 No longer sold to anyone new Already dead in Brazil, China, the EU, Israel, South Korea, Turkey and the UK Nothing was published, so nobody else can keep it alive More Full rundown on Limitless Pendant → Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —
BeeBee	$50	None	$50	Amazon	Amazon-owned	✕	7 days	✓	✕	✕
Pros Cheapest hardware in the category by a wide margin About a week per charge — roughly seven times its rivals No button and no wake word; genuinely ambient Connects to Gmail, Calendar, contacts and health data Cons Owned by Amazon and folded into the Alexa business Closed; no published code and no self-hosting Raw audio is not meaningfully yours Repeats exactly the ownership mistake that stranded Limitless owners More Full rundown on Bee → Product $50 · subscription None/yr · first year $50
Plaud NotePin SPlaud	$179	$100	$279	Independent	Active	✕	3 days	✕	✕	✕
Pros Cleanest, most predictable transcripts and structured notes here Serious compliance paperwork — ISO 27001, SOC 2, GDPR, HIPAA Ships with pin, clip, lanyard, wristband and dock in the box It simply works, which is rarer in this category than it should be Cons Closed source; no self-hosting option at all Free tier is only 300 minutes a month Over three years the subscription costs more than the device Same structural risk as Limitless — an independent company today More Full rundown on Plaud NotePin S → Product $179 · subscription $100/yr · first year $279
FriendAvi Schiffmann	$249	$120	$369	Independent	Active	✕	1 day	✓	✕	✕
Pros Talks back — version 2.0 added a speaker and a spoken personality Genuinely good at being present rather than useful Remembers the last 30 days without paying anything Cons Not a notetaker; the wrong tool if you want searchable transcripts Price has gone $99 to $129 to $249 in two years Memory beyond 30 days needs the $10 monthly plan Research has linked always-on companions to deepening loneliness More Full rundown on Friend → Product $249 · subscription $120/yr · first year $369
FieldyFieldy	—	None	—	Independent	Active	✕	1 day	✓	✕	✕
Pros Straightforward: buy it, install the app, get on with it Short readable summaries rather than walls of transcript Ask the app in plain words and get a plain answer Cons Notes live in the maker's app and cloud No published code and no self-hosting Nobody local to help when it misbehaves Check current pricing with the maker — it moves More Full rundown on Fieldy → Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —
Humane AI PinHumane	—	None	—	HP	Dead 28 Feb 2025	✕	—	✕	✕	✕
Pros Nothing. Listed as history and as a warning Cons Shut down 28 February 2025, days after HP bought Humane for $116m Cloud off; calling, messaging and AI queries all gone Owner data erased after the deadline Nothing was open, so no community could keep it running More Full rundown on Humane AI Pin → Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —
RewindLimitless	—	None	—	Meta	Dead 19 Dec 2025	✕	—	✓	✕	✕
Pros Nothing. Shut down outright Cons Killed 19 December 2025 as part of the Meta acquisition No migration path and no successor product Died the same day the Limitless wind-down began More Full rundown on Rewind → Product — · subscription None/yr · first year —