RAM usage and resource optimization
On Windows, I've noticed the app sits consistently around 300MB of RAM, sometimes a bit more, sometimes a bit less. I've used other similar tools in the past that hovered around 30MB or so, which made me wonder if there's room for optimization on that front.
I also noticed my MacBook Air M1 running warmer than usual during the same workflow I normally do.
I can't say for certain Vowen is responsible, but connecting the dots with what I saw on Windows, it felt worth mentioning — especially on a fanless machine where thermals matter a bit more.
I completely understand that a tool with this many features has a certain overhead, and I'm not expecting it to be ultra-lightweight.
That said, I was wondering if any resource optimizations are on the roadmap — things like a more progressive resource usage model, or the ability to put certain features into standby when they're not actively being used, so the app has a lighter footprint during idle or low-usage moments.
Just to add context: I'm using cloud APIs only (Groq and OpenAI) — no local models running on my side — so the footprint isn't coming from inference.
Thanks as always for the great work
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Comments2
Vowen
May 7
Hey @dimezio , we’ve been doing CPU / RAM usage telemetry on the app, and we are making improvements to the app wherever possible. If you are not using Local models, the RAM usage should sit somewhere between 150MB-350MB of RAM. This has been the case when we ran our tests internally as well. Since you’re using purely cloud based models, the footprint on the CPU usage should be very minimal less than 1% during peak usage. Do let us know if you’re noticing something odd in the activity monitor section of the app in macOS.
The “Activity Monitor” application on macOS will have a comprehensive breakdown of memory, CPU and energy usage of all applications, you should be able to tell which app is causing the system to heat up. If you notice “Energy impact” above 50 generally means it’s taking up lot of energy which can explain the heating of the system. But we’ve rarely seen the app cross 10 in all our tests.
For running local models we do have a “resource efficient mode” which only loads the model when transcription needs to be done, and is loaded off the RAM when not in use.
One other tip I have is to close the application window, since the app will be running in the background and should take up even less RAM (around 100MB or so).
ryasmi
Sep 8
I assume Vowen is an Electron app that uses excessive memory, threads, and ports on macOS. This is actually the main reason I was trying it as an alternative to Wispr Flow. Sadly, it’s not much better. Hope you can switch away from Electron or find a way to optimise it in the near future.