I have an Olympus ws-300M. It is basically the same model that a couple of big MSCs issue to their shoppers for audio recording. Love it. Fits discretely into a bra (sorry, fellas; you're on your own for this one). Crystal clear sound; long battery life (AAA); direct USB link (no cable needed).

walesmaven, I use the Olympus ws-500M. It's absolutely wonderful. I do the same thing as you. I place it very discreetly in my bra and turn it on while I'm in the car right before I'm leaving the car. It hears everything.

It has a very long battery life also. This unit comes with a rechargeable battery, but that one doesn't seem to last very long, so now I use regular batteries.

Any of the Olympus DVRs with a slide out to plug into your computer port would be good. Just go on over to bizrate.com and find out who has the best current price. Lots of e-tailers have free shipping until Christmas.

I am using a Sony ICD-MX20 that I purchased in June of 2007 for about $200. It has a metal case so has survived many bounces. It has the capability of using a memory stick if I wish for extra storage space (but I have never done so) and uploads files to my computer with a cable which allows for better listening as well as being able to jump around in the recording with ease. The files are MSV format but the Sony website has free conversion software that allows me to change them to MP3 or WAV or whatever other format might be desired. I use an external microphone with it 99% of the time, though it does have good built in normal and directional microphones.

Several years ago I picked up a spare of the same equipment on eBay for somewhat less and about a year ago I picked up an ICD-PX720 off the clearance table at the office supply store for about $30. It is a plastic case but has the capability of the external microphone and USB upload to the computer. I have not even needed to open it yet. When I am going for extended distances for shops or critical shops I throw the spare DVR in my purse 'just in case' but have never needed to use it yet.

I am a huge fan of SONY equipment as for me it has always been super reliable. So my camera of choice is an old Sony Cyber-shot (and the fancy and expensive Kodak EasyShare stays home on the charger because even at its best it is good for only a few photos before it needs batteries). I briefly had an Olympus DVR and was not happy with it. It was a cheapie that I could not upload files to the computer and listening to stuff on it was just painful. By the time I bought the SONY I knew I was in shopping for the long haul.

If you are talking about for regular recordings, let me suggest that you try them when it is not a shop and see. Conversation with family with the recorder going and out of sight, regular trip to the grocery store or other store, etc. Then evaluate the recording to see what it was able to capture and whether it would be useful for you.

I usually start my cell phone voice recorder before I go in for a shop. I think a person with a cell phone in their hand is more common than not these days and doesn't raise any flags about me being a shopper. The longest I've recorded with it was 2 hours at a college. I don't know at what point it might stop recording. It has proven to be very useful with new car shops specifically.

I have no idea if it's legal or not but the only thing I use it for is to go back and refresh my memory when typing narrative. Since I never play it back for anyone except myself I think I might be ok.

Cincitycon, I'm using a Sony ICD-BX112 DVR. I like it. It was about $25-30 at Best Buy. I think I might upgrade after the first of the year to one that has the ability to upload files to my computer. So far I haven't needed to go back and check my records, but after reading on this forum, I know it will come up sooner or later.

I have a basic Excel spreadsheet. After reading here, I'm going to make some changes to it for future years. I also have a summary page where I total everything and end up with totals for the entire year. I keep that spreadsheet in a folder on my desktop. That folder also has 2 other folders with monthly folders inside each. One is for receipts and the other is for reports. I scan the receipts, then move them to the correct month. I copy the reports into Notepad and then copy the Notepad copy into the proper month's folder.