The answer to this question really depends on who you ask.
If you’re inclined to be one of those users who continually wants to ensure they’re ahead of the curve and using the latest and greatest… the answer is as soon as possible. The newest releases of Dragon have the latest technology and algorithms, which means you’ll be at the cutting edge. The benefit is that you’ll be enjoying the optimal performance of Dragon and shouldn’t encounter compatibility-related issues. The drawback is that being a pioneer, you’ll be the first to encounter glitches and issues affecting the newest iteration of the software. While the software is put through beta testing, there are bound to be few head-scratching problems that inevitably crop up.
Since the software has had good and bad releases in the past, this means that it’s a bit of a gamble as you could be hampered by upgrading too soon. For instance, Dragon 13 is ironically one of the most stable and popular releases of the software, which is still used by many today. However, it’s successor Dragon 14 was a release best skipped over. Not really out for very long before version 15 arrived, it was a version that seemingly dissipated. Dragon 15 has been around for many years now, onto a 15.6 service pack that was essentially a complete re-release of the software. Now that version 16 has been unveiled, this question tends to come round.
Our position is typically cautious, not wanting to recommend users upgrade to the latest version until we’ve had a chance to suss it out or wait until a service pack has been released to address the most pressing issues. Dragon 16 comes at a higher price point, which is of course reduced for upgrades. So, even though it’s available we still have some new users opting for the tried-and-tested Dragon 15 product and others who are still managing to hold onto Dragon 13.
For the if-it’s-not-broken-don’t-fix-it users, the choice really depends on how much you’re willing to be inconvenienced. The added benefit of jumping to the next release is that you can skip one, meaning you can go from version 13 to version 15 as an upgrade. So there’s not too much time pressure with releases rolling around every couple of years. Luckily there isn’t a monthly or annual subscription fee, so that once-off fee tends to stay the course. What typically tips users into being forced to upgrade is when the operating system or software environment is no longer fully compatible with Dragon. When add-ins keep dropping or text isn’t able to easily be entered into your favourite applications, this can present enough of a headache to motivate an upgrade.
So – it really comes down to your personal choice and costing, delaying the upgrade until absolutely necessary or keeping up with the latest improvements. The interface doesn’t change all that drastically, the features seem to stay the course, so it’s mostly about just how quickly Dragon can start performing from the word “go” and its deep learning.