I decided to invest for a voice recorder since my school (at a place where people still think ADHD would grow out) would never give any support for me anyway.

I would buy a dedicated digital voice recorder, probably from Olympus (model undecided). but there's a problem now: DO I need an external microphone for lecture halls, and if yes, what should I buy?

Thank you in advance!

My Olympus recorder does not need an external microphone IF I record on a slower speed AND IF I sit near the front.

But that means my recorder may only record for 3-4 hours instead of 8. And it will pick up the closest noise, which hopefully is the professor but may be the person in front of me who is tapping their pencil or whispering to their neighbor.

I don't know anything about external microphones, as I've always been able to make mine work acceptably without one.

One thing I always fail to record is questions from other attendees. They just aren't in line with the recorder, so it doesn't get their questions. Keep that in mind, you'll have to write down the questions or repeat them so the recorder hears it.