![]() ![]() Also, there are some technical problems: When you choose a phrase, you see the translation quickly, but there's an odd lag before you hear the audio clip. ![]() But Lonely Planet's print phrase books are far more in-depth than its apps are. The apps come in languages that many competitors ignore, such as Swahili and Vietnamese. ![]() Languages: Eighteen, including Cantonese, Czech, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Mexican Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swahili, Thai, Turkish and Vietnamese.įrustrations: Each app works like a classic travel phrase book, featuring more than 600 phrases. And if you're unsure which app is right for you, you can download a free, stripped-down version from Oxford that will give you a feel for the full product.ĭetails: Oxford Translator and iTunes Store But if your goal is to start learning a language, Oxford is the way to go. If all you want is a quick means of communicating abroad, go with one of the cheaper apps. The apps are truly interactive learning tools that teach the user how to form sentences. Overall:The Oxford apps cover all of the usual travel categories, but in far greater detail than the competition. The audio for each word was obviously recorded separately and then stitched together into sentences, so there are awkward pauses between words and the inflection is sometimes off. Usability:Open the app and choose from categories, such as "conversation," "food," and "hotel/lodging." Unlike the other apps we tested, Oxford's novel interface - which suggests various ways to start conversations in the chosen category - subtly and organically teaches you how to put together phrases and sentences on your own.įrustrations: We look forward to the release of more languages, as five is more of a sampler size. There's also a Language Lesson feature in which all of the phrases are strung together in a short audio skit of a "typical tourist situation," complete with background sound effects. Overall: Most of what a tourist needs to understand is covered, including key words (such as "please" and "thank you"), numbers up to 10, and a few phrases useful in transportation ("Where is your ticket?") lodging ("Too expensive!") and safety ("Stop, thief!" and everybody's favorite "Those drugs aren't mine!"). For example, the Arabic app suggests five ways to greet people, but none of them is the handy salaam aleikum, which is all you need to know. The Thai app tells you how to say "yes," but not "no." (For the record, it's mai.) Sometimes, an app suffers the opposite problem and presents the forest rather than the tree you need. After tapping through the categories, such as "places to stay" and "directions & transport," you can select an appropriate phrase and hear an audio clip of a native speaker pronouncing it - a high-end feature we're surprised to find in a free app.įrustrations: Dining phrases are missing - a big drawback. Usability: The World Nomads apps present lists, divided into categories, of a few dozen basic travel phrases. ![]()
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