The best Translation Apps for your Smartphone

BY Editor

Have you ever wondered how to get by linguistically when visiting another country where English isn’t the official language?It’s a combination of sign language, grunts, smiles, puzzled expressions, more smiles and fist bumps. Seriously. It can get frustrating to not know what everyone else is talking about and how to politely ask someone basic questions about the city.

But if you were to travel tomorrow, how can you equip yourself with all the tools to talk to the locals? Say, you were going to Spain for a much needed vacation and your Spanish vocabulary is zilch, hiring the services of an English to Spanish professional translation company is going a bit overboard.

Enter the Apps

One surefire way to break the language barrier (a little bit) is to use translation apps on your smartphone. Among the dozens of apps littering the marketplace on all platforms, only a few of them standout and work as intended. While these apps work well in dishing out short translations, they suffer when faced with long sentences and idiomatic expressions.

Bing Translator

(Windows Phone)

There’s really only one reliable translation app for Windows Phone, aptly called Translator. It’s the same as it’s online-only big brother, Bing Translator, and was way ahead of of everyone else when it came out by offering voice translation and visual translation using the phone’s camera.

Voice translation works by choosing what language you want English translated to, such as English to Spanish for example. Just talk on the phone and the app will automatically “tell” you in Spanish what you just said so you can either try and speak it or just let the other person hear the translation.

The only downside is you need an internet connection to do it. With visual translation, just point your phone’s camera to whatever text you want translated and the app will automatically translate it for you in real time. This works really well for street signs and restaurant menus. You can download language packs for free to use this feature even without an internet connection.

Google Translate

(Android, iOS)

Another really good (and free) app is Google Translate. This app offers more languages than the Bing Translate app, has voice translation and now has visual translation, thanks to Google’s acquisition of the World Lens app in 2014. Visual translation currently supports six languages, including Portuguese, Spanish, French, Italian, German and Russian. You don’t need an internet connection to use this feature, which is a godsend in places where connections are spotty.

iTranslate

(iOS, Android, Windows Phone)

Another popular and free tool is iTranslate. With 80 languages to choose from and a simple, easy to use interface, this app has always been the go-to translation app for Apple users since it was introduced. Now, users from other platforms (Android, Windows) can use this nifty little app as well. Just speak or type on the phone and the app will automatically read to you the translated version. You can also save your most used phrases for later.

iTranslate Voice 2

(iOS)

Exclusive to iOS users, iTranslate 2 is a beefier version of their first app. Supporting 42 languages and dialects, this app negates the need to type anything because every translation is done in real time, by voice. You can also connect with other users of the app via AirTranslate and easily engage other people in different languages through text.

When traveling abroad, your best companion is your smartphone because of all the built in functionality such as GPS, maps and the camera. Add translation apps to the mix and you can conquer any language barrier thrown your way. Best of luck on your travels, and don’t forget to make new friends! Ciao!