Can't speak someone's language? If you have an Android phone and Google Translate, monolingual conversations could be a thing of the past.
Google unveiled its conversation mode Thursday, where simply speaking into a microphone will translate your words into a different language. Right now, the beta version only supports conversations in both Spanish and English, but supports 53 languages worldwide and has voice input for 15.
In conversation mode, simply press the microphone for your language and start speaking. Google Translate will translate your speech and read the translation out loud. Your conversation partner can then respond in their language, and you’ll hear the translation spoken back to you. Because this technology is still in alpha, factors like regional accents, background noise or rapid speech may make it difficult to understand what you’re saying. Even with these caveats, we’re excited about the future promise of this technology to be able to help people connect across languages.
The new Google Translate also has a cleaner interface, dropboxes and layout. However, Google Translate is only available on all Android devices operating Android 2.1 or higher, but it's free on the Android Market or by scanning the QR code here. Buena suerte!
