Google Translate’s Instant Camera Learns New Tricks

Before travelling abroad, it’s important to learn a few key words and phrases to help you communicate with the locals. However, unless you’re fluent, there are always going to be gaps in your knowledge. Which is where the Google Translate app can help.

Google Translate enables people to communicate more easily, regardless of any language barrier. The Instant Camera feature applies that idea to the written word, enabling you to point your phone at a sign or menu and have it translated before your very eyes.

Using the Google Translate Instant Camera

Now, as detailed on The Keyword, Google Translate’s Instant Camera has a few new tricks up its sleeve. The headline addition is support for 60 new languages, which means Google Translate’s Instant Camera can now translate 88 languages into 100+ languages.

Secondly, the Instant Camera could previously only translate from or to English. However, the Instant Camera can now translate from any of the 88 languages into any of the 100+ supported on Google Translate. Making it more useful for non-English speakers.

The Google Translate Instant Camera can now also automatically detect the language that needs translating. Previously, you had to select the source and target languages yourself, but now Google Translate will do that boring-but-necessary task for you.

Google is also hoping to improve accuracy by employing Neural Machine Translations. This reportedly reduces errors by anything between 55 and 85 percent. Finally, Google has overhauled the UI to make it easier to use, and sought to reduce the flickering.

Download: Google Translate for Android | iOS

The Best Apps for Learning New Languages

Even with these improvements Google Translate’s Instant Camera feature may mess up occasionally. However, it sure beats standing in front of a sign or staring at a menu trying to decipher it alone. And it’s a lot quicker than trying to become fluent in every language.

Still, if you’re a regular traveler we urge you do whatever is necessary to learn a new language. Luckily, there’s an app for that. Or rather several different apps. I personally use Duolingo, which made our list of the best language learning apps that work.

Image Credit: Torbakhopper/Flickr

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