I’m a wanted criminal in 9 states, so I recently fled the U.S. to go into hiding in Seoul, Korea. Granted, my criminal activites are entirely limited to parking tickets and I probably didn’t need to flee across the Pacific, but I moved to Korea anyway! I’ve been living here for about two months now and it’s awesome except for those pesky 20 times a day when I’m shrugging my shoulders at people I’m trying to talk with because my ability to speak Korean is about on par with an average two year old.

Swain reviewed the free version of myLanguage nearly a year ago and was impressed, and now that I personally have a need for this kind of app I decided to take the Pro version for a spin to see if it’s something that I could really use on a daily basis.

First thing to keep in mind here is that I’m only looking at myLanguage Pro’s Korean translations because that’s the only non-English language that I’m even remotely familiar with. If you’re not Korean, fear not… this app supports a ton of languages… 55 to be exact, covering everything from Afrikaans to Maltese to Yiddish. The more widely used tongues, such as English, French, German, Spanish, and even Icelandic, come with spoken voice translations in case you want to hear your translation out loud.

As Swain pointed out a year ago, this app comes with all kinds of bells and whistles that include a searchable translation history, the ability to rate translations and suggest more accurate wording, transliteration (phonetic sounding-out of foreign words), and the ability to enlarge text so you can show it to the shopkeeper who’s about to rip you off.

But what about the translations themselves? Are they any good? Well… yeah they’re pretty good! And in comparison to similar apps they could very well be Best of Class. I can’t really say how this app compares to its competition because I honestly haven’t tried the competition (yet), but one thing I can say for sure is that it’s highly unlikely that any iPhone app is going to spit out translations that sound like they just rolled off a native tongue. Language is a very subjective thing and even the best engineer’s coding magic generally won’t be very good at mimicking that.

The reason I say the translations are just “pretty good” is that they get the general message across but the language overall tends to sound pretty FOB-y in comparison to more natural language patterns (FOB = Fresh Off the Boat), and some of the straight-up vocabulary translations are no more than phonetic “transliterations”, such as money being translated as “mun-ee” (the Korean word is “don”, rhymes with “tone”). Another example where the translation could be better can be seen in the screenshots below where “here” and “there” aren’t interpreted quite right. Again, though, the general message gets conveyed and, in real-life scenarios, the context of the situation will be enough to fill in the blanks. Plus, if you know the target language well enough, you can submit a suggestion to correct the app’s translation and hopefully help it provide progressively better results.

As with any app or gadget that’s meant for bridging language gaps, the quality of translations is a pretty huge deal and myLanguage Pro is far from perfect but it’s still good at what it does and, provided you have some kind of network connection, it should make communicating in a strange land a lot easier. The extra functions, especially the searchable translation history, are a great bonus as well.

iTunes Link – myLanguage Pro
Version 1.3
Reviewed on iPhone 3G OS3.1

* “POV” (Point of View) is a new feature that we’re testing out *

mPassport Paris is on sale for free – normally $2.99

HTH Worldwide’s rating: 9.0
IAR’s rating: 9.0

I’ve done some traveling in my day, and when you don’t speak the local language it can be pretty hard to get what you need! Luckily I’ve only needed food, bars, and bathrooms for the most part so the language barrier wasn’t really a huge concern, but I imagine I’d be singing a different tune if I needed to be inspected by a doctor or locate some drugs of the legal variety.

mPassport Paris is designed for exactly that situation… whether you need a dentist, a shrink, a pharmacy, or pretty much any other medical service, this app will find it for you if you’re in The City of Light or, as most Americans know it,  The City of Hot Lovin’.

HTH Worldwide’s summary:

What mPassport Paris does:

The app features detailed profiles of nearly 100 carefully selected, English-speaking, Paris-based physicians and dentists as well as an appointment scheduling concierge function that helps travelers arrange office visits with these providers on short notice. The application makes full use of the iPhone’s mapping and GPS tools to help visitors to Paris find the shortest route to convenient care.  It even allows users to choose a Paris landmark or neighborhood as their  point of departure; this feature  allows users to  plan ahead when reviewing their options.

mPassport Paris also maps and profiles the local notable hospitals and pharmacies and provides brand name equivalents for over 350 common prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Built-in translation tools allow users to play audio of hundreds of key medical terms and phrases in French.

What this app does right:

Everything is easy to find and use.  Convenient features such as auto-saving recently viewed items, and  manual-saving for repeat viewing are built-in.  All of the information is downloaded onto your iPhone or iPod touch so that it works even without an Internet connection.  Of course, using the mapping features and Google Maps for walking or driving directions as well as sending an appointment request require a connection.

Where this app needs to improve:

There are a few things that will be fixed in the next update.  The pushpins colors used for your location and the location of the doctor, hospital or pharmacy you are viewing get switched when you jump to Google Maps (red and green to green and red, respectively).  Also, when working with locations, it would be helpful to be able to see all of the Paris landmarks on the map at once.

Features and improvements planned for the future:

Right now, other cities are only available through our mobile website at http://www.mpassport.com. Keep an eye out for additional destination-based iPhone apps in the near future!

IAR’s take:

Most of these POV posts follow a very distinct pattern in the ratings department: the developer gives their app a nice high score, and we give it a lower score because the app usually isn’t quite as good as the maker thinks it is.

mPassport Paris is definitely an exception to that rule. HTH Worldwide gave themselves a score of 9.0 which indicates that they think the app is REALLY good but still has some room for improvement, and I have to agree with them!

My travels so far haven’t included Paris, but I’ve been to Korea and Thailand and, if I wanna really stretch it, Windsor, Canada and Tijuana, Mexico. Ok, so I haven’t truly visited Canada or Mexico but I’d feel a whole lot better about going nuts in Tijuana if I had a Tijuana-centered app like mPassport Paris in my pocket.

If you’re going to Paris anytime soon and are reading this right now, consider yourself lucky because (a) the app is currently free, and (b) it really is as good as HTH says it is. It contains phone numbers and mapping for a whole bunch of doctors that do everything from general practice to dentistry to pediatrics to obstetrics to cardiology to urology to… well, you get the point. Everything is, as HTH says, easy to find, but the features that impress me most are the built-in English/French translations for a ton of medical terms and the drug equivalency guide which tells you what your drugs are called locally and/or on the generic market. Chances are a legitimate doctor will know what to prescribe without you having to refer to the drug guide, but the peace of mind this kind of thing could bring is potentially huge since language barriers and prescription drugs can make for a very bad combination.

The medical translations section is especially nice because it’s really thorough and includes a search function. You can browse by category such as allergies, body parts, medical history, etc. or you can just look at All English Phrases and search for a keyword that describes your ailment. Each translation includes a spoken French recording and, like all other items in this app, they can be saved to a list for quick access.

As for improvements, HTH refers to the pushpin colors being reversed when you access the in-app map for a doctor or other location. The colors of the pushpins don’t really bother me, but the thing I’m surprised this app doesn’t do is either give directions or provide a link to the native Google Maps app to help you get from Point A to Point B. Currently, when you look at a map in mPassport it will show you your current location or a preselected landmark location, but there doesn’t seem to be a way to get step-by-step directions. Granted, I’m not in Paris so it’s possible that directions might actually appear when using Current Location, but when I designate a landmark such as Champs-Élysées the directions aren’t part of the app. Sure, I could write down the address, exit the app, and manually enter it in the Google Map app, but I was kind of hoping mPassport would make that process easier.

Another thing I’d like to see this app do is allow reordering of the Recents and Saved screens. It’s cool that mPassport saves every item you view under Recents and the Saved thing is also handy, but when you go to edit those screens all you can do is delete. Changing the order isn’t an option.

Overall, this app is really good at doing its job. Even the in-app appointment setting function works as advertised… I submitted a request for an appointment and, 90 minutes later, got an email from an HTH staff member! Nice. If I were planning to head to Paris and had health issues I’d pay good money for this app because asking Parisian strangers for medical help doesn’t really sound all that fun! And even if you’re just a Be Prepared type of traveler it would still be good to have this angle covered in case something comes up.

Since the app is free, grab it even if you think you *might* visit Paris at any point during your lifetime. It’ll give you a good idea of what the app is like, and if HTH Worldwide releases versions for other cities that you’re actually going to visit then you’ll know what you’re buying when the time comes.

iTunes Link – mPassport Paris
Version 1.0
Tested on iPhone 3G OS3.1.2

* POV is sponsored by the developer

Here’s a crazy idea… take a picture of a sign, and PicTranslator will translate it for you! Sounds pretty cool. It comes with one language and others can be purchased separately.

iTunes Link : PicTranslator

On deck: Medical Terminology Aid (Education)

You know when you go out of town and realize you forgot something and then you smack yourself on the forehead and go “awwwwww dammit”? uPackingList can help you avoid those moments!

iTunes Link : uPackingList

On deck: Future Self (Lifestyle)

* “POV” (Point of View) is a new feature that we’re testing out *

Space Lama’s rating: 8.0
IAR’s rating: 6.5

If you’ve ever been in a place where you can’t understand a word the locals are saying, then you probably know the pain of trying to pantomime whatever it is that you’re after… a memory card for your camera, a safety pin for that broken bra strap, a doctor to take a look at your massive head wound… and that’s what PixTalk is all about. It basically a collection of photos that are grouped and categorized for quick reference while you’re on the road, just in case the person you’re trying to “talk” to isn’t getting your drift.

Space Lama’s summary:

What PixTalk does:

PixTalk is the photo communication tool that could overcome language barriers especially for travelers.

PixTalk carefully selected 100 pictures that could almost tell everything needed when traveling. What the users have to do is just pointing at the pictures and showing!

What this app does right:

The sentence “One picture is worth a thousand words.” presents the core value as well as the most interesting point for PixTalk.  In stead of using translator apps to get imprecise messages, communications could be easier and more convenient by using PixTalk!

Moreover, in an effort to differentiate with other photo communication apps, PixTalk has the unique “2 photos mode” to make combination of the photo language.  It also has pen tool feature to circle and paint the items needed.

Where this app needs to improve:

PixTalk will be richer with more pictures.  In addition, we are also looking for the solutions to let users find their desired pictured easier.

Features and improvements planned for the future:

For PixTalk v1.1, we will fix several bugs including,

- takes less time (0.5 second) to hide and show the color wheel.
- in edit mode, the pen or hand icon in the bottom tool bar is highlighted according to the status.
- draw lines every 5-move-points, instead of 10 to reduce lag in drawing.
- more tries to disable scrolling when pen is selected, since scrolling in action over-rides the setting.

We are also planning to provide more pictures and add a “favorite” category to let users save their most frequent using picture in the near future.

IAR’s take:

This is pretty rare, but I think Space Lama is selling itself a little short in saying that PixTalk features 100 photos! It features around 100 photos alright, but each of those photos contains a whole bunch of items… I counted 22 items alone in the photo that shows winter clothes, so the total number of items included is probably well into the hundreds.

I like the concept of using photos to get your message across and PixTalk does a pretty decent job of providing the tools to do just that. At first I didn’t quite get the “2 photos mode”, but after playing around with it I suppose it makes sense. The only problem is that most of the photos depict nouns, as in tangible objects, and I know this probably sounds a little nuts but if you’re going to string photos together to convey an idea you might want to be able to choose from some verbs or other concepts as well. What kinds of verbs and concepts? Umm… what if your child is lost? Or your child will die if he eats a peanut? Or maybe “hurry up” because you’re about to miss your flight? Language is a pretty broad thing so there are a million ideas you may want to convey depending on your situation.

PixTalk also includes a drawing pad so you can free-form your thoughts with a very basic pen tool on a blank sheet of “paper” or on any other photo in the collection. Including this feature is a great idea and it’s functional enough, but even though the app is already on version 1.1 (see Features and Improvements above) the pen tool still lags and seems to draw a lot slower than your finger. And I know this isn’t really a drawing app, but some other tools such as undo and pen thickness would also help.

I like that you can zoom in on all of the photos and, even though Space Lama is planning to improve the way photos are navigated I think that’s already pretty good. It’s basically a three-tiered screen with top-level categories at the bottom (personal items, transportation, dining, accommodations, places, miscellaneous, and smileys) and, when you tap on something, the photos you want will appear right above that. Tap a photo and it appears in the big area at the top of the screen.

The addition of a favorites section sounds useful, but the thing I’d like to see most is the ability to add your own photos to the collection. I guess you could just use your camera roll if you want to show someone a pic of your dog, but if you’re going to be using this app to help you communicate then throwing in some photos of your own seems like a natural progression.

Space Lama is right in that it needs more photos but it’s off to a very good start, and even though it won’t do all the talking for you it could come in handy if you’re really having a hard time communicating with people you come across in your travels. If PixTalk can save you 5 minutes of aggravation in a foreign country, it’ll be worth the $1.99 price tag.

iTunes Link – PixTalk
Space Lama website
Version 1.1
Tested on iPhone 3G OS3.1.2

* POV is sponsored by the developer

Dying is bad, and Rescue Kit might help you avoid doing that if you find yourself in a jam. It displays your location, various kinds of flashing lights, and it also has a 911 dialer.

iTunes Link – Rescue Kit

On deck: Submarine Hunt (Games)

Are you supposed to tip waitresses in China? What hand gesture will piss people off in Greece? What kinds of scams are tourists falling victim to these days?

Graceful, well-traveled folks probably don’t need a handheld device to tell them how to behave and get around in foreign lands, but I’m pretty sure the rest of us jackasses could use some help! GlobeMaster is basically a travel encyclopedia that covers local customs, laws, food, attractions, and a ton of other general knowledge stuff in 260+ countries and 1,400+ cities worldwide.

It’s an impressive collection of knowledge, and I think you’d have a hard time visiting a country NOT listed in this app. Even Vanuatu is listed! The locals there are probably still in therapy since Jeff Probst and his Survivor contestants ran wild all over their islands, but if you plan on dropping in GlobeMaster will tell you what you need to know.

The information offered for each country is more or less the same, but there are some variations depending on what location you’re looking at. If it’s a place where the national pastime is preying on tourists, those scams will be addressed under the Be Safe section. If you’re looking to find work within someone else’s borders, the app will point out major industries that foreigners can easily jump into.  If you’re heading for a culture that goes nuts over respect and social hierarchies (basically anywhere in Asia), that will be included as well.

Although GlobeMaster boasts over 4,100 photos, remember that it also covers 1,400 cities… in other words, don’t be expecting a ton of pictures for every single location. Each place does come with a section that opens up an in-app Google map, but the photos you’re gonna find in this app will be mostly limited to stuff you probably already know about like major landmarks and maybe some kind of traditional food.

I haven’t done all that much traveling abroad, but the few countries I’ve visited seem to be represented pretty accurately in this app. Some of the information references data that’s a few years old, but for the most part this app is about guiding you on things that typically require a long time before any dramatic change takes place… things like transportation, social customs and attitudes, and kinds of food you’ll find along the way. Based on what little I can attest to personally, I feel pretty good about GlobeMaster’s relevance and quality of info.

Oh, and btw… don’t bother buying a tip calculator or unit converter! I know you think you’ll need those things when you’re traveling abroad, and you probably will, but GlobeMaster has both of those functions built in and they work just fine. The unit converter’s most obvious use is for figuring out money, but it can do speed, temperature, weight, and all those other common conversions as well. Keep in mind that you’ll need some kind of network connection for the exchange rates to get updated (everything else in this app is contained offline, except for maybe maps).

If you’re a frequent flyer this app should come in handy, and even if you’re just really curious about places you’ll never visit it still makes for a pretty good read. I wouldn’t say GlobeMaster makes traditional guide books completely obsolete, but if nothing else it should give you a good idea of what you’re in for when you book that flight to BFE.

iTunes Link – GlobeMaster
Version 1.0.0
Reviewed on iPod Touch 2nd Gen OS3.0

If you’re cruising this website at 11:45 pm on a Friday night, you must be as much of a loser as I am! Here, fill your otherwise empty life with some foreign language phrasebooks, courtesy of Lingopal. :)

And this concludes the Great Lingopal Promo Code Bonanza of 2009! Thanks again to the Lingopal folks for spreading the liebe.

iTunes Link – Lingopal Portuguese (Brazilian)
iTunes Link – Lingopal German

You thought the pool of free Lingopal codes had all dried up, didn’t you? There’s still one more round after this (German and Portuguese) which I’ll post either today or tomorrow.

iTunes Link – Lingopal Hebrew
iTunes Link – Lingopal Polish

If you’re looking for iPhone apps to complement your journey to the Czech Republic or Vietnam, you came to the right place! Bonus points if you’re visiting both countries on the same trip.

And in case you’re new around here, Lingopal is an awesome iPhone phrasebook.

iTunes Link – Lingopal Czech
iTunes Link – Lingopal Vietnamese

The folks at Lingopal seem to be watching the comment box pretty closely here and they saw the demand for Japanese… so they answered the call! Here’s a whole bunch of Japanese codes and, as a special favor to the Lingopal people, please post a quick review in the App Store for them if you get one of these!

Uh, domo arigato, or something like that. :mrgreen:

iTunes Link – Lingopal Japanese
Version 1.0

I lived in Korea for 3 years and while I was there someone once told me that Korea’s original spelling, Corea, was changed by Japan during their rule of the peninsula. Why? Because changing the C to a K would mean that Japan would come first in the alphabet! I don’t know nuthin’ about history so I have no idea if this is really true… but according to this source it is.