Google hopes to change the way we communicate and open up new doors with a major update to its translation app. The tech company is set to launch a live translation tool which allows the user to take spoken audio in one language and translate it.
Exciting update for Google Translate
This feature will be available in upcoming mobile apps for Android and iOS, although there are already apps that convert spoken language to translated text via speech recognition and provide spoken translations of inputted text. These apps make it easier to converse with someone who speaks another language.
In December, Microsoft-owned Skype initiated a simulation translation between English and Spanish speakers. Skype’s Translator Preview is currently limited to desktop computers. Microsoft is expected to add more languages in the near future. By comparison, Google’s service is already available on multiple platforms and has 500 million active users.
Right now, Google Translate offers written translations for 90 languages. The upcoming update will automatically decipher the language the user is speaking among the most-spoken languages in the world and translate the words into written text. Google Translate also has been installed on Android over 100 million times. About 80% to 90% of the entire internet is in 10 languages, which is why translation is crucial.
Translation feature also available on Chrome
Google’s Chrome browser also has translation features. Users can easily translate a page originally in English to another language like Korean. There are also 140 different languages to choose from within Gmail. A few pop culture fans may be tempted to set their language settings to something fun like Klingon or Pirate, but they will be more likely to choose a more serious language.
Language and translation products often learn from their mistakes, and this is how the companies make their products better and thus, grow from experience.