China has always imposed strict restrictions on Silicon Valley-based tech firms like Google and Facebook, whose services are either banned completely or have been censored. But Google has once again tried to reach out to the Chinese by re-launching its Translate mobile apps, notes TechCrunch.
Google makes another attempt in China
Google faced backlash from the Chinese government nearly seven years ago when it redirected its local search engine to Hong Kong. However, since China is too big of a market to ignore, the U.S. firm has made another low-key launch, reviving its Translate service for users in China. Things are a bit different this time, as there is no need to bypass local censorship to access the app.
Since Chinese users no longer need to use VPNs to access the service, usage will probably go up as well.
A Google spokesperson told TechCrunch, “Google Translate has been available in China for more than eight years. Today, we’re making our Translate app work better for Chinese users.”
Nearly half of China’s 1.4 billion population access the Internet on mobile devices. Hence, the U.S. firm will get a wider reach with the help of these services compared to the already-available web-based version of Translate.
“….We’re hoping to make the Translate experience better for Chinese users, helping break down language barriers by connecting people around the world,” the U.S. firm says in a blog post.
Interested iOS users can get the Translate app from the Chinese App Store, while Android users are being redirected to Google servers.
Translate adds definitions for translated words, easy account switcher
Version 5.8 of Google Translate is now available with a minor update to help users understand translated words better by offering them definitions as well. The update also adds a quick account switcher, which was already available in most of Google’s first-party Android apps.
Now, translated data that’s spread across different accounts can be easily accessed. Google Translate differs from other translating services by offering unique features such as allowing users to save translations to their “Phrasebook,” and now with a single tap, they can switch between the different data sets.
However, Google’s machine translation program has yet to add a few more important languages above the 103 languages that it offers. Geektime has compiled a list of languages that the search giant must add over time. They include Burmese, Papiamento, Udmurt, Muri, Jamaican, Setswana, etc.
