Google Translate: 3 tricks to get the most out of the tool

One of the advantages of Google Translate is that it is very fast, and over the years it has improved.

Advances in machine learning have driven improvements in translation quality for over 100 languages.

Some languages, such as Spanish and German, for which there are large amounts of training data, have come a long way.

While others such as Yoruba or Malayalam, for which there are not many sources of learning, the results “leave a lot to be desired”, as software engineers Isaac Caswell and Bowen Liang explain on the search engine’s blog.

And many of the new features offer their full potential if, instead of using the web tool, we download the app.

Because in addition to translating the text, the software incorporates image and voice translation.

Google translation tool is available for iOS and Android operating system.

Below, we share 3 tricks you might not know about to get the most out of the tool:

1. Use without internet connection

You don’t know the language of the country, but you want to travel. With the app on your phone, you won’t even need to use your data plan when you arrive at your destination.

Google allows you to download languages ​​to use them anywhere, even if you don’t have an internet connection.

To save download time or avoid additional data charges, download the required languages ​​when connected to Wi-Fi.

It is a very useful app when traveling.

2. Simultaneous voice translation

Activate the microphone and let Google do the work for you.

Imagine that you are talking to someone in Italy, they say something to you in Italian and, thanks to the translator, you hear them in Portuguese.

In addition, you can answer in Portuguese, and the person will listen in their language. In this case, in Italian.

3. Translate images on the street

If you don’t know what a sign on the street means, aim at the text with your phone’s camera and let Google work its magic.

The meaning will appear on the phone screen.

It is not even necessary to tell Google which language is in front of you.

The app will recognize and translate for you.

And if the translation doesn’t appear clear, save the photo and select it from your gallery or camera roll, as the tool also offers the possibility to import an image from the gallery to translate it in a few seconds.

This text was originally published here.