pocket translator

I think you will find that the consensus on this board is: don't waste your money on it.

Definitely a waste of money, except for maybe translating menu items (which you can do just as easily with a printed list). Can you imagine trying to ask someone a question and they have to wait while you laboriously type it into the little keyboard? And how will you understand the answer they give you? A good phrase book will serve you much better.

I found Marling Menu-Master to be an excellent guide to understanding foreign language menus - not just the words, but the structure of one. I find phrase books to be a waste. People who speak that language rarely, if ever, answer in one of the phrasesfound in the book. But, Americans are always looking for a quick, easy solution. There is none. Study the language.

The value of a phrase book, in my opinion, is that if need be, you can SHOW someone what you are trying to ask for. Certainly you could not hold a conversation using one. And aside from the polite phrases that everyone should know if they travel to another country, I'm guessing that most people taking, say, a two-week trip won't have time or the inclination to study the language.

I'm with the OP. I would like to find an electronic translator so I could get translations of signage etc that I see in museums or shops. There are a lot of museums that don't translate the display cards into English. Phrase books or dictionaries are not the solution for that.
I do not want it for attempting to carry on a conversation.

Stephanie, I tend to agree with the others and feel the Translators are a waste of money. Even with one of the current versions that "speaks" the language perfectly, how will you interpret the reply from the "local"? Most of them have a somewhat cumbersome Menu, divided into different situations. People will quickly lose patience while you're frantically pounding away on the goofy Translator to get to the section or phrase you want. In most cases, the people you're dealing with will have some ability to function in English. For other situations, I've found a Phrase book works reasonably well. As I recall, Rick's books also contain a "food" section. In addition to a Phrase Book, I'd also suggest a basic language class. If you're able to get over to Edmonds on a Saturday, basic language (and other) classes are held at ETBD. Check www.ricksteves.com/news/classes/class_menu.htm for the details. Your local community college or other educational institutions may also have night school classes. You could also try self-study programs such as Pimsleur, Rosetta Stone, Linguaphone, Michel Thomas or others. Cheers!

I tried one once. Hated it. I prefer using a phrase book. But then again I also prefer paper maps to using one on a PDA or GPS, sending post cards to sending emails, books instead of a kindle so that may just be me.

Nancy's reply is right on. And aside from learning a few key phrases and using pleasantries when you can, most people aren't going to have the time (or even the interest) to learn new languages for every country they visit. Generally, I don't think translators are a good investment...they're expensive & there's just no good way to use one quickly enough when attempting to speak with a native speaker in a real-world scenario. The only exception I can think of is a Chinese-speaking friend who uses her translator during ESL class. Buy a cheap, used phrasebook instead. You'll use it more than you think. No, you can't use it to have a conversation, but you can get close and will at least get the point across most times (and will typically get some English in return...not always but most times in my experience).

I have actually had a semi-decent conversation using a phrase book on a train ride. However, neither of us spoke much. We just found the phrase or word we wanted to say and pointed to it. If you are having a hard time pronouncing what you want to say consider just pointing to the phrase in the phrase book and let the other person read it in their native language.