Today, we’re updating the Google Translate app—expanding instant visual translation to Hindi, as well as 19 other languages. With this update, you can instantly see English text transform live onto your screen into Hindi, plus 26 other languages. No Internet connection or cell phone data needed.
To try it out, go to the Google Translate app, set “English” along with Hindi, and click the camera button; you'll be prompted to download a small (~2 MB) language pack for the language before this feature works. Currently, translations only work one way from English to Hindi.
We’re also making real-time voice translations a lot faster and smoother. Find out more about today’s update here.
Have a natural, smoother conversation —even with a slower mobile network
Slow mobile networks can make it challenging to access many online tools - so if you live in an area with unreliable mobile networks, our other update today is for you. In addition to instant visual translation, we’ve also improved our voice conversation mode, so it’s even faster and more natural on slow networks.
These updates are coming to both Android and iOS, rolling out over the next few days.
Translate Community helps us get better every day
We’re also continuously working to improve the quality of the translations themselves and to add new languages. A year ago this week, we launched Translate Community, a place for multilingual people from anywhere in the world to provide and correct translations. Thanks to the millions of language lovers who have already pitched in—more than 100 million words so far!—we've been updating our translations for over 90 language pairs, and plan to update many more as our community grows.
We’ve still got lots of work to do: more than half of the content on the Internet is in English, but only around 20% of the world’s population speaks English. Today’s updates knock down a few more language barriers, helping you communicate better and get the information you need.
Posted by Barak Turovsky, Product Lead, Google Translate
