It's not often that an app comes along just as you think of needing it, but that's exactly what happened this weekend when I stumbled upon a new app focused on language translation.
I was in the middle of showing a friend how well Siri takes dictation in English and Japanese (my input) and French and Spanish (her input) when she asked if there was an app, other than Google's, that automatically translates your dictation in one language into another. I drew a blank. Hours later, I found the answer: Speak and Translate.
[seealso slug="microsoft-skype-translator-preview"]
The app allows you to speak into your iPhone or iPad in one language and automatic have that phrase translated into an audio replay of that phrase in your target language. As with many dictation apps, you need to speak clearly and not too fast, but when you do, the app renders a pretty good result. The app also works for text translations, with options that allow you to seamlessly email or text anything you've translated in the app.
I fed the app a number of Japanese phrases and listened as it produced extremely accurate audio translations of the phrase in English. I got the same result when I tried the test in reverse (English to Japanese).
I can't confirm the accuracy of the other languages in the app's database, but at least one reviewer in the Apple Store claimed that the app didn't handle Ukrainian well. Despite that negative review, the vast majority of the reviews from those who have tried the app are positive.
The only hitch is that the free version of the app is aggressively peppered with advertisements, so much so that it becomes pretty distracting. However, the paid version ($9.99) is free of adware, and quickly becomes addictive as you explore the app's ability to correctly deliver spoken translations of your phrases.
Of course, Speak and Translate isn't as slick as Google's Translate app, which not only translates spoken phrases and returns audio translations, but can also translate text (e.g. street signs, etc.) using your smartphone's camera. But Speak and Translate does a better job of integrating texting and email options for your translations, especially if you're not a dedicated Google user (yes, those people still exist).