How to have a real conversation through a translator app

A translator app turns a conversation into a relay: you speak, the phone listens, translates and speaks, the other person answers. Each step can drop meaning. These habits keep the relay short and clean, whichever app you use.

Before you start

1. Open with a greeting in their language

"Hello" and "thank you" said yourself, however badly, tell the other person you are making an effort, and they usually slow down for you in return. Parlo's phrasebooks have the 14 phrases worth learning first, with pronunciation.

2. Show the screen and explain in one line

People are rarely surprised by a translator app now, but they do need to know it is listening. Point at the phone and say your first sentence; most people catch on straight away.

3. Put the phone between you, close to the speaker

Phone microphones favour the nearest voice. On a busy street, hold the phone a little closer to whoever is talking rather than raising your voice, and turn the volume up so the translation carries.

While you talk

4. One idea per sentence

"Can we go to the station, and is it far, and do you take cards?" becomes three short questions. Long sentences with several clauses are where translations go wrong, and the answer usually only covers one of them.

5. Pause cleanly at the end

Apps decide you have finished when you go quiet. A clear pause gets you a faster translation; trailing off with "umm" keeps the app waiting.

6. Say it plainly

Idioms, sarcasm and jokes rarely survive. "That is too expensive for me" translates better than "that is a bit steep". Plain words also help the other person answer in plain words.

7. Check numbers, names and times on screen

Prices, platform numbers, dates and street names are the details most worth checking. Read them on the transcript, or show the screen and point. If a number matters, ask the other person to type it into your phone.

8. Let them finish

Talking over each other confuses every app. Wait for the translation to finish playing before you answer, even if you guessed the meaning from their face.

Afterwards

9. Save what you will need again

Your hotel's address, an allergy, the name of a medicine: save these as phrases so they are ready to show, even offline. In Parlo they go to your Atlas.

10. Know when to stop

For a doctor, a police report, a contract or anything legal, a translator app is not enough. Ask for a professional interpreter; many hospitals and public services provide one free.

Doing this in Parlo

Parlo's hands-free interpreter is built around these habits: it listens the whole time, ends a turn when the speaker pauses, follows the person nearest the phone and keeps the whole conversation written down in both languages. Choose your two languages and tap once.