Translating is an everyday smartphone task for millions of people, but outside of some minor functions. Apple has ceded the ability to its rivals in general. That changes today with a new iOS app from a first-party provider called Translate, which works in 11 languages and does not require an Internet connection.
The app is intended for use with language or short written sentences, not for the translation of entire websites or documents. The user interface is simple, with a language selection, a text field and a record button, as well as some additional widgets such as favorites and a dictionary.
To start, Translate will support English, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Arabic, Portuguese and Russian. More will follow. You simply select a language pair and insert or record a text or audio section. The translation should appear immediately.
There is also a landscape mode that further simplifies the user interface:
The best part is that unlike many other translation apps, Apple is completely offline. This means that regardless of whether you have a good or bad signal, you can use it if you are out in the middle of nowhere in a country where you do not get service or if you are just trying to save data.
There were no specific release details, so the app is likely to appear when upgrading to iOS 14.
