Apple recently pulled back the covers on iOS 14, revealing all the new features we can look forward to when it’s released later this year.
Alongside widgets, a beefed-up Messages app and some useful enhancements to Maps, there was also the introduction of the new Apple Translate app. As the name suggest, this is a translation program that allows users to converse with people in 11 different languages, even offline.
So how does it work? We take a look at how to use Apple Translate in iOS 14.
How to convert phrases in Apple Translate
Apple has focused the experience of its Translate app around Siri, so you can say the words you want the other person to hear, then your iPhone will convert it into their language.
In the standard portrait mode, the display is split into two main halves, with the upper section showing the current languages you’re using, plus the phrase and its translation. The bottom section houses the microphone button and the text box if you prefer to type in your phrases.
Simply tap the button of your choice, enter the phrase and you should see its translation appear on the screen. Tapping the Play icon below the translation will repeat the audio version so that your intended recipient can hear it spoken out loud by Siri.
If you want to make things even easier to understand you can turn the iPhone into landscape mode and put it in Attention mode, where the screen just displays an enlarged version of the translation.
How to use Conversation mode in Apple Translate
Landscape isn’t just for Attention mode, though, as it can also be used for Conversation mode. This shows the whole thread of your phrases and their translations across a given conversation. This means you can scroll back to see what you’ve already said, all without needing to do the translation again.
How to use Apple Translate offline
Sometimes you’ll want to use the Translate in an area where there may not be a Wi-Fi or cellular connection. For those occasions there’s the On-device mode, which allows you to download language packs so that all the work is done on the iPhone and not on a network.
This also is a great way to improve security and privacy, as no conversations are being sent to servers.
At launch, Apple offers the ability to download 11 languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish.
Obviously, you’ll need to download the language packs before you leave the network-covered area, but once it’s done, you’re free to roam with all the words you need in your iPhone.
How to use the Favourites feature in Apple Translate
Apple has also included the ability to store Favourites, which can be useful if you’re spending time in a country where you need to regularly ask the same questions. It can also be used to help you learn that particular phrase by recalling it over and over again until it sticks in your brain.
You create a favourite by tapping on the empty star icon directly below the translation. You can then find them again by tapping the Favourites icon at the bottom of the screen.
How to get Apple Translate on your iPhone
Apple Translate will come with iOS 14, which is most likely to arrive in September. If you can’t wait until then, you can jump the queue by signing up for the Apple Beta Software Program.
This gives you early-access to pre-release beta versions of iOS 14, although because it’s unfinished you might find that there are a few more bugs then normal. Still, if you simply have to have Apple Translate before everyone else, it’s the route to take.
Via MACWORLD