Business Hacks

Translate a Restaurant Menu Using Your iPhone the Next Time You're in Paris

Posted in:

Business
Documents
Guy Vs. Guy
Software
Travel Tips

While in Paris 10 years ago, I had to randomly choose items off the menu because my traveling companions -- which included fellow Biz Hacker Rick -- sadistically refused to translate anything for me. If I'd only had my iPhone back then, it would not have been a problem.

PicTranslator is an iPhone app that translates certain sorts of text from any one of 16 different languages. Just take a picture of the text, crop the frame to the text you want translated, and then, after a short wait, you get the English equivalent. A small number of the languages (including French, German, and Spanish) will even pronounce the text for you in the original language, so you can sound like a tourist who is making some small attempt to respect the local culture. I tried this out in a snooty restaurant that prints its menu in French, and the results were almost supernaturally impressive. You get one language for the app's $1 initial cost, and additional languages are likewise $1 each. Want to see PicTranslator in action? Check out the video.

posted by Dave Johnson
November 6, 2009 @ 7:00 am

Previous Post: Be Productive When Working From Home
Next Post: Wish Windows Would Reload Your Apps After a Reboot? There’s an App for That

Last 10 posts:

How to Back Up Your Smartphone (11-23)
Best Posts of the Week (Nov. 23, 2009) (11-23)
Get $10 Cash Back with a Purchase Through Bing (11-23)
Get Your Copy of Microsoft Office 2010 Beta Today (11-23)
New Pogoplug Adds Up to Four Hard Drives to Your Network (11-20)
Top Four iPhone Apps To Watch Video On Your Way to Work (11-20)
Preserve a Web Page as a PDF (11-20)
What is Chrome OS and Why Should You Care? (11-19)
Turn an Extra PC Into a Second Monitor (11-19)
Getting the Most Out of Multiple Monitors (11-19)