Using an iPhone & iPad in Thailand Tips, App Reviews and News for the iPhone and iPad by Richard Barrow

iPhone App for Chatting with Thais

A new translator app will be coming out soon that will allow you to converse with a local person during your next holiday in Thailand. The app is called "Converse" and allows you to have conversations in up to 51 different languages. As you can see from this picture, the screen is split in two and has two different keyboards. In this case, there is English on the left and Thai on the right. A question has been typed in on the English keyboard asking "What is your name?". This is then automatically translated onto the Thai side of the screen "Khun cheu a-rai". In theory it sounds quite a good idea and might be worth buying if the price is right. But somehow, I cannot see anyone actually using the application in the way it is being used in the picture with two people holding onto each end of the handset. A bit too cosy if you are trying to ask a tuk tuk driver how much it will cost to go to Panthip Plaza. And of course, you would also run the risk that a complete stranger would run off with your iPhone. After all, they are hot commodities in Bangkok and secondhand handsets sell well in places like MBK.  I think it would only work if you were trying to converse with your Thai girlfriend. But, let's just hope that the translations are a bit better than what we can now see on Google otherwise you might finding yourself eating alone. I think this would work much better on an iPad.

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