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

Thai Phrasebook on your iPhone

Learn Thai Pro is an easy to use mobile Thai Phrase Book that will give visitors to Thailand and those who are interested in learning Thai a good start in the language.

A  month or so ago I reviewed an excellent Thai phrasebook for the iPhone called Learn Thai (see review). I noted at the time that there are quite a few phrasebooks out there now but this one stood head and shoulders above the rest. It was free and had about 200 words and phrases in six different categories. Now comes the release of the paid version which is much expanded. LearnThai Pro - Phrasebook has over 600 words and phrases in 18 different categories.

These are: greetings, general conversation, numbers, time and date, directions and places, transportation, accommodation, eating out, shopping, colours, towns and provinces, countries, tourist attractions, family, dating, emergency, feeling sick and tongue twisters. The last category is a nice touch as you can practice with, or indeed impress, your Thai friends. I also like the comprehensive list of cities. Maybe now foreigners will actually pronounce Pattaya correctly and also names of the islands like Koh Tao.

It works in much the same way as the free version. You choose the category and then click on the phrase to hear a native speaker. There is an option to mark the phrase as a favourite in order to get quick access later. What impressed me the most with this phrasebook before was the ability to change the speaker from male to female. This is so important with Thai as there are certain polite particles which must be used depending on your sex. In the examples you can see here the male word for "I" is used which is "pom". When switched to the female speaker, this is changed to "chan". Another nice little touch can be seen in the "Family" category above. Can you see where it says "This is my girlfriend"? If you have chosen female speaker then this becomes "This is my boyfriend".

Download LearnThai Pro - Phrasebook on iTunes for $4.99 >>>

COMPETITION: I liked this iPhone app so much that I asked the developers if I can have some promo codes to give away to readers to my blog. All you have to do to get a free copy of this iPhone app is post a comment below. It is that simple. I will add all the names to a randomizer on the evening of Tuesday 5th April 2011. To give yourself a better chance of winning, you can also enter this competition on my Facebook page and also on Twitter where I will be doing an instant giveaway. Don't forget you need to follow me in order to enter the competition.