Imagine Rosetta Stone, but on your smartphone and $499 cheaper. What you get instead is Duolingo, the 6th ranked application in Apple’s App Store’s Lifestyle category.
The app, which is also accessible via website, lets you learn up to 13 languages (the most commonly practiced ones being Spanish, French, German, and Italian).
At first glance: Don’t let the “Ages 4+” notice scare you; it’s just a sly marketing tactic! Anyways, the creators should really just replace the age group with “College students hoping to pass their Spanish midterm.”
The Basics: After making an account with either your Facebook or email account so that it’s accessible on any device, you will then be able to select the desired language and whether or not you want to take a placement test. If you’re a beginner, it gets down to business right away, starting you off with “The Basics” category. There are 64 categories total (each containing several lessons) that you can unlock, but you must go in order.
Cheats: You can, however, “Test Out” of certain skills and jump to the next one if you feel so inclined. I don’t recommend this.
Cool features: One hidden gem about Duolingo is that it records what you miss — and doesn’t let you forget it. “Practice Weak Words!” will enthusiastically appear at the bottom of the page, at the end of each exercise and even your notification bar.
Another cool feature that’s uncommon in many other language apps is the fact that you can play against your friends in real-time (you can see where you stand against them). You’ll gain “XP” points not only by simply by signing in each day but also based on how many exercises you’ve completed and how many words you’ve got right. Yeah, peer competition!
Cons: The only part that you should be slightly skeptical about are the speaking exercises, which ask you to record your voice translating words or a phrase. No, Duolingo, “Por favor no” and “I like bread do” do not mean the same thing.
Open Duolingo in the Apple App Store
Rating: 4.5/5
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