Japanese <-> English Electronic Translator

[azukibean]

Konnichiwa minna!

I am going to be moving to Japan for a year in March. I'm still at beginner level Japanese but I really really want to learn as much of the language as possible while I am there. I have been looking online at some of the electronic Japanese <-> English translators (such as a Canon-Wordtank-G55-Handheld-Japanese-English-Electronic-Dictionary) but I am not sure if one is really necessary (especially since they are not cheap). Does anyone have any advice on getting a Japanese <-> English Electronic Translator...does anyone use one? Is it helpful? Recommend any specific brands? Any advice would be much appreciated!

Thanks!!

 

[Ewok85]

If you do not know Japanese, its almost impossible for you to be able to use an electronic dictionary as they are setup for Japanese people with the results and all the menus in Japanese.
Look for a good Romaji Dictionary which will be far more useful for the first year or 2.

 

[azukibean]

Thanks Ewok85.

Actually just to clarify I know all the hiragana and katakana and maybe about 30 or so kanji so I wouldn't need a romanji dictionary. I believe that some of the translators, such as the canon worktank, are for English speaking users so the menus are in English. However that made me think of another question...would I be able to buy a translator with English language menus in Japan or if I decide to buy one, should I get it before I go??

Thanks!!

 

[Ewok85]

Thanks Ewok85.
Actually just to clarify I know all the hiragana and katakana and maybe about 30 or so kanji so I wouldn't need a romanji dictionary. I believe that some of the translators, such as the canon worktank, are for English speaking users so the menus are in English. However that made me think of another question...would I be able to buy a translator with English language menus in Japan or if I decide to buy one, should I get it before I go??
Thanks!!

I bought mine 4 years ago, so I can't say for certain, but the times I've been in Akihabara I haven't seen any that are aimed at English speakers, 129million people being native Japanese speakers here and all.

Hiragana/Katakana/30 Kanji are not going to help too much when you look up "Experience" and its spits out ﾅ弛ﾅ陳ｱ. You're just stuck with some more kanji that you don't know

Don't discredit romaji dictionaries, they are awfully useful.

 

[Sukotto]

Can't help you with the electronic one, but this dictionary made specifically for learners whose native language is English I might recommend. It is look up an English with Kanji that have furigana above them. If I'd had this back then...?

Kodansha's Furigana Japanese Dictionary



Isn't it about time some company made an electronic Japanese language learning game for Gameboy? Or even some sort of mini-electronic dictionary? So many kids into anime these days.

 

[ET_Fukuoka]

If you can read hiragana and katakana you CAN use an electronic dictionary!!! I don't know what the other folks are smoking but it's very easy to get used to. All you need to get is a Sharp "eDictionary" type electronic dictionary (or a similiar model name) with the "super jump button" on it. When it spits out a kanji that you dont know (which will probably be all of them) you just highlight the kanji using the "super jump button" and hit the enter key. BAM!!! You got the hiragana you need to read that little bugga!!

It has to have the スッパージャンプ Key, which is usually on the bottom left of the keyboard.

http://www.ziptied.com/forum/files/sharp_178.jpg (cut and paste into a browser. If it doesn't work let me know and I will host the picture.)

Sharp Site: PW-A700｜生活総合タイプ｜電子辞書 パピルス：シャープ

Again it must have the スッパージャンプ Key or your screwed!!

 

[Nall-ohki]

It has to have the ﾆ湛ﾆ鍛ﾆ恥ﾂーﾆ淡ﾆ槌槌停?愴致ﾂ Key, which is usually on the bottom left of the keyboard.

Again it must have the ﾆ湛ﾆ鍛ﾆ恥ﾂーﾆ淡ﾆ槌槌停?愴致ﾂ Key or your screwed!!

I was just going to say this - the ability to Jump from Kanji to English is the single most important feature for English speakers, but your information is slightly inaccurate.

The "Super Jump" term is something only used by Sharp. Basically what you need is a dictionary that allows you to use the "Jump" (ﾆ淡ﾆ槌槌停?愴致) function on Kanji and NOT just English words. Other manufacturers such as Cannon and Seiko (though these are the higher end models) also have this functionality, but do not call it "Super Jump".

What I would do before you buy one is either verify 100% that your dictionary has this functionality online, or to actually use one and make sure you can "Jump" on kanji to get an English lookup.

As far as I'm aware, Sharp, Cannon and Seiko have models which have this feature. Keep in mind that this feature will only be found on the medium or higher models (the cheap ones will not have it as these dictionaries are primarily aimed at Japanese learners of English).

Lastly: I personally feel that a good electronic dictionary is far and away the most important weapon in a person attempting to speak Japanese early on. Some things you simply cannot express if you don't have the word, and the ability to quickly look up a word you need when you're trying to communicate facilitates language more than anything else can.

 

[Ewok85]

Even with the jump feature you are not going to be able to get the most out of your dictionary, what you are doing is no different to using an English->French then French->Japanese dictionary to look up your words.

Even if you do find out what the kanji means, what about context? If I look up "experience", how do you know which one is correct if the examples and grammatical cues (which AFAIK) cannot be jumped...?

 

[ET_Fukuoka]

The ability to jump from Kanji to English is very important but I find the ability to just from Kanji to Hiragana is far more important. Yes it is a pain in the a$$ to go from Kanji --> Hiragana --> English, but I feel it helps me learn a lot more vocabulary.

I don't know about you folks but when I am at a desk studying I have like 3 dictionaries with me!! If one definition doesn't sound right or I just don't get it I grab another dictionary to check and see what it says.

My advice from the original post:
*Yes I would recommend getting one
*Buy a good one so you only have to buy it once
*Buy a Sharp (I have used both Casio and Sharp)
*If you get one take good care of it and it will last forever
*Get a regular dictionary as well (if you don't already have one)

Good Luck (^.^)

 

[Nall-ohki]

The ability to jump from Kanji to English is very important but I find the ability to just from Kanji to Hiragana is far more important. Yes it is a pain in the a$$ to go from Kanji --> Hiragana --> English, but I feel it helps me learn a lot more vocabulary.
I don't know about you folks but when I am at a desk studying I have like 3 dictionaries with me!! If one definition doesn't sound right or I just don't get it I grab another dictionary to check and see what it says.
My advice from the original post:
*Yes I would recommend getting one
*Buy a good one so you only have to buy it once
*Buy a Sharp (I have used both Casio and Sharp)
*If you get one take good care of it and it will last forever
*Get a regular dictionary as well (if you don't already have one)
Good Luck (^.^)

The Seiko I have has several dictionaries (J->J, J->E, E->J, E->E, Kanji, Thesaurus, Katakana)

allows you to jump on any word into any dictionary (so for instance, you can go from Kanji to any of the J->J, J->E, or Kanji dictionaries).

I've worked with a Sharp before, and it's never impressed me. Casio generally makes the lower end ones.

I'd go with a Cannon or a Seiko (though the Seiko tend to be expensive).

 

[ET_Fukuoka]

I forgot about Seiko too. Yeah they make some really nice ones too but as you said they are little on the pricey side.

 

[azukibean]

Thanks so much for your advice!

Nall-ohki - What model Seiko do you have?

Also has anyone used the Canon Wordtank G55?? I was looking at that model and looks pretty good, it has the multi-jump functions and a bunch of different dictionaries and is only about $250 online...still kinda pricy buy not too bad...

 

[Nall-ohki]

Thanks so much for your advice!
Nall-ohki - What model Seiko do you have?
Also has anyone used the Canon Wordtank G55?? I was looking at that model and looks pretty good, it has the multi-jump functions and a bunch of different dictionaries and is only about $250 online...still kinda pricy buy not too bad...

I have the Seiko SR-T6500, but my model is almost 3 years old. There are definitely newer models.

It's the 3rd electronic dictionary I've owned, and it's by far the best both in terms of form and function.

The only thing I can say is that it might be called more of an "advanced" dictionary - it has J->E and E->J, but the Kanji and J->J dictionaries are extremely useful.

The other thing is that the cannon I owned had a better Kanji search interface in some ways.

 

[Glenski]

Just buy Halpern's Kanji Learner's dictionary. Paper thing, not electronic.

 

[dulac]

After some bit of studying, you find out that romaji tends to just get in the way. So stay away from romaji dictionaries- luckily I've never really found any (except as methods of input). As someone in another forum said, "kill the crutch."

I have a wordtank G55. Here are the features:

Jump: already discussed, lets you go to words you don't know the pronunciation of or meaning of and look it up. Very useful

Also, as I'm sure is the case with most dictionaries, you will usually have example sentences with the definitions, so the thing about context is a bit of a moot point.

Aside from the Jap-Eng-Jap dictionaries, has an Eng-Eng dictionary and thesaurus, Oxford Collocations Dictionary, English Collocations Dictionary (unlike previous, also gives you Japanese translation), Japanese thesaurus, Super Daijirin (basically Japanese-Japanese), Katakana dictionary, Kanjigen (kanji lookup-- you can search by on/kun, stroke, radical, etc), and a word memo for words you want to save.

For me, it was a good 21000 Yen well spent (I got a discount, normally it would have ben 27000 or so). I'm happy with it. any more q's just pm me.

 

[Sukotto]

Also, as I'm sure is the case with most dictionaries, you will usually have example sentences with the definitions, so the thing about context is a bit of a moot point.

This may or may not be useful but,
example sentances. It all depends, on the target audience.

I have a quality English-Japanese dictionary (book), but it was made with Japanese people in mind. Many more new words, kanji, and more complex grammar in example sentances.

Conversely I have Kodansha's Furigana E-J dictionary for learners of Japanese. With native English speakers in mind the example sentances were chosen thusly.

Maybe the Denshi-Jisho (is that a word?) works well with the example sentances?