( 4 reviews )
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Posted: 09-30-2008
Got this model about two years ago. It was the only choice at the time that could pronounce words. It worked OK, the vocabulary was limited ; probably OK for spanish intermediate level at the most. It was plagued with poor design though. really bad battery door design resulting in intermittent operation. Hard to use volume control. unreliable connecter in the back for inserting other books, poor contrast made it difficult to read, and my son at one point adjusted it to minimum while playing with it and the display totaly disappeared. Took lot of blind hit and trial to get to the settings menu to get it back. pls designers leave the minimum contrast adjustment at a level that can still be seen. About two years of use the top half of the display stopped working.It has been replaced by a better model that is thin and smaller. Get that instead.
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Posted: 07-22-2001
There's no other product out in the market [that i've found] that has both the reputable and quality Franklin Electronics has for a Spanish/English dictionary device. While this product certainly isn't the worst, it's also definitely not the best - and I have it because there's nothing else out there to satisfy my needs.Because it is a speaking dictionary, we all know the "computer voice" is the best we can get. And that is exactly the voice you hear when you press "SAY". it's 75% understandable, but who knows the real sound because I understand Spanish in the first place [that's why I bought it].The first major criticism is the design of the product - instead of it's current rounded look, I would rather have a tilted/slanted look because that's the way most viewers use it [on a flat surface]. The most comfortable viewing angle is 15%, but this product is at almost a flat angle so that whenever you type or read the first line, it's blocked by a shadow from the top on the LCD.Also, while the buttons are rubberized for easy feel, they should be bigger [seeing how there is so much space inbetween each button] and raised higher, thus making it easier to push. The location of the keys are standard, okay for learning.I wish there was a Spanish/English phrase compatibility function where you are able to type in short phrases like "How are you" or "Where is the telephone" instead of just one word definitions. This would make the device so much better! I don't think the conjugations of phrasing the sentences really matter so long as you get the gist of the phrase meaning.Overall, I would only buy this if you really need something handy [that speaks] for going on business trips or such. There is no need to buy it if you are a student and just need definitions, get the cheaper version for half the price.
