Customer Reviews

American English Pronunciation Patterns Professional 4.2 (Based on Phonics) : Perfect English Pronunciation Software to Help You Improve Pronunciation, Speaking, Vocabulary, Spelling, Listening, and Reading, and Reduce Accent.

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Sorry guys, but I have been using the demo and it is hard to believe most of the reviews I am reading here. Clearly, they were not written by ESL students and they seem very professional and with a lot of info about the software (looks like written by the developers). I find the inter phase to be crowded and difficult to follow. This software is not intuitive at all and it is hard to follow any logical sequence of learning. Anyway, download the demo and try for yourself.

I'm Vietnamese student. Pronunciation Patterns is very good one as follows:
1/ Clearly sound and easy to repeat.
2/ There are thousands of new words to learn.
3/ program is very good at automaticly repeating, recording and replaying
4/ Customer service is very kindness and willingness.Excellent!

Some points that the author needs to improve:

1/ Some words do not match with the sounds
2/ Lack of some dipthong souds
3/ Diagram is not very perfect. It means that it's very difficult to realize what s student need to improve after recording his or her voice.
4/ In CD, the authour should only use the words that you already set up in your program. I saw some words in the screen, but in fact they are not in the program so it makes customer unsatisfied.
5/ I do not like to use CD to much, because it may harm CD driver; Why don't you think about the way to copy it into only one computer and open it without CD?
6/The price is too high for a student.

Anyway, it is 4/5
Hope you enjoy it.

I got the PP weeks ago and have been using it since then. I just love it because of a lot of reasons:

1. Systemmatically teach me the American Phonetic Alphabet that I missed when I started to study English. It helps me correct many pronunciation errors;
2. The more practice by following the sound of each word, the more confident and comfortable to communicate with people in English;
3. It is a effective and convenient approach to study, especially I have to work in the day time;
4. It is not boring at all, actually it is fun;
5. Quick and satisfactory supports from the company;
6. I wish I could find the material years ago;

I think the only drawback is that I have to insert the CD to play even if I install it to my computer.

Waoo!!!!, it is an amazing software for anyone who has encountered problem with speaking and listening English language.
like thousand of peaple who tried to learn English i bought all kind of the software availble on the market during the last few years . and each time i get the same problem. i have a good understanding when i read English but i had an absolute problem with the listening and speaking. until i discover this famous software.
I start using it only 23 days, and the result are really very impressive.I notice a big improvement in my expression- I m more confident when speaking , now i m sure that people understand my message- also, my listening has been improved immensely.
my english improvement was noticed also by my coworkers.

Thanks to this software, i understand for the first time that the Biggest problem with the English language is that is a phonetic language , where we have to learn the different sounds. and this software bring the appropriate solution to this problem.
this software is really richest mine of new and innovative tools, it allow the user to focus on the specific sounds that cause him problem , you can also create your own list of the words that cause you problem and you can practice them until you feel better. it allow also to learn new vocabulary. really , i m very satisfied with this software the highest quality of their service.

I recommend Pronunciation pattern strongly to anyone who has problem with the English language. Just try it and you will see the difference.
Abdo, Sterling Heights, Michigan

This is the best Tool I have found so far to helps improve your pronunciation and reduce accent.

1.- The program has a great feature called RULES which has four categories. One of them is the Silent Category and provides a list of letters that are silent in a word. Examples of very simple words that can be mispronounced are: the word bomb, you don't pronounce the second "b", or the word island, you don't pronounce the "s". And there are many other categories that provide easy to learn and remember rules about common mispronounce words and how to avoid those pitfalls. How can that help, you may ask? Well if you don't have to memorize the word because you already know the meaning and how to spell... then all you need is to tweak you pronunciation with the simple to follow rules.

2.- The program displays the word using a color code scheme. The legend for the colors is included and can be customize to colors that works better for you. I recommend increasing the font size so you can better distinguish the color coded letters. How can this help? You can easily see what letters are silent, stressed, unstressed, patterns, and exceptions. This provides reinforcement learning because you listen to the correct pronunciation and see how the word is broken down by color coded hints. To visual learners this will answer you prayers.

3.- The program has a non-linear learning approach which allows you to decide what you would like to learn or practice. My approach is to remember which words I have problem pronouncing or I have been told I mispronounce...and that's where I start. I can search by letters, vowels, consonants, and others. Once I find the word I can get to work...another feature is that it allows me to create a list of similar words to so I can really reinforce my learning.

That is just of the features that I have found extremely useful but there are a lot more that complements what you have learned so far in order to take it to the next step.

If you are like me that have already wasted lots of money on books, CDs, DVDs with very little gain, which can be very disappointing, then this is the answer to our prayers. Within 30 minutes I corrected about fifty (50) words that I thought I was pronouncing right but was dead wrong and I was able to easily understand why. As you can see, it takes very little time to make big improvements.

Remember, improving pronunciation and reducing accent are just two excellent benefits of this program, there are a lot more that will benefit beginners as well as advance learners. You'll be hooked in no time, and trust me this would be one of those rare occasions where it is OK...

I usually don't leave a review on the net. Actually, this is my first time to leave a review on Amazon, even though I am a long-time Amazon member. However, I'd like to share a few thoughts about Pronunciation Pattern for those who are interested in an English accent program.

As an ESL instructor for many years, I've tried many different accent reduction programs (books, CDs, etc.) for my ESL students. I've literally come across hundreds of them. Many are terrible, some are ok, and a few are good, but this program is the BEST. It really stands out.

Since other reviewers have already mentioned about the good features of this program, let me just make my review brief.

PROS:
* The online support is GREAT! I've contacted customer service several times so far, and I always get a prompt response - sometime just in a few minutes! I am really impressed with their online support. So far I've been 100% satisfied.
* This program is VERY comprehensive. It deals with so many different aspects of English pronunciation. It also covers several thousand English words, NOT only a few hundred. It's not like you study a few days and then there's nothing more left. I know from personal experience there are many accent reduction programs (and books with CDs) out there with very little content. This program offers not only the sounds of individual words and sentences but also clear phonological explanations.
* This program is good for advanced ESL students too.
* Like most non-natives, ESL students are familiar with the IPA, and this program lets you choose IPA to practice the sounds of English.
* What I really like about this program is they keep upgrading this program automatically. I think that's another plus for this program

CONS:
* The high price might be a problem for some ESL students. But l still believe this program is best on the market.
* Since this is a computer-based program, some people might think this program is complicated to use.
* Not really a "con," but there are a lot of features in this program to learn. If you are looking for a simple English accent course, this program is probably NOT for you.

BOTTOM LINE:
If you are an ESL student (or instructor) looking for a program that reduce your foreign accent, look no further. I say it again: This program is the BEST

Learning a second language is challenging, but worthwhile goal. With this well designed program and some motivation, you can learn English as a second language. This software is user - friendly so anyone can successfully learn english pronunciation regardless of english or experience with computers. This software teaches pronunciation using a variety of tools. It is simple to install and setup on your computer, provide adequate help and support to anyone through email.

This is very good program, it can make a significant improvement in the pronunciation in a very short time. You can create your own list of words and study only those words or you can use basic words or advanced words. There are mouth exercise for basic sound and color coded legend help to recognize the letter in the word. Program can play the sound and word automatically.

I was looking for a program to help me correct my pronunciation and found what i now consider to be the most remarkable accent reduction program. The program exceeded my expectations. It has an incredible array of features that will impress even the most hardened critic.
Pronunciation patterns has an extraordinary assembly of all the tools you need to improve pronunciation and more; it has precise description of mouth mechanics required to produce each sound supplemented by video mouth clips,in addition to load of words to interactively practice with and links to interactive websites all geared to help improve pronunciation,fluency,and vocabulary.
And customer service was excellent and prompt.
This program is bound to become the gold standard against which others are compared.
Thanks Xcers corp. for a remarkable program.

C.Anyadike

It is amazing that I found my pronunciation improved after I used this software for only one month.