Customer Reviews

Instant Immersion German Deluxe v3.0

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I took German language classes for 3 years in high school, and after 5 years of not using the language outside of the classroom, I decided I wanted to pick up the language again and take a refresher course. This dvd-rom lesson has been great as it starts with easier words and conjugations and immerses you in them to learn through repetition. With a basic background in German, these lessons are easy to get into and learn from.

However, I would not suggest these for those who have no experience with the German language at all. The lessons throw you right in, and with no background, may be overwhelming.

I would have to say this is a great product so far. It keeps me interested and I enjoy learning with it. The voice recognition can sometimes be a bit annoying. Alot of repeating. I keep coming back to learn more and it remembers my progress. Good product. I would recommend it.

I bought this in barnes & noble for $50 not knowing it was cheaper online. The lessons in the dvd are very good and you only have to go through them twice or so to learn the stuff in them without forgetting. Every lesson has its own little fun games that you can play so that you don't get bored of just doing lessons and more lessons. There is stuff like hangman wordsearch and looking at a picture and saying the word in german through your microphone. WARNING: You must have a microphone to fully use this software.
Also the audio cds are great and teach you stuff like very important phrases of everyday life. So far I haven't played the game included because I am still at a begginner phase but i am sure it's very fun. If you read the picture on the back of the box it compares Instant Immersion to Berlitz and Rosetta Stone. Rosetta stone (apparently more popular) has less features and learning but costs about 8 times more (well I paid $50 but it was well worth it)
So if you're looking to learn German and are motivated look no further.

The Instant Immersion German Deluxe v3.0 (IIGD) is great. We saw a live demonstration of Rosetta Stone software in the mall and the IIGD software seems to give you way more bang for your buck. IIGD lets you click on a word and hear it in German so you can practice repeating it. It also lets you look up the word's english meaning on the same screen. We like this feature because you do not have to go to different places in the software to practice the vocabulary and hear what the words sound like.

If you are serious about learning German I would heavily suggest getting a few textbooks in addition to this software. I would suggest getting a book that covers verb conjugation (i.e. "The Big Yellow Book of German Verbs") as well as a dictionary that includes the phonetic spelling of german words.

The voice recognition part of the software is done in the same fashion as other language software. I.e. the software does not recognize actual sounds but instead recognizes tone/inflection. In other words, the software does not ensure you create the correct sounds but only that you use the correct inflection. The user can practice creating the proper sounds by repeating the spoken vocabulary included in the software. To my knowledge this is the same method used by other language software programs.

The audio CD sessions are as follows:
1: Greetings, 2: My Name Is..., 3: The German Alphabet, 4: Special German Sounds, 5: Spelling Your Name, 6: German Numbers 1-10, 7: German Numbers 11-20, 8: Numbers Beyond 20, 9: Pronouns and the Verbs "To Have" and "To Be" / Learning Nations and Nationalities, 10: The Verb "To Come" / Forming Questions, 11: Gender of German Nouns / The Nominative and Accusative Cases, 12: Present Tense Verbs / Small Talk with Colleagues, 13: Telling Time / Modal Verbs, 14: German Nouns in the Dative Case


Cons:
Two of the audio CD labels were mixed up. That being said, the labels aren't good for much as they don't really tell you everything that is on the discs. There is a lot more covered in the discs than their label says.

I bought this product to refresh my knowledge of German. This works for me, but as a foreign language instructor, I am very surprise by how the material is organized on the software. It is not beginner friendly at all.
I would not recommend this product to someone who has never studied German before.

I'm headed to Europe later this winter on business for a month and wanted to learn some basics to help me get by. Even if you're obviously an American, I've found if you make an effort, the locals treat you a lot better. I'm headed to Southern France, Spain and then up to Germany, so I got all three languages. The thing I really like about these programs is the different approaches included in each. The software program is very step-by-step. I found the pedagogy easy to follow and intuitive. I suggest starting with the main software program. It even critiques your speaking with a microphone, so if you don't have one, it is worth the $20. It helps with pronunciation and I'm learning to communicate, not just be able to read. The DVD included is also good. It is a little lighter than the software program, but is fun and reinforces some of the things I learned. The audio CDs are a very important part. I put them on when stuck in traffic and find the repetition is very effective. I also like the game included as it is fun and is helping me along. My French and Spanish are getting to a comfortable speaking level and I'll be onto German in-time for my trip.

Instant Immersion German is a fairly comprehensive program for learning German. My son has decided to take German next year in school and he wanted to get a head start with a home based system. This package contains both audio and PC based media (as well as a game).

The structure is well thought out and does give the student a good grounding in the basics of German. I really like that the program checks your pronunciation when used on a PC with a microphone. this is very helpful and actually helps with the memorization process.

Like all language programs (we have several for Spanish as well), nothing beats having native speakers to practice with and the more you practice the better you will remember.

Recommended!

CFH

I think that this is actually the top rated, $400, "Tell Me More" product - that's the title created on the desktop. At any rate, it is a very good, well thought out program, lots of breadth and depth with very good interactive and written lessons.

I enjoy the format and easy access of the cd-rom, as well as the other cds. I have just a little knowledge of the German language and have found this product to be invaluable.

Why pay the price of Rosetta Stone when you can buy this.
I got this for my daughter so that she could study German. She had looked at, and used her dad's Rosetta Stone, so we were going to get that (it is very expensive). Then I found this product and hand her check it out. She thought it looked really good so we bought it. She loves it! She says it is as good as Rosetta Stone without the high price. I'm glad she is very happy with it.