Instant Immersion Mandarin Chinese Deluxe [Old Version]

by TOPICS Entertainment

Product Features

• Comprehensive Mandarin Chinese language learning software
• 3,000 words; 800 characters; 400 exercises
• Listening, reading, writing, interactive dialogue; comprehension; and more
• Advanced speech-recognition; speech-analysis technology (S.E.T.S.)
• Beginner and intermediate CD-ROMs; Chinese audio CDs

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0000C120F
• Item model number: CS-383S
• Date first available at Amazon.com: August 9, 2003
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,828 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #52 in Software > Education & Reference > Writing & Literature
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

From the publisher of Instant Immersion language line comes Instant Immersion Mandarin Chinese Deluxe, a comprehensive approach to language study focusing on listening, reading, and writing. Emphasizing the Euro Method--the best process for learning to speak a foreign language quickly--this eight CD suite combines an immersion environment with a brand-new curriculum that will quickly move you from a beginner to an advanced student. Start your study with the four CD-ROM series from Europe's language-learning software. The advanced speech-recognition feature coupled with the unique speech-analysis technology (S.E.T.S.) evaluates and corrects your pronunciation, ensuring you develop correct oral skills. Next, polish your Mandarin Chinese with the entertaining Blackbelt Chinese CD-ROM--an effective combination of mah-jongg and video game animation. To round out your study, reinforce your vocabulary lessons with the three companion audio CDs. Developed by linguistic experts, each audio lesson utilizes the same learning methods used in university-level language programs.

Features:

• 3,000 words and 800 characters
• 400 exercises
• Spoken Error Tracking System (S.E.T.S.)
• Interactive dialogue
• Dictation
• Comprehension
• Listening
• Writing
• Pronunciation
• Speaking
• Conversation
• Vocabulary
• Grammar
• Cultural traditions

Beginner and Intermediate (four CD-ROMs)

You set the pace for learning with these personalized Beginner and Intermediate programs. With entertaining instruction on 13 key activities including vocabulary, grammar, and phonetics, you will quickly start speaking, reading, and writing Chinese. Each lesson plan allows you to focus on concepts you need help with most. Simply modify each activity by adjusting the difficulty level of the exercises or create a personalized program by targeting specific subjects. Additionally, the advanced speech recognition feature and unique spoken error tracking system (S.E.T.S.) monitor your pronunciation and intonation, ensuring you develop correct verbal skills.

Bonus--three Chinese audio CDs

Continue your study away from the computer with the three Chinese Audio CDs from Instant Immersion. Developed by university professors and linguistic experts, each lesson fully prepares you for interaction among native Mandarin speakers.

Product Description

Instant Immersion Mandarin Chinese is a great 8-CD set that shows you how to speak Mandarin in no time!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good vocabulary builder, November 19, 2004

By 

Laura De Giorgio "hypnotherapist" (Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Instant Immersion Mandarin Chinese Deluxe [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

This program doesn't seem to be good for absolute beginners, but it's good for expanding your vocabulary. It took me a while working with other programs for learning Chinese before I was ready to make good use of this one. Dictionary part of it is awesome because you can see how the words are written in Chinese characters as well as in pinyin. It has lots of fun games to test your comprehension and a lot of the material is focused on testing your knowledge of Chinese characters.

The program does teach some dialogues as well as grammar and it is helpful for making sure you're pronouncing the words correctly, but for me the greatest benefit of this program lies in helping one to learn lots of words and characters. You get to learn about 3000 words and 800 characters and the best part about all of these words is that you get to hear them and you get to play with characters through lots of fun games. It really does help to retain the information.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not good used independently, November 9, 2006

By 

G. Taylor "Hootless" (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Instant Immersion Mandarin Chinese Deluxe [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

There are 5 CD ROMs and 3 audio CDs in this package.

The 3 audio CDs have some useful pronunciation tips and some everyday phrases.

One CD ROM is called 'Blackbelt Chinese'. It is nothing more than a vocabulary memorizer. There are about 100 (estimating) vocabulary lessons of 8 words each, and it uses a Mah-Jong game to test you after you learn the words. In the game, you match the Chinese character with a picture that represents a word in English. Some of these are a stretch, like the picture for 'absent'; others are hard to distinguish, like 'high-school' and 'middle-school'. When you match the word, it says the Chinese word out loud (except for the last one). It's a fun tool, though, and good for memorizing. It also uses the traditional characters, rather than the modern simplified ones. Traditionals are used in Taiwan, simplified in mainland China.

The other 4 CD ROMs are basic phrasebook lessons. I couldn't figure out how to use them, and there was no instructions, and the 'help' function was not very helpful. I decided to learn some Chinese vocabulary and grammar elsewhere, and to come back to these lessons to see if there is anything useful in them. The confusing thing about them was that there is a great variety of things to click on, and each one seems to expect that you already know some Chinese.

I would emphatically recommend against buying this product. It is not systematic at all and most of it is nearly useless unless you purchase other materials. Also, the material it covers is very limited; you would be better off buying a simple phrasebook.