Talk Now! Learn Hindi - Beginning Level [Old Version]

by TOPICS Entertainment

Product Features

• Comprehensive interactive language learning; ideal for beginners
• Easy and hard quizzes, plus a challenging memory game
• Compare yourself with native speakers; monitor progress
• Topics include phrases, food, shopping, telling time, and more
• On-screen help available in over 75 languages; printable dictionary

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0000899NQ
• Item model number: AMT5030
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 2, 2001
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,459 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #72 in Software > Education & Reference > Writing & Literature

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Here at EuroTalk, we believe there is no such thing as someone who is bad at languages--only someone who hasn't yet discovered the right way to learn. Everybody should learn another language!

Talk Now! is designed for people who want to learn a language quickly. If you don't have time to become fluent, but need the basics in a hurry, Talk Now! is for you. Talk Now! uses games and quizzes as a basis for making the learning process fun and relaxing.

Features:

• Talk Now! is ideal for beginners.
• Comprehensive. Topics include: phrases, first words, food, shopping, countries, colors, telling time, numbers, and human body parts.
• Interactive. Immediate response to every choice you make. Addictive, fun, and easy!
• Compare your pronunciation. Compare yourself with native speakers using the record facility. Microphone required.
• Test your knowledge. Easy and hard quizzes, plus a challenging memory game.
• Monitor your progress. Keep a check on your total score and print your own awards.
• On-screen help. Help available at all times in over 75 languages.
• Print a picture dictionary. Print your own dictionary for a handy reference.

Learn to speak using your own native language!
Most language software sold in the U.S. requires you to first be proficient in English before you can learn another language. Not with EuroTalk software! All on-screen help and menus, words and phrases, quizzes and tests--even the printable dictionary can be changed to the language of your choice!

Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Cantonese, Catalan, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek Gujarati, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latvian, Mandarin, Malay, Manx, Norwegian, Papiamento, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Romanian, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Tagalog, Thai, Tibetan, Turkish, Vietnamese, Welsh, Zulu, or any of over 80 different languages!

Product Description

Talk Now! Beginners Hindi is the perfect way to study a new language. It operates on multiple levels to create an immersive learning experience. Through vocabulary lessons and cultural exercises you'll develop a solid Hindi vocabulary -- and you'll have fun, too!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A worthwhile supplement to Hindi study, but seriously flawed, May 30, 2004

By 

Jeffrey Lehman (Market Harborough, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Talk Now! Learn Hindi - Beginning Level [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

Talk Now Hindi suffers from the flaw which affects most language software. The manufacturer uses an identical engine for all of their languages, so there is nothing in the program which would be unique to the Hindi language, and nothing culturally Indian. This also creates the amusing situation of having animated Europeans testing your Hindi (the blonde woman may be cute, but not the type of person you are likely to meet in an Indian bazaar!)

There are several good features of the program:

-Words and phrases are spoken by a male and a femal voice.
-You can choose from dozens of languages for the help language.
-Some of the games are actually quite fun (such as creating the Frankenstein monster while learning the parts of the body).

But the problems with the program are many:
-Sound is a bit muddy
-You can complete everything in about three hours of work.
-Symbols, pictures, hosts, etc. are all European.
-Because the software engine is generic, you learn a lot of words you would never use in India, or words for which Hindi speakers use the English word. For example, you learn that the Hindi word for "tie" is "tie" and "jacket" is "jacket". Even worse, "Mug" is "mug" and "bread" is "bread" even though there are commonly used Hindi equivalents for these: "pyala" and "roti" respectively.
-Some of the words are wrong or very rare usages. For example, the word given for grey is "bhura", which actually means brown. My guess is that whoever they got to give the Hindi words for things either speaks an odd dialect, or is not a native speaker at all.
-Many words are spelled wrong in the Hindi script. For example, Israel is pronounced "Israel" by the speaker, but spelled "Istrael" for some reason.

This program might be useful for you if you are a beginner at Hindi, and want something amusing to supplement your textbook study. But don't expect to learn all that much.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Do Not Buy this Product!, March 3, 2004

By 

"cjvannie2" (San Bruno, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Talk Now! Learn Hindi - Beginning Level [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

I bought this CD ROM because my boyfriend speaks hindi, and I wanted to learn to converse with him in his native language. I studied and practiced only to have him look at me and say "What?". The words are not accurate, they only provide the hindi spelling, not the english spelling, so learning the words and their pronunciation is VERY difficult. He laughed out loud when he checked it out. Don't waste your time and money!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars An elementary program of very little utility, January 8, 2006

By 

Eagle Vision (Southeastern United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Talk Now! Learn Hindi - Beginning Level [Old Version] (CD-ROM)

Set up in a gameshow format, the topics include phrases, first words, food, colors, countries (who cares for that?), body parts, time, numbers, and shopping.

Each section has an introduction to pronounciation in male and female voices. A dictionary showing the object and phrase in Devanagari and english (useless unless you know Devanagari) is available. Two levels of testing : Easy and Hard and Pronounciation sections are available.

A "Memory" game shows objects on cards at the hard and easy level for each section.

There is an internet link to Indian culture and an online Hindi dictionary.

The countries are a useless section. Some of the words have their origins in the English language which is a waste of time : card, T shirt, Credit card, Strawberry, etc etc. The voices in the phrases section is too unclear to learn anything practical.

Who would find use in it? Hmmmm. A child in kindergarden or first grade or Maybe an older child trying to kill time since his or her video game system is down or a person hospitalized who has nothing but this program in their CD ROM drive. The entire program can be covered in 2 hours.

Marginal educational benefit is here. Other programs such as Hindi Guru and Rosetta Stone Hindi CD ROMS are more worthwhile. Even better are the books Teach Yourself Hindi and Colloquial Hindi.