Google Translate used to be the top app that most users would go to for translating words to and from various languages, and with plenty of features available it was easy to see why. They are no longer the only translation app from a major corporation, though, as Microsoft Translator was launched last year, even gaining Android Wear support in December. Today Microsoft has started pushing out an update to the app which brings in some new and very useful features that any loyal user of Translator will want to get their hands on. Having said that, it’s possible that the update may not yet be showing up for all users at the moment and could take the rest of the day or longer to pop up in the Play Store.
As for what’s new, the most notable change is going to be the ability for Translator to translate text that are within images. This means that if you’re traveling and you see a sign or menu with words in the image that are in a different language, the app can now instantly translate that text and it translates in 21 different languages. The app can also allow users to set up automatic language detection to make things a little simpler.
Building off of the text translation, the app adds in something for users that are running on Android 6.0 Marshmallow and above, making it possible to translate any text without having to leave the app that is currently in use. This makes it simple to translate any selected text while using a different app which should make things more efficient. Microsoft has also made it possible to now use the app offline, so if you aren’t able to connect to the internet, you can simply download language packs for translation purposes at any point in time. There are over 40 language packs to download so you can pick and choose the ones you’ll need and have them downloaded for the times where you have to be offline. Beyond the new features and changes, Microsoft has also included some bug fixes to make things run a little smoother.
