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Your Guide to Palmtops / PDAs.
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While there are language translation programs for PDAs available, what if you need a simple and inexpensive stand-alone device to help you with translations? Well BBK has come out with the AM99 Electronic English Chinese Talking Dictionary. The AM99 is pocket sized device designed for learning and translating Chinese into English and vice-versa.

So What Does the BBK - AM99 Do?

In studying the Chinese language over the last few years, I have discovered that, due to the differences in phonic pronunciation, Chinese is one of the more dificult languages for English speakers to learn. It's tricky trying to learn by studying text like you could with a language more similar to english--french or spanish for example. It makes it much easier if you use study materials that you can listen to. Until now that usually meant audio tapes or cds, maybe a video or dvd; however, BBK USA has come out with a product to help the burgeoning chinese speaker, whether casual or professional. It is a complete electronic Chinese <--> English dictionary in an easy-to-carry pda size.

Let's Talk About Features

The dictionary has many features--far more than I can cover in a short review, so I'll try to highlight the important stuff--but be sure to read the specs for a full list of goodies!

In general, the dictionary has a nice look to it. The unit is made in a "Clamshell" shape and it comes with a carrying case, so your screen will definitely be protected! At first the screen seemed small at about 1.5" x 3', but since it is in a "landscape" orientation it is quite adequate. The screen is balck and white, but there's no real need for color so I wasn't bothered by the monochrome. The keyboard is larger than on most pdas. I had no trouble using it--like the screen, it is wider than it is high and the keys are large and well spaced, making it less likely that you will push the wrong button accidentally. The only drawback is that the keys aren't backlit, making it a bit more difficult to use in dim light. One nice feature is the set of hot keys. You can turn the dictionary on and bypass the main menu, going directly to the sub-menu you need.

The unit takes one "AAA" battery. I know it would make it a bit more expensive, but I would prefer a rechargeable battery and an AC adapter; however, after 2 hours of use the battery indicator is still showing "high".

In my opinion the most useful function is the ability to input an english word and get audio pinyin pronunciation. First you will get a written pronunciation, but if you still need help, you can push the button marked "CH" and a clearly understandable human voice will pronounce the chinese word for you--a big help if, like me, you have trouble making your voice follow the tone changes when you're trying to get your translation from a written page (especially words with more than one tone change!). Besides individual words, you can type in a keyword and get phrases, which you can have audibly translated as well as textually. You can also adjust the speed of the pronunciation. The slowest setting is slow enough for beginners to tell which tone is being used, while the fastest is conversation speed so you can hear the word or phrase as it should sound in normal use.

At times, I found it difficult to navigate my way to features I wanted. For example, when I wanted to enter an english word to translate, I had no trouble getting to the basic English-to-Chinese dictionary; but at that point you are given the choice of pushing the right arrow for "Vocab" or the left arrow button for "Review". "Vocab" gave me a message that said "No New Words", "Review" gave a list of words I had looked at when I was browsing. After some experimentation I discovered that I just had to start typing the word I needed and it automatically took me to the screen enter my word. Also, hitting "enter" will take you to the screen where you enter the word. Maybe it seems obvious, but I was distracted by the choices offered to me.