HelloTalk，makes it easy to connect with native speakers

[IsabelaYoung]

Hello Everyone, I am using the HelloTalk App to practice my Spanish with the native speakers. It's so easy to use, just like using WhatsApp, but it does have a lot of features for language learning, such as in-app translation, text-to-voice, voice-to-text, transliteration, and grammar correction, etc. What is the most impressive is this App is TOTALLY FREE. It really helps me a lot, my language partners are so cute and kind, I love this APP.

Here is the link,   http://br.hellotalk.com/l/9HqiBhUA7Q

[宇崎ちゃん]

Last time I wanted to try HelloTalk, I wasn't able to register my account because they didn't accept any gTLDs in email addresses.
I reported this bug and months later, it looks like they still didn't solve this bug, while they promised to solve it 'in a few days' back then.
Speaking of lying!

By the way, this made me laugh when I posted this review on Google Play:

[linguaholic]

11 hours ago, Blaveloper said:

Last time I wanted to try HelloTalk, I wasn't able to register my account because they didn't accept any gTLDs in email addresses.
I reported this bug and months later, it looks like they still didn't solve this bug, while they promised to solve it 'in a few days' back then.
Speaking of lying!

By the way, this made me laugh when I posted this review on Google Play:

Well that is indeed funny

[Lynk]

Jeeez that sounds frustrating @Blaveloper !  I hate it when apps have these strange registration issues.

 

This sounds like fun though, I'd love a way to practice Spanish with native speakers that I could do easily and from home. I'll have to see if I can try it, I have many email addresses I use for different things so perhaps there is an easy way to sign up?

[宇崎ちゃん]

5 minutes ago, Lynk said:

Jeeez that sounds frustrating @Blaveloper !  I hate it when apps have these strange registration issues.

They told me it was an Android-specific problem and I should workaround the problem through an iOS device.
I don't have an iOS device myself, but fortunately my mum has an iPad, so I'll try to register my account on that one when I get the chance.

[naiara]

Nice tip, I've beeing trying to learn french but my biggest concern was how to actually practice it. It's ok to use apps and websites but, talking to native speakers is the real deal. It is also good to have an alternate to duolingo. 

[aleshc]

I've never heard of this app until now and I think it's brilliant! It's really important to connect with native speakers so you can try and emulate their pronunciation, and not sound like a foreigner anymore  I'll definitely give it a try!

[pesic87]

I have not heard of HelloTalk application so far. There are multiple applications for learning languages online, and I have used only Duolingo so far. However, now I will take a look at this one, and hopefully I won't experience the same problem with registration.

[宇崎ちゃん]

48 minutes ago, pesic87 said:

I have not heard of HelloTalk application so far. There are multiple applications for learning languages online, and I have used only Duolingo so far. However, now I will take a look at this one, and hopefully I won't experience the same problem with registration.

Comparing HelloTalk to Duolingo is like comparing a pear to an apple; while Duolingo is a self-learning aid, HelloTalk is a chat application designed for language learning.
So see it like a kind of WhatsApp for foreign languages.

[pesic87]

20 hours ago, Blaveloper said:

Comparing HelloTalk to Duolingo is like comparing a pear to an apple; while Duolingo is a self-learning aid, HelloTalk is a chat application designed for language learning.
So see it like a kind of WhatsApp for foreign languages.

Oh, thank you for your kind explanation,

I should have checked them first before I commented here, I guess.

[CloudyToday]

I can also recommend those who want to learn or practice a new language to use the app HelloTalk. I have used HelloTalk since July 2015. I still use it today! It's a really fun app that is similar to WeChat. You can send voice messages, text, call, and add new language partners. You exchange messages with people who are fluent in the language you want to learn. They will help correct your pronunciation or grammar mistakes, while you help them with theirs. Currently, I am learning Mandarin. So, I message several people from China. It's interesting to get to know them and learn more about their culture.

[VinayaSpeaks]

I don't have any experience with this app, however, I want to try an app to make my English better as well as learn French. Does this app support English and French language learning? Is this available for Andriod? I have androd phone and want to have android specific apps.

[Trellum]

This sounds good, I might actually try it.  I've yet to try an app like this... I tried sites like Speaky, but you rarely find a partner to practice languages there.  Specially if your target is Netherlands Dutch, most people there didn't seem to have the slightest idea of what they were there for.  Most didn't reply messages, wanted you to be their personal teacher or weren't serious at all.  They do seem kind of antisocial if you ask me o_O  I had never had so much trouble finding a language exchange buddy before. 

[宇崎ちゃん]

That's just the way Dutch people are: social in their own way.
Even I find it difficult to make friends with Dutch natives for the most of the time. ._.

[Trellum]

On 3/26/2016 at 10:49 AM, Blaveloper said:

That's just the way Dutch people are: social in their own way.
Even I find it difficult to make friends with Dutch natives for the most of the time. ._.

Lol, then how do you actually make friends with them? I mean it, I had never had so much trouble before, not even in Norway.  They don't sound as hard as the Japanese though, but how do the dutch socialize exactly?  I don't get it.  I was thinking of just focusing on expats, but I need to improve my dutch and learn more. 

[宇崎ちゃん]

Just now, Trellum said:

Lol, then how do you actually make friends with them? I mean it, I had never had so much trouble before, not even in Norway.  They don't sound as hard as the Japanese though, but how do the dutch socialize exactly?  I don't get it.  I was thinking of just focusing on expats, but I need to improve my dutch and learn more. 

I'm afraid I'm not the right person to ask this question.
I always had friends, but only for as long as I physically saw them.
Once I don't see them any more (when switching jobs, when graduating or failing a course, etc.), they suddenly don't consider me a friend any more (no more invitations to anything, no more social stuff done together, etc.).

There are apparently people who stay friends forever, so I'm not trying to say it's impossible.
But remember how I said I have autism?
Could be one part of the problem, especially since this whole friend thing isn't exclusive to Dutch people, it applies to all nationalities.
However, befriending people online is a whole lot easier for me, I tend to stay friends with people online for some reason.

[Trellum]

On 3/30/2016 at 8:08 AM, Blaveloper said:

I'm afraid I'm not the right person to ask this question.
I always had friends, but only for as long as I physically saw them.
Once I don't see them any more (when switching jobs, when graduating or failing a course, etc.), they suddenly don't consider me a friend any more (no more invitations to anything, no more social stuff done together, etc.).

There are apparently people who stay friends forever, so I'm not trying to say it's impossible.
But remember how I said I have autism?
Could be one part of the problem, especially since this whole friend thing isn't exclusive to Dutch people, it applies to all nationalities.
However, befriending people online is a whole lot easier for me, I tend to stay friends with people online for some reason.

Hi there   My fiance is Dutch and has always had this problem.  I found it so odd that once people moved out or weren't physically close they stopped talking to each other, but it's seems it's a cultural thing. Honestly, for me this is very odd, because in my culture distance doesn't matter.  I know people who have been friends since childhood and still keeping in touch, visit each other, something as simple as calling, say: ''I will prepare x thing for dinner, wanna come?''.    

Apparently in the Netherlands is not the same, but thanks to your post I'm starting to get an idea of how things work there when it comes to friendships.    This explains a lot actually D:   A looooot.  I mean after a couple weeks in Norway I had a lot friends, some of them are still in my life. But I knew something was up when after being there much longer I had made no friends   No wonder a lot Dutch men marry foreigners... the dating scene can be easy either. 

[宇崎ちゃん]

1 hour ago, Trellum said:

Hi there   My fiance is Dutch and has always had this problem.  I found it so odd that once people moved out or weren't physically close they stopped talking to each other, but it's seems it's a cultural thing. Honestly, for me this is very odd, because in my culture distance doesn't matter.  I know people who have been friends since childhood and still keeping in touch, visit each other, something as simple as calling, say: ''I will prepare x thing for dinner, wanna come?''.    

Apparently in the Netherlands is not the same, but thanks to your post I'm starting to get an idea of how things work there when it comes to friendships.    This explains a lot actually D:   A looooot.  I mean after a couple weeks in Norway I had a lot friends, some of them are still in my life. But I knew something was up when after being there much longer I had made no friends   No wonder a lot Dutch men marry foreigners... the dating scene can be easy either. 

And yet I find the following quite ironic:

Back when I was studying ICT at a university, almost all the Dutch went to the Dutch version of the course while all foreigners + a few Dutch people with at least a bit of foreign blood went to the English version of the course.

I did the English one, but I did notice it was the right choice. I felt more at home there than I ever did in a class with just Dutch people.

Not trying to dismotivate you, it's just the way it goes sadly.

[SoManyLanguages]

HelloTalk is a pretty cool app to use. I've learned a lot about different countries already, and I really enjoy making friends with this app. My German has already improved quite a bit (though word order in sentences still trips me up) and I really like how they have an in-built translator. Of course, the translator isn't perfect, but it's more convenient than switching every few seconds to google translate. The ability to send voice messages is also good for learning how to pronounce things. Another cool thing is that it tells you what time it is in your chat partner's region, so I don't accidentally wake them up or something.

My only gripe with the app is the fact you can only translate words up to twenty times a day, or you can pay for the premium and you'll be able to translate as many times as you want. There's also a few things that I think you have to pay for, but I suppose everyone has to make money somehow. It's useful, so I plan on getting the premium when I can.

[Trellum]

On 4/19/2016 at 10:18 PM, Blaveloper said:

And yet I find the following quite ironic:

Back when I was studying ICT at a university, almost all the Dutch went to the Dutch version of the course while all foreigners + a few Dutch people with at least a bit of foreign blood went to the English version of the course.

I did the English one, but I did notice it was the right choice. I felt more at home there than I ever did in a class with just Dutch people.

Not trying to dismotivate you, it's just the way it goes sadly.

 

Don't worry   It has been pretty clear to me I won't be making friends with Dutch people  since last year,  but it's ok, I've already told my guy that I preferred the company of other foreigners.  Mostly because  making friends with other people born in Latin america is easier (they know the dynamics),  and also because we will have  something to bond and connect over: being as foreigner in a country with a society that seems to have a really odd collective take on friendships and social matters.  G-d, help me D:    I hope most dutch people I met at work aren't as rude as my guy first was when we first met -_-'  

[宇崎ちゃん]

4 hours ago, Trellum said:

I hope most dutch people I met at work aren't as rude as my guy first was when we first met -_-'  

Oh, that well known issue again.
The Dutch don't mean it to be rude, we're just more direct compared to most other cultures.
In fact, being honest with other people is our way to show respect to other people, if we sugarcoat, it either means we don't respect you or we're simply doing business with you.

Being a half-foreigner myself and having studied with foreigners before, I try to accustom myself to the other culture where possible.
I know most of the world gets offended if I tell them they're smelly.
But don't worry, we will never say "you're a total retard", we have our limits too. xD

[Trellum]

On 5/31/2016 at 1:08 PM, Blaveloper said:

Oh, that well known issue again.
The Dutch don't mean it to be rude, we're just more direct compared to most other cultures.
In fact, being honest with other people is our way to show respect to other people, if we sugarcoat, it either means we don't respect you or we're simply doing business with you.

Being a half-foreigner myself and having studied with foreigners before, I try to accustom myself to the other culture where possible.
I know most of the world gets offended if I tell them they're smelly.
But don't worry, we will never say "you're a total retard", we have our limits too. xD

I  don't mind people being open and honest, but it's also how you say things.  I'm open myself, but the things my future mother in law said were kind of shocking.  Same with my fiance   I think there are things you just don't need to say, and that includes  racist jokes as well as some really odd comments.   Cultural shock   But luckily now very few things they say can shock me... 

[宇崎ちゃん]

I think we have a higher threshold when it comes to racism and odd comments.
But don't worry about that, I have made jokes like these before with Americans.
I didn't expect them to find it racist at all, since these kind of jokes are totally OK here (even though we understand that telling a joke involving Belgians won't harm a Belgian person, while jokes involving Moroccans could be very insulting for a Moroccan person).

[ailsaurus]

Hey there! I am also using HelloTalk but it seems like I am having no problems at all in both registering and using the application!
I agree, the application is really great and useful for language learning! It's an app designed for you to chat with native speakers and with people interested in learning your language!

My most favourite feature from this app is probably the "Correct Sentence". Native speakers can correct your sentence directly and it's really easy to see what your mistakes are, and how it should have been written!

By the way I have some pals coming from Germany in HelloTalk. I don't know if they would differ much from Dutch people, considering their languages are pretty similar! 

[VinayaSpeaks]

I have downloaded this app on my phone. After installing this app,I tried to register, however, I could not. Perhaps there is bug on this app. Or is it because it does on work on all regions and location. I need to find out. If this is like whatsapp,it should  be fine in my location. In will try to register on the app  again.