Extra audio, let's meet the whole way...

[siamesefightingfish]

I recently found this app and I was very impressed with the quality of the app and what it can do. I got tired of the slow, non rhythmic pronunciation, and upgraded to the pro version in order to get the better dictionary as well. Here's the shortcoming. The audio really isn't enough. 34,000 words sounds good, but, a LOT of the even the basic words I study (I'm a newbie) aren't covered by the new sounds. I really think the app bundles are overpriced given this bottleneck. Audio is the key element to learning new words.
The app is probably the best one out there if you're studying Mandarin, and there are a lot of useful elements to grow into if you're a beginner (such as the non pinyin dics and reader), but I'm feeling a bit left for want in the audio. Pleco has gone half-way on this, but with all the other useful tools, why not go the full distance? Just my opinion.

edit **a FEW of the basic words were broken into syllables, not a LOT (slight exaggeration), and they weren't TTS, they were recorded sounds**.

 

[mikelove]

I recently found this app and I was very impressed with the quality of the app and what it can do. I got tired of the slow, non rhythmic pronunciation, and upgraded to the pro version in order to get the better dictionary as well. Here's the shortcoming. The audio really isn't enough. 34,000 words sounds good, but, a LOT of the even the basic words I study (I'm a newbie) aren't covered by the new sounds. I really think the app bundles are overpriced given this bottleneck. Audio is the key element to learning new words.

We've already addressed this, download our new beta app (probably out officially later this week) and you can get two different Text-to-Speech System add-ons that will not only give you accurate-sounding audio for (pretty much) every word in the dictionary, they also read entire example sentences at you.

I'm surprised that you'd be encountering a lot of new words that aren't in that set of 34,000, though. But honestly that data set has proven problematic enough to manage (and was expensive / time-consuming enough to generate) that we think the synthetic route is probably a better bet for vocabulary expansion.

 

[siamesefightingfish]

Thanks for your reply. Mike, you're right actually. I went back through the cards and found that on certain words, the recorded audio just sounds as if TTS. But it's not. Examples like German person, French person, good afternoon, etc. My point is that TTS breaks down the syllables already. This is a very small gripe, I know, but I like to learn the natural sound from a native speaker. 99.9% are natural anyways.
I'm very glad the native speaker recordings were done, the audio is excellent. That was the main reason I went pro. I am getting a tablet soon too just because of this app. Thanks

 

[siamesefightingfish]

One more question Mike, how can I get the dictionary to read an example sentence as you've described? Is that an add-on not yet released? I'd like that option but I'd also like to keep the natural voices I have already. Can I have both installed at the same time and enable/disable them? Thx.

 

[mikelove]

Thanks for your reply. Mike, you're right actually. I went back through the cards and found that on certain words, the recorded audio just sounds as if TTS. But it's not. Examples like German person, French person, good afternoon, etc. My point is that TTS breaks down the syllables already. This is a very small gripe, I know, but I like to learn the natural sound from a native speaker. 99.9% are natural anyways.

Oh it's certainly better for some things, but we've found that in a lot of applications (flashcard fill-in-the-blanks tests, for example) consistency is more important than natural-ness, and that's an area where TTS really shines.

One more question Mike, how can I get the dictionary to read an example sentence as you've described? Is that an add-on not yet released? I'd like that option but I'd also like to keep the natural voices I have already. Can I have both installed at the same time and enable/disable them? Thx.

It's available, but only in our online store, and through a hidden link: https://www.pleco.com/store/product.php?productid=59&cat=5. (somehow forgot to include that in the last beta announcement post) And yes, you can install both; in that situation, if the system finds an exact recording for the word that you're trying to play, it uses it, but otherwise it uses TTS.

 

[siamesefightingfish]

Mike. I purchased the TTS reader (PLNTTS) from the link provided. However it hasn't shown up yet for me to download. My credit card shows the payment went through, and I received a receipt from Pleco. I punched in my serial code before I bought it as it suggests. Do I need to call in for this? Thx.

 

[Oriented]

I did the following for mine:

1. Went to \settings\check for new purchases and clicked on it to update.

2. Then went to \addons\paid and under the heading of "Purchased but not downloaded" were the TTS items (Lulu and Hui).

Also when I purchased the TTS add-on, I made sure it corresponded to my Registration ID.

 

[mikelove]

Mike. I purchased the TTS reader (PLNTTS) from the link provided. However it hasn't shown up yet for me to download. My credit card shows the payment went through, and I received a receipt from Pleco. I punched in my serial code before I bought it as it suggests. Do I need to call in for this? Thx.

Did you go into the Pleco "Add-ons" screen and tap "Reload"? Does it appear anywhere in the available purchases in that screen? Does the Registration ID at the top of the Pleco "Settings" screen match the one from your TTS order?

 

[siamesefightingfish]

I went back and now there are two apps Hui, and Lulu listed in the paid section, I downloaded Lulu, but it wants me to buy it again. My RegID matches my email receipt. I'll have to email customer support. Thanks.

 

[mikelove]

I went back and now there are two apps Hui, and Lulu listed in the paid section, I downloaded Lulu, but it wants me to buy it again. My RegID matches my email receipt. I'll have to email customer support. Thanks.

Fixed for you (as discussed) and should be automatically fixed for further buyers now, sorry about that - had to do with the transition to the way we're selling them in the official release (as two separate add-ons).