Captions or voice: which to use, and when

Every time someone speaks, Nualingo does two things. It shows their words as large captions in the other person's language, and when they pause, a calm AI voice reads the translation aloud. You can switch the voice off at any point and the captions carry on as before.

Neither way is the right one. It depends on the room, on who you're talking to, and on how many hours you have left. Here's how to choose.

What changes when the voice is off

There's a Voice on and Voice off button on the conversation screen. Turn it off and the screen says it's listening, captions only. Everything else stays the same. Nualingo still listens to both of you, still works out which language is being spoken, and still shows each person's words in the other's language as they talk. The only difference is that nobody hears anything.

It also costs less. Time with captions only counts at half, so an hour of captions uses thirty minutes of your plan or Visit Pass. The same goes if the voice becomes unavailable partway through a conversation: the captions continue, Nualingo tries the voice again once a minute and brings it back by itself when it answers, and the minutes in between count at half too.

When the voice earns its place

The voice is for anyone who isn't reading the screen. That covers more people than you might think:

• Someone who can't read the screen easily: a grandparent without their reading glasses, or someone who reads their own script slowly or not at all.
• People whose eyes are busy. A market trader weighing fruit, a host cooking while you talk, a mechanic with his head under a bonnet.
• Conversations where looking at each other matters. With the voice on, you can listen and keep your eyes on the person rather than the phone.
• Small groups round a table, where not everyone can see the captions at once.

The voice helps in a loud market too, but only if people can hear it over the noise. If they can't, put the voice into earphones instead (more on that below). Bear in mind that background noise, like a television or other voices nearby, also makes it harder for Nualingo to tell who is speaking, so move somewhere calmer if you can.

When captions are better

Captions only suits places where a voice coming out of a phone would be awkward or unkind: a hushed café, a library, a train carriage, or late nights when the house is asleep and nobody wants to wake the baby. It also suits two people who both read comfortably and are already looking at the screen. If you're reading every caption anyway, the voice is repeating what you've just read.

Then there's the arithmetic. If you talk for long stretches, say a weekly evening with your partner's parents, captions-only time goes twice as far. You might keep the voice for greetings and the first few minutes, then switch it off once everyone is settled and reading along.

One earphone each

There's a middle way: keep the voice, but put it in earphones, one each. Nobody else in the café hears it, and you both still get the translation without looking down. It's handy in loud places too, since the voice is right in your ear rather than competing with the room. Earphones also keep the app's own voice out of the microphone.

Two things to know. The phone plays every translation, in both directions, so each of you will hear the one meant for the other person as well. Most people soon learn to let the language they don't speak wash past. And time with the voice on counts in full, earphones or not. If the microphone stops, for instance because the earphones have disconnected, Nualingo pauses and asks you to check them before you tap Resume.

Switch as often as you like

This isn't a setting you choose once. Turn the voice on when an older relative joins the table and off again when the conversation moves to the two of you. Only the minutes with the voice off count at half, so switching back and forth costs nothing extra.

A simple rule: if anyone can't or won't look at the screen, leave the voice on. If everyone is reading anyway, switch it off and let your hours go further. To see which suits you, spend your three free minutes trying both.

Nualingo can make mistakes. For medical, legal or official matters, use a professional interpreter.