In the article on Freakonomics’ blog entitled, Testing the Limits of Google Translate, Steven D. Levitt discusses his fascination with the Google Translate’s ability to “instantaneously (if imperfectly) translated.”  Because Levitt cannot speak any other language but English, he claims that Google Translate seems like a miracle, but it in fact has its limits.  He recounts his recent experience in Germany when he tried to translate “I had a nice time with you” with Google Translate; it actually translated to “I had a mice time with you,” which made his host (who spoke nearly no English) to become very confused.  Levitt has now understandably resolved to be more careful with his use of Google Translate.

As a Spanish major, I have had a number of experiences with online translators and dictionaries, especially through the comps process this past year.  I have had experiences similar to that of Levitt, but also have had helpful experiences too.  I have found that Google Translate helps with one or two word phases, but is less successful with complicated diction.

In contrast to my generally positive experience translating a romance language, a commenter, namely YX, explains that Google Translate is particularly bad at translating any East Asian language and that Bing is better for this function.  With the many students and travelers around the world with Internet access, there is an overwhelming demand for the possibility of rapid translation in this fast world.  To respond, there are many online translators (granted, with varying levels of accuracy).  Translators besides Google Translate and Bing, like Babylon, Babelfish, Reverso, etc. in this case can be considered substitutes in terms of their translating services, excluding their precision.  With all these online translators, it is difficult as a consumer to figure out which work the best without comparing and contrasting the results.

For this reason, although the opportunity costs of using an online translator may initially seem low because of the speed at which it can produce the translation, the opportunity costs end up being much higher because, like Levitt experienced, it actually takes a longer time to figure out what to do with the inevitable confusion from the produced translation.  At the same time, the opportunity costs however still remain lower with online translators than seeking out a language tutor.

So, to anyone interested in learning a new language at any point in his or her life, I would still suggest the use of online translators for a certain list of tasks with its low opportunity costs and generally acceptable translations.