I love discovering new technology that enables us all to travel smarter! When I first wrote about the Travis One, I was excited but sceptical about its true performance. Then, whilst at #MWC2018 in Barcelona (I couldn’t get near them during #CES2018!!), I was speaking with the team about their upcoming new product, the Travis Blue, when I finally got some hands on time with the original.
It blew me away at how accurate it was in translating and how well it performed in such a loud environment! Now the Dutch company are back with the next iteration of the One, the Travis Touch.
Travis Touch Translator
The Travis Touch is a language translation device that makes the world a little bit smaller. It helps us engage in more meaningful conversations by removing the single biggest problem that travellers face; the language barrier!
As with all great products, evolving a device based on user experience and feedback is key! The team have listened to their customers who purchased the previous translators to deliver new additions and upgrades.
“Have you ever felt limited by language barriers? Travis Touch will allow you to speak over 105 languages at the click of a button. The power of artificial intelligence and the integration of 16+ translation engines will always give you the most accurate translation.” ~ Travis.
Features
Despite retaining the same palm-sized pebble shape, the Travis Touch has some notable hardware changes.
The most obvious is the new 2.4″ touchscreen display, replacing the small circular screen from the original. In the launch videos, the screen appears much brighter and more vibrant than before, with Travis claiming it is now easier to read.
Although there is a nice new touchscreen, there remain physical buttons to begin translation and language selection. There have also been improvements to the noise-reducing microphone, which, I felt, worked well enough on the original!
The big plus for the original over other stand alone pocket translators was the inclusion of the Sim slot. Having an Online device powered by AI meant the Travis One was in a league of its own. But, technology moves at a fast pace and with only 2G connectivity an update would always be needed!
The Touch will support 4G which will ensure better connectivity in more countries, and with only around 10MB of data needed per hour of use, you’ll not need a huge travel plan or contract!
No SIM card is included. If you can secure a favorable ‘pay as you go’ deal in your own country that you can turn on/off as you travel, this is what I would recommend. Otherwise you can usually pick up a data heavy sim card at most international airports.
The Touch will work in offline mode, but will only support a select few languages. Online via WiFi or 4G connectivity is best!
Finally, the battery power has had a boost with up to 12 hours of use from a single charge. And charging the device has even been brough up to date with Wireless charging now included, but a WC pad is not included.
“For frequent international travellers, having a Travis device comes second only to a good Travel Insurance policy!” ~ {Tech} for Travel.
Specification
- Support for 100+ Languages (see below)
- 2.4″ IPS Touch Screen Display
- Wireless Charging
- Device + Cable + Pouch + Strap
- 4G Connectivity (w/ MicroSim not included)
- Hotspot Capability for up to 11 Devices
How Much Does the Travis Touch Cost?
As with their previous devices, Travis have begun the life of the Touch on crowdfunding site, Indiegogo. At present the Travis Touch can be purchased for $159 plus shipping.
That is around 40% off the RRP which is expected to be around $269 when it goes on general sale!
There is good news for owners of the original Travis One. As a thank you, Travis are emailing out special offers to original backers who have shown an interest in the Touch, enabling them to upgrade at a cheaper price! A nice touch indeed!
Just be quick, the Travis Touch took just 16 minutes from launch to reach its funding goal! Congratulations to the team and everyone involved, in what I am sure is going to be your most successful product yet.
Travel Tech at its best!
We reached our funding goal in leas than 16m! 🙂 Thank you guys. pic.twitter.com/HFamU8g8ER
— Travis (@travisglobal) July 31, 2018
Connect with Travis
Travis Touch Launch Video
List of Supported Languages
Afrikaans, Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Basque, Belarusian, Bengali, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Burmese, Cantonese, Catalan, Cebuano, Chichewa, Chinese Traditional, Chinese Simplified, Corsican, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Esperanto, Estonian, Filipino, Finnish, French, Frisian, Galician, Georgian, German, Greek, Gujarati, Haitian Creole, Hausa, Hawaiian, Hebrew, Hindi, Hmong, Hungarian, Icelandic, Igbo, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Javanese, Kannada, Kazakh, Khmer, Korean, Kurdish, Kyrgyz, Lao, Latin, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luxembourgish, Macedonian, Malagasy, Malay, Maori, Marathi, Malayalam, Maltese, Mongolian, Nepali, Norwegian, Pashto, Persian, Polish, Punjabi, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Samoan, Scots Gaelic, Serbian, Sesotho, Shona, Sindhi, Sinhala, Slovak, Somali, Slovenian, Spanish, Sundanese, Swahili, Swedish, Tajik, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uzbek, Vietnamese, Welsh, Xhosa, Yiddish, Yoruba, Zulu.