Rosetta Stone, maker of the popular software for learning a language, has released an interactive app for the Apple iPad and iPad 2 called TOTALe Companion HD. Rosetta Stone users with an active Rosetta Stone TOTALe (from $179 for level 1, 4 stars) account can access all their language learning course content on the app, which is free to download but requires authentication (TOTALe username and password). Rosetta Stone has had an iPhone app for several months, but this new iPad version rounds out some features that had been missing on the smaller device.
The iPad, with its multitouch input capability and gesture-controlled touchscreen, is an extremely attractive platform for Rosetta Stone, because its language programs cater to people who learn best in a blended, interactive, and self-paced environment. When using the software on a desktop or laptop, Rosetta Stone students rely on mousing and clicking, even more so than keyboard input. Removing the mouse and replacing it with actual touch motion makes a lot more sense.
The app syncs with users' Rosetta Stone TOTALe account, allowing them to pick up their learning program in the app wherever they left off on any other device.
Rosetta Stone TOTALe comprises three parts: Course, the core vocabulary and grammar building portion; World, where users can play language-learning games alone or with others online; and Studio, where students take live webinar-style classes. At launch, only Rosetta Stone Course material is being offered, although the company intends to add the other two components in the future.
The company hasn't yet released an app for any other mobile operating system yet, such as Android, due to concerns surrounding the "marketplace ecosystem," according to CTO Mike Fulkerson. He added that the company will likely release an Android app in the future, though.
Additionally, Rosetta Stone Course on the iPad lacks a handful of features that are found on the complete web-based or disc versions of the product, notably writing. Representatives from the company addressed the lack of writing, saying they haven't come up with a solution yet for the iPad that completely satisfies them. Not only does the iPad's virtual keyboard take up a lot of screen real estate, which could eat into the other interactive components of Rosetta Stone, but also special characters in different languages require even more space. When asked whether the company had considered implementing a gesture-based writing system, wherein users draw characters with a fingertip or stylus directly on screen, Fulkerson answered, "We've definitely thought about that."
Also absent from the iPad version at this time are languages that read from right to left, including Hebrew and Farsi. The app does require a WiFi or 3G or 4G signal, as content downloads to the iPad screen by screen. Speech-recognition, however, is localized and thus not compromised by a weak signal.
The app is free to download, although users must be paying Rosetta Stone TOTALe subscribers in order to access the content.
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