Leave a Review Beelinguapp
Trouble with the app, needed features
I am using the premium subscription, which states that one can change languages freely, but changing the languages only changes the language of the stories, and not the language of the app itself. There should be a setting to change the app language. I also read in some other reviews that the makers of the program have recently been using AI for translation and narration (I understand the appeal, but for how incredibly expensive these subscriptions are, I would think you could get people to translate/narrate, or at LEAST guarantee that a native/fluent speaker has checked over the AI translation/narration to ensure its quality. I already see numerous errors in grammar/pronunciation, but I can only reliably check those in my native language). I see that the AI stories are supposed to be marked with a special icon, but I do not see this icon on any of the stories. Please update to make sure the icon appears, and it would also be good to include a filter for AI content in the search options so that we can check whether we want to use that content or not.Show lessGwenEW
Developer Response
Thanks a lot for letting us know your experience! The language of the app depends on the language of your phone, so you can change it in your phone's settings. We are sorry to hear that you are not satisfied with the quality of the AI generated stories and will of course continue to work on improving it. The icon indicating that a story is generated with the help of AI is located on the left side below the "Download" button. Have a great day!Good Polish content but error-ridden
I really want to support this app because it is one of the most innovative I’ve seen. However, I found and reported three grammatical errors in the first three beginner-level stories. At this point, I’m holding off on subscribing until I see how the developers handle making the corrections I reported.
Update: it seems a number of stories were written using AI. Unfortunately, there are stories on the internet regarding how poorly AI translates Polish. That is evident here. For one story, I sent in about a dozen corrections. They all concern the use of the masculine past tense verb form even though a female (Ruby or Juliet) is speaking. The funny thing is there are also about a dozen places where the AI used the correct female verb form. This lack of consistency means you may not be learning correctly if you’re not spotting the errors.Show lessBig Swede Lars
Developer Response
Thanks so much for your feedback! It's great that you liked the app. We are so sorry about the issues you were experiencing. We are currently working on solving this. It will be fixed as soon as possible. Thank you for your patience!Very impressive! I need more choices on voices though 😀
The collection of reading content are varied, expansive and interesting. This is the perfect reason why whatever level you are and whatever language you’re learning, you should be getting this app! It’s like a whole library that fits into your pocket with the added bonus of audio and translation side by side. This would be my go-to resource to read on a daily basis. The passages are bite-sized and they come with a short quiz or vocabulary flashcards and more.
Things that need improvement: Beelingua needs more choices on the reading voices. I like how Microsoft has this capability when reading pdf. The way you earn a badge is also a little hard to figure out. Sharing on social media must show what a user accomplished, not simply a link to the app.
I’m sure I may find more things that need improvement but to me this app is worth downloading if you’re really serious about learning a language. I look forward to more content to enrich my experience! Thank you!Show less💍💍💍💍🦄
Developer Response
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your great feedback! We are really happy that you are enjoying the app :) We took note of your suggestions and will definitely take them into account as we improve the app. Have a great day!Very Solid App for CI
I added Beelinguapp to my planned comprehensive input approach to learning Spanish.
Even for a beginner, the stories weren't too hard and the flash cards and glossary can help keep track of new words that you want to learn that stumped you or were tricky.
It's very well rounded with the use of native speakers rather than computer generated voices, but there two things that could be improved—one bug and one addition to make it even more useful to people studying languages via the CI approach.
The bug is that when I am listening to the app over my AirPods or other Bluetooth headphones, everything but the Listening game and the Pronunciation game come over my headphones, but for some reason when trying the Listening and Pronunciation games, the sound comes from the phone and not the headphones.
A great addition would be a simple displaying of the word count for each piece. For people learning a language through CI want to know the word count to keep track of how many words they've read per day or just to keep up with the volume of words.Show lessAriaSonata
Developer Response
Thank you so much for your feedback! It's great that you are enjoying the app. We are investigation the issue about the headphones and will fix it as soon as possible Have a great day!Different in a good way
I like how the interface differs from that of a typical language learning app, and how it can be tailored for different levels of Spanish. For me, I’m re-learning fluency in Spanish, so I needed something that would enhance the skill I already have. Most apps start you as a beginner, so that’s why I like this one so much. You can still benefit from it, even if you aren’t at the very beginning stages of spanish learning.
The biggest issue for me is that its been kind of buggy. I keep attempting to use the audio feature provided for the articles, but it constantly tells me there’s an error. I’ve redownloaded the app and all, but it still displays the same message. It plays the actual audio, too, but it kicks me out so I can’t follow the readings. It’s been a tad bit frustrating, which is why I couldn’t give a full 5 stars. Overall, if you can overlook that, then this app is perfect!Show lessLee-AJ
Developer Response
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your feedback! We are really happy to hear that you liked the app and apologize for the issues you were experiencing. Please make sure that you have updated the app to the latest version. If the issues still persist, please send us a video or screenshot to feedback@beelinguapp.com, so that we can understand exactly what is happening. Thank you for your help!Please give us real streaks!
I get a lot out of this app, and while it has its quirks, I find it really valuable and helpful. I wish the developers would make two particular changes:
1. Please give us real streaks — not this “4-6 stories a week” thing, but a specific number of stories (like 5, a particular number, not a range) or an ongoing streak. As much as I hate to admit it, my streaks in other apps are so highly motivating that I know I would use this one a lot more if I had a streak to maintain or a more specific goal to hit (my Duolingo streak is over 2,000 days). I feel like that’s the biggest thing holding me back from using it more — I’m so conditioned that I’ll think “eh, feels like a lot of work, I can do it tomorrow and still get 4-6 for the week” — and then I don’t do it.
2. Make it easier to switch between languages. Like many people who use these types of apps, I’m studying more than one language. This one makes it too cumbersome to switch easily between them — you have to go into the settings, which feels like some sort of official change to the study plan. So I keep it on a single language all the time, and then if I feel like I’ve studied that one language enough for the day in a different app, I won’t open this one.
I know a lot of work has gone into developing this, and I really appreciate what the devs have done here. I hope they continue to improve it and make it more fun.Show lessMdmom715
Developer Response
Thank you so much for taking the time to let us know your experience! We will definitely take into account your feedback as we improve the app. Have a great day!Okay but buggy
I like the format of being able to read and listen both in my native language and a foreign language. I pay for a premium subscription and there seems to be plenty of content. A bug I wish the developers would fix is that the “mark as read” link that appears at the end of content hasn’t worked for many, many updates of the app now. I really enjoyed taking the quizzes to help reinforce my learning and also being able to track my progress. Now, though, since the app thinks I never complete a story, news article, etc., I never get credited for it and am always trying to remember what I’ve already read. The app should do that for me.
I’d recommend that others who are considering buying a premium subscription look at other language apps and do a careful comparison. Beelingua is an okay app but its bugs prevent it from being a truly great learning tool.Show lessBing Bong the Circus Monkey
Developer Response
Thanks a lot for reporting this! Please make sure that you have updated the app to the latest version. If this doesn't solve the issue please write us to feedback@beelinguapp.com.Great concept, needs refinement
First, the text size is not adjustable… the text usually uses up only 1/4 of the total screen. this maybe all well and good for some languages. But for Asian languages using complex alphabets, it’s completely impossible to read.
Second, it asks you your level from the beginning with no example of their criteria, no reference to an official system either.
Once you have offhandedly selected, you are stuck, unless you delete the app and start all over.
Third, the app varies a lot from language to language in quality.
This probably explains why once you select one language, the app demands money to try other languages.
Forth issue, the price structure…
This app used to offer a 1 time payment, lifetime access.
It used to be 2$ a month… it’s more then double that at this point and with no lifetime plan in sight.
On the positive, the orator for the Italian section sounds very good.
Started with a section telling the history of Italian pasta.
The Japanese, not so much, oddly the Japanese starts with a very unnatural sounding orator telling you how amazing Germany is..
I find it odd that they don’t start with something relevant to the target language.Show lessSt. Autocorrect
Amazing App, But…
This app is a literal game-changer. What completely sets this app apart from every other app is that instead of just learning a bunch of words and forgetting them, you learn words and get to keep reinforcing the knowledge by reading. However, there are a few things with the development that make the extra features of the app difficult or even unusable. For example, there is poor integration for users who are learning more than one language. I may want to review vocab I learned in Portuguese, but the app only shows me the words in Japanese(even if I only ever read the story in Portuguese, and have my preferences set to Portuguese). This makes it impossible to track your progression or do review in each language. Also, the post-story games just straight up don’t work. I love this app though, and the stories alone make it worth it for me to subscribe to premium. If they fix their app usability(and maybe change the name to something easy to say + therefore be promoted by word of mouth) this app will absolutely surpass Duolingo in popularity and functionality.Show lesspaeonys
Developer Response
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience! it's great that you are enjoying the app. We will fix the issue about the Vocabulary section as soon as possible. Would you please explain us the problem regarding the games a bit more in detail? A video or screenshot would also be really helpful. Please write us to feedback@beelinguapp.com. Thanks so much for your help!so many bugs
The concept of this app is really cool however, I find that the app itself is really buggy. For example, I tapped on a sentence, expecting just that sentence to be read out but it continues on beyond the sentence. When I manually pause it the audio stops, but the highlighted text keeps moving, sometimes even going to the next page. Moreover the app just closes out on me randomly.
A small pet peeve is that the JPEG’s of the covers of books/banners are not scaled correctly. I’ve noticed this when I rotate my device that the resizing/scaling is not proportional and the images become stretched.
Because of these UI issues I have decided to stop paying for the app because it is just not as polished as other language apps. It is such a bummer because this app does a really good job of helping people who are more fluent in a language develop their skills beyond the basics. I’m hoping that overtime these bugs will get worked out.Show lessJingleBellsSnow
Developer Response
Thanks a lot for your feedback! When you listen to a sentence and then pause the audio, that sentence should remain highlighted. Would you please send us a video showing the issue to feedback@beelinguapp.com, so that we can better understand what the problem is? Please also explain us the other issue a bit more in detail. Does the app always close when you are in a specific section, or do you remember what happens before it closes? We will investigate the issue about the covers and will try to find a solution for it. Have a nice day!
