Another eDictionary question...

[Beison]

So I'll start out by saying I did read all the previous posts on edictionaries in the forum. They were very helpful, but didn't answer everything I was wondering.

I guess I really have two questions here.

1.) Are eDictionaries really useful? Starting in the March term, I'll be teaching through GEPIK in Gwangju. I've made it my goal to learn as much korean as possible before I go, and things are progressing quite well. It's also a goal that before I leave Korea, I'd like to be fluent in the language. With this in mind, would it make sense to buy a eDictionary? As a teacher, do you guys think it would be something that I used a lot, or end up in a desk drawer?

2.) I know people have already recommended brands, but in most cases, that was more than a year ago. Anyone got any fresh suggestions on brand/model? Since I'm a beginner, something that had english menus as an option would be nice, but if it didn't--I guess learning what the menus said would just be one more thing to help me learn!

Thanks in advance for any help in the subject.

감사합니다!

PS: I just noticed there's a Poll feature! (good thinking koreanclass101!) I think I'll put my first question to the polls!

[lukedoyle]

Most cellphones have a dictionary function but sometimes it's only one way...i.e. English to Korean (not Korean to English)...you need both directions.

I have an touchscreen mp3 player i got in Korea that came with a software dictionary installed...very useful...has word list capabilities. My old PDA dic had a testing function for vocab memorization. I say you can't live without one, pick one up inflight duty free if you don't plan on getting anything more than a basic cellphone upon arrival

[carsont]

I have an touchscreen mp3 player i got in Korea that came with a software dictionary installed

For others' benefit, it should be emphasized that "got in Korea" is the key phrase here. My Cowon MP3 player is supposed to come with a dictionary, but it's disabled on overseas models for licensing reasons. They only tell you that in some fine print (in Korean) on the bottom of the box. I believe the story is similar with other Korean MP3 player brands like iRiver and Samsung, though for some devices people have found (warranty-voiding and possibly illegal) ways to re-enable the dictionaries.

[lukedoyle]

Yeah, that's a good point. Perhaps I should have been more clear.

I installed the US firmware on my COWON S9 and the 한영/영한 dictionary disappeared...When I reinstalled the Korean firmware it was all good-to-go again.

I imgine i-touch (which seem to be extremely popular) have dic apps available too.

If you start looking at the stand alone dictionaries [iriver, nuriyan etc.] just keep in mind that none of these products are angled at learners of Korean. They're mainly products for Koreans who are learning English. Still, you'll be able to utilise them to your own end.

[harumi]

hello!

i'm not sure how helpful this will be...but i just got a nurian x13 off of gmarket.
it was about 142,000 won.

i just got it yesterday, and from what i can tell, here's what i love about it:

-english menu--wonderful!
-eng-korean, korean-eng, japanese-korean, korean-japanese, chinese-korean, korean-chinese
-color touchscreen
-menus are easy to navigate
-you can easily input words by via typing or writing
-games
-you can input different types of media--mp3, photos, ebooks, video, etc.
--but you may have to do this through the korean software CD it comes with


cons
-i feel like there are not so many example sentences and phrases
(i sometimes feel like my phone has more examples)
-short battery life--although you can easily charge it via USB cable

when i went to yongsan and technomart, this is the model they pushed on me right
away.

i'd be curious to see how a Sharp dictionary compares. I have an electronic Sharp dictionary that I used while I was in Japan, and it was great! there were tons of example sentences.

it's really fun to have a fancy color touchscreen dictionary...but i think next time i'd buy something more basic.

i hope this helps.