Google Translate is the best translating application available with various interesting features which also supports translate offline. Furthermore, Google Translate also supports many languages available, has complete words database and text reading feature, supports sound input and also available in most platforms available like web-based translation, Android and IOS, and most importantly, it is free of charge.
Google Translate Offline (Android)
The newest feature of Google Translate is the offline translation, which we can use it to translate words or sentences without requiring internet connection. This feature is really useful when you are travelling and there is no internet connection available. However, to be able to use the offline translation feature you need to download the offline language package in advance.
The offline language package is a file package containing database of words from certain languages that is used for translating offline, without internet connection. The offline language package already supports more than fifty languages available in the world.
At this moment, the offline translation is only available for Android-based platform and is not available for IOS-based device just yet.
How to Download and Install the Offline Language Package on Android
The offline language package has quite enormous size, ranging from 150 – 200 MB. Hence, you need to make sure first that your Android-based device or gadget has fast and stable internet connection in order to avoid downloading failure, preferably advised that you use Wi-Fi internet connection.
The steps are given below:
1. Open the Google Translate application on your Android device.
2. Click the MENU button (the one with three-dotted icon) on the upper-right corner, and then press Settings.
3. On the Setting option, choose Manage offline languages.
4. On the Manage offline languages, choose the language(s) that you would like to install. By default, the English offline language package has already been installed. For example, if you want to install Bahasa Indonesia, then what you need to do is just press on the pin icon right next to the Bahasa Indonesia option.
5. Then the notification will appear telling you the size of the chosen offline language package, take for example the Bahasa Indonesia’s size is 235.53 MB. It is advised that you download it by using Wi-Fi.
6. The download progress bar shows you the percentage of downloaded file. The time needed to finish the downloading process will depend on the internet connection speed.
7. To cancel the downloading process you just need to push the pin icon and choose the option Yes.
After the downloading process is done, Google Translate can be used without using internet connection yet only for the downloaded offline language package of your choice.
Problem with Downloading and Installing the Offline Language Package
Downloading the offline language package with android is very easy. However, some problems may occur, such as downloading failure because with the enormous size of the offline language package file ranging from 150-200 MB, you will undoubtedly need fast and stable internet connection so that the download process can be done swiftly.
Some of the problems that may occur when downloading and installing the offline language package are:
- Unstable internet connection
- Limited data subscription package of your internet service provider
- No network or bad signal problems
- There is no Wi-Fi connection
Those problems are commonly found if you live in developing countries, like in my country, Indonesia. The internet connection problems are complex, ranging from slow connection, the internet network coverage has not covered most area and the expensiveness of the internet subscription charge.
How to Download the Offline Language Package with PC
In order to cope with the problems of downloading and installing the offline language package directly on your Android-based device, alternatively you also can download the offline language package with your PC and then transfer it to your Android device.
1. Prerequisite Files
- The Offline Language Package. In this package, there are two files needed, they are c.zip and language.zip
- ES File Explorer Application. It is an Android-based File manager which we will use to transfer files from SD Card to the Google Translate folder. It can be downloaded for free on Google Play Store.
2. Downloading the Offline Language Package:
Core files:
https://dl.google.com/translate/offline/v3/r1/c.zip [38 MB] https://dl.google.com/translate/offline/v3/r1/profiles.txt
Languages:
https://dl.google.com/translate/offline/v3/r1/desired language tag (2 letters).zip
Example:
Indonesian: https://dl.google.com/translate/offline/v3/r1/id.zip [160 MB]
Arabic: https://dl.google.com/translate/offline/v3/r1/ar.zip
Languages Tag Code for Google Translate:
lr=lang_af Afrikaans
lr=lang_ar Arabic
lr=lang_hy Armenian
lr=lang_be Belarusian
lr=lang_bg Bulgarian
lr=lang_ca Catalan
lr=lang_zh-CN Chinese (Simplified)
lr=lang_zh-TW Chinese (Traditional)
lr=lang_hr Croatian
lr=lang_cs Czech
lr=lang_da Danish
lr=lang_nl Dutch
lr=lang_en English
lr=lang_eo Esperanto
lr=lang_et Estonian
lr=lang_tl Filipino
lr=lang_fi Finnish
lr=lang_fr French
lr=lang_de German
lr=lang_el Greek
lr=lang_iw Hebrew
lr=lang_hi Hindi
lr=lang_hu Hungarian
lr=lang_is Icelandic
lr=lang_id Indonesian
lr=lang_it Italian
lr=lang_ja Japanese
lr=lang_ko Korean
lr=lang_lv Latvian
lr=lang_lt Lithuanian
lr=lang_no Norwegian
lr=lang_fa Persian
lr=lang_pl Polish
lr=lang_pt Portuguese
lr=lang_ro Romanian
lr=lang_ru Russian
lr=lang_sr Serbian
lr=lang_sk Slovak
lr=lang_sl Slovenian
lr=lang_es Spanish
lr=lang_sw Swahili
lr=lang_sv Swedish
lr=lang_th Thai
lr=lang_tr Turkish
lr=lang_uk Ukrainian
lr=lang_vi Vietnamese
3. Copying the Offline Language Package from PC to SD Card of your Android Device
After the offline language package file has been downloaded, then transfer or move it from your PC to your Android gadget SD Card. For this, I use USB cable connection. Put the c.zip and language.zip files into the same folder to make it easier for installation process later on.
4. Download Trick
This download trick is used so that the Google Translate application would create temporary folder to save the downloaded offline language package files. Later on, these two files will be moved from the SD Card to this temporary folder. Here’s how:
- Acivate your Android device Wi-Fi connection.
- Run the Google Translate application, then download the offline language package you’re your android device, like the first step explained above. Wait for approximately 3 seconds, then turn off your Wi-Fi connection without cancelling the download process.
- Open the ES File Explorer, copy c.zip from SD Card and paste (overwrite) in SD/Android/data/com.google.android.apps.translate/files/ol/v3r1/tmp/v3r1/zip folder at which the profiles.txt also is located in.
- Turn on your Wi-Fi connection again and the download process of c.zip will finish in an instant.
- Next, the Google Translate will download language.zip. Wait for 3 seconds and turn the Wi-fi off.
- Open the ES File Explorer, copy language.zip from SD Card and paste (overwrite) in SD/Android/data/com.google.android.apps.translate/files/ol/v3r1/tmp/v3r1/zip folder.
- Reactivate the Wi-Fi connection and the download process will finish instantly
Now the offline language package is already installed on the Google Translate. You may notice it by seeing the pin icon on vertical position with the blue background.
Summary
The feature of the offline language package really helps on using the Google Translate. Beside the capability to be used anywhere and anytime without internet connection, the translating process will be faster because you don’t have to be connected to Google server. It really is helpful feature.
Which of the Google Translate feature you like the most?
However, the offline use of google translate doesn’t support text to speech and voice input features.
The huge size of the offline language package inevitably becomes obstacles for Android users who have slower and unstable internet connection. This obstacle can be coped with by firstly downloading the files with PC and then transfer them to the Android device.
Other advantage of downloading the files with PC first is that the zip file of the offline language package can be transferred and used in different Android devices that you have without re-downloading them.
Do you find any troubles on installing the google translate offline language package?
Or do you have easier way than I suggested?
Please share what do you have in mind.
