Franklin Merriam Webster Spanish English Dictionary (DBE-1500)

This is a wonderful, fabulous device and is probably the best investment you can make in the future of your learning. It has a large vocabulary and the price is amazing (plus free shipping if you order through Amazon). The dictionary and translation is wonderful, but this electronic gem offers more than just that. It features several learning tools, such as a list area, where you can add newly learned words to a list (in either English or Spanish) and quiz yourself. My only lament about this is that the number of words that fit on the list are limited, to about 50-100. Another great feature are the games. Though tacky they may be ("Word Train", anyone?), I found them to be entertaining and educational. If you are unsure about a conjugation, there is even an option to look up word conjugations. This is a great tool, but I wouldn't suggest using this while you are trying to talk to someone, because it takes forever to scroll through the multiple tenses to get to the one you want. However, if you want to learn the proper conjugations for future use or for a written assignment, this feature is great, especially for students. If you are traveling to a Spanish speaking country (or if you are a Spanish speaker traveling to an English speaking country), and you just need to be able to get by with the basics, then there is a section for you too. If you drop down to the main menu, there is an option for Spanish phrases and an option for English phrases. Once you select this option, you are led to a handy list of categories to choose from (emergencies, dining, health, postal services, etc). There are a plethora of phrases in these sections that you will surely find useful if you are a tourist or are learning the language. Personally, I found the spell correction to be of a lot of use. When you hear a word in Spanish, it is impossible to always guess how it is spelled (ex. hecho and echo sounds like the same word). If you misspell a word, the dictionary gives you a list of possible words to choose from. If you type in an already conjugated word, then the dictionary will recognize it and take you to the un-conjugated form with the definition. Now, if you are a student learning Spanish or English, then I encourage you to buy one of these immediately. Not just for the translations and definitions, or for the games or the list option, but more importantly, for the study options. In the main menu, if you click over to "Learn" there are several opportunities to improve your language skills and help you excel in class. There are Spanish and English Usage examples, English and Spanish Grammar lessons, a Spanish word list for the SAT's and a TOEFL Test word list for those preparing to take the TOEFL test. All of this in a little hand held device. Other options include spelling tests and flash cards. As for the mechanics of it, I found the mini keyboard to be easy to use and comfortable to hold with both hands. It is fairly easy to navigate your way around, but take a look at the manual so that you make full use of it. The lid can stay open or shut without flopping around, which minimizes distractions. I purchased this from Amazon and received it quicker than expected, with everything in tact and working (batteries included), and with free shipping.

I bought this to supplement the Ultralingua app on my iPhone and so far love it. The advantage of using this over the iPhone app is that it is a bit easier to type using the keyboard rather than the touchscreen. Pros/Advantages: Keyboard is nice for the size - I like it Not ultra portable but it definitely fits in a jacket's inner pocket pretty well For the price the screen is excellent and adequate Easy quick access buttons for verb conjugations, don't need to hunt around Sample sentences in every tense with the verbs - this is something my Ultralingua doesn't have and I love it! Info on verb constructs - for instance "acabo de" and "acabo con" is included when looking up "acabar" Cons: None considering the price This is an excellent product that is a godsend for whoever is learning Spanish.

The dictionary is pretty good. No problems there. What I do not like is that the keys do not always work. There is no audible or tactile feedback when you press the key. So after you type in 7 or 8 characters you find one missing. You have to bak up and bang the key to get it to work. I would not recommend this for that reason.

The following review, as of 2016, no longer applies to this device. It's old and outdated, but I got a lot of use out of it. I live in Mexico, have been studying Spanish for 3 years, and have owned either the DBE-1500 or it's predecesor, DBE-1490, for those 3 years. For two and a half years I tried to carry it with me as much as possible, and six months ago I started wearing cargo pants in order to have it with me always. I usually read something in Spanish at least an hour per day and thus use it frequently while reading even though I now have a reasonably good vocabulary. I've given 4-5 of them as gifts to gringo friends here in Mexico. Therefore, I agree with the others who've given it the 5 star rating. The only drawback is that the screen is not backlit, but for me the price and extraordinary usefulness more than make up for that one problem.

My Mexican wife and I use this to help when we're stuck for an accurate translation and it works like a charm. It's way faster than flicking through a paper dictionary, and I love how it includes noun forms, verb forms, and example contexts so you know which of the words is closest to your intended meaning. The machine is well made and feels sturdy with a good keyboard. The size is just right - not so small as to be hard to type or read, and not so large as to be hard to pack. At this price, it's great value for money too. I'm a very satisfied customer!

I picked this because i wanted a half decent spanish-english dictionary to learn Spanish at work. I hardly read the product specification beyond knowing that the batteries last a while in it (unless you do alot of wildcard happy searches), it's pretty decent in size (number of entries), and users had trouble with the keyboard (which i've noticed when others hold mine, but it's clearly due to misunderstanding the keyboard). In reality, it was much more than i expected (i haven't even used all the features yet). Lacks: -Doesn't talk (good thing, since that would be annoying and pronunciation varies per region anyway [and it would ruin usability to target a specific region]). -It isn't a native speaker (you still need them, obviously) -Intuitiveness (more on that later), but only partially -Needs more slang (mostly vulgarities) Ease of use: It's a dictionary, and it comes complete with a help button for every menu. However, it's mostly intuitive so that you never really use it (and thus you get surprised by the features when you finally do or read the manual [which you don't need because anything you could ever want to know is written either on or in the device itself]). I remember being very depressed when hitting the verb conjugation button once and seeing it only provide me with the first person singular forms of the verbs (all moods and tenses, though) only to find when accidentally pressing the button twice that doing so provides more forms, tenses, persons, etc. It even provides wildcard searches incase you're looking for specific types of words (but not a specific word [great for looking for words for example pronunciations]). Accuracy: I'm just beginning, so i can't be sure on accuracy, however I think it's reasonably correct from what i've seen (when i studied japanese and french, paper-back dictionaries often had a 1 for 1 translation even when the word had many meanings [thusly totally inaccurate], for comparison). Portability: A small screwdriver and spare batteries i bought for it along with the device itself takes less space in my back pocket than my wallet does (doesn't fit in my already overloaded wallet, though). Keyboard: Contrary to what many people say, the keyboard is perfectly fine. In fact, i would say it's design prevents accidental key-presses. It uses rubberized buttons which must be pressed down from the middle (simply pressing the corner like a lot of lazy people like to do doesn't work). This prevents accidental key-presses. Moreover, contrary to my initial fears when looking at the keyboard in the pictures, there is accented letter input (however done via the normal keys plus an accent key-press [explained by the help button]). Screen quality: well, it doesn't light up or have royal glo, so you better be ready to get out a flashlight. However, most (not all) text can be resized in the settings. Completeness: Fairly complete except being devoid of alot of common slang (mostly vulgar), although there is some slang (vulgar) in there. When it comes to completeness otherwise, it comes with tutorials on spanish as well, and i really couldn't ask for all the features it provides for learning spanish and using the thing in emergency situations on the fly. If you learn how to use it reasonably quickly, i'm sure you could take it on a trip with you. Basically, the most important thing it lacks is cuss words. The rest you can easily say is a bit much for a device like this (especially since the glo would kill the battery life and you can't stick a native speaker of your choice in it [that'd be expensive rent, too]). If you're serious about learning spanish, find a native speaker to work with, go to wikipedia for help on learning how that speaker talks (double check all pronunciations with him), grab a flashlight, print out a list of spanish cuss words, then buy this dictionary. It's really all you need as far as i can see.

Well built. Clamshell cover protects the screen.These three features are worth the price to me. 1. Spanish to English Dictionary 2. English to Spanish Dictionary 3. English to English Dictionary These work as well as any pocket sized dictionary would, and all in one fast response package (no pages to search through).The Spanish dictionary even recognizes conjugated verbs and shows you the infinitive form. My printed dictionary won't do that. There are other bonus features, but the dictionaries rule. The DBE 1500 does not translate, it is a dictionary product. It defines words and gives usage examples. Perfect if you're an intermediate reader of Spanish or English and lack vocabulary skills. 3/13/15 Over a year. Still workin' great. Use batteries from eBay.

I wore out three of these in 12 years. Indispensable, excellent, quick, and portable! If you need to speak Spanish, and are still learning, I highly recommend this! UPDATE Dec 2020: I still have this, and am amazed by its current price! I kept this with me at all times while we were in Mexico, and even in places with NO cellular or internet service, I had this trusty little dictionary to help me find the right word in those brain-dead moments. It is small, lightweight, and has a good database.

I live in Spain and speak reasonable Spanish. I have had this item for some time now and I am never without it in my pocket. It is not a translator but a full dictionary. I know that apps can be bought for smart phones these days but I find this stand-alone dictionary much more useful. If I am sitting somewhere with nothing to do a little while I like to use the learning features as well.

I love this translator! It's so helpful!

Having owned a previous model for some 20yrs I was pleasantly surprised by the value for money.Although it is not made clear this IS a spanish to english and english to spanish dictionary with a load of extra features.I would recommend this to anyone with an interest in communicating in spanish. Beginner or any level up to total fluency.

It must be nearly ten years ago that Franklin produced an electronic Spanish English dictionary which was superior to this in many ways. It was a Larousse based dictionary. This Merriam Webster version has: Fewer words Excludes all words that might be considered at all vulgar Is not really an Spanish English Dictionary but it is a Spanish American dictionary; to give two examples the Spanish verb Arar translates as to plow, the correct English word to plough is not even given as an alternative. Acera translates as sidewalk, whatever that might be. Following on from the point above, no indications are given about geographical usage of Spanish words but at least peninsular Spanish words are included only British English words get excluded. It is a great pity that no other company gives the competition which might make Franklin improve their product. There are though far superior products provided and often included in the purchase price of mobile phones, tablets and book readers. The fairly basic Samsung phone I purchased in Spain included a very good Collins Spanish English dictionary, the very comprehensive Oxford Spanish English dictionary is available as a reasonably priced app for the itab and android systems and I also discovered it included on the Sony reader I purchased recently. The advantage of the Franklin dictionary is the size and a decent keyboard but they could do so much better. It is worth looking at the reviews of this product on the Amazon.com web site the reviews there are far more informative than the ones on the British site.

This is the second Franklin Spanish/English dictionary that I have bought and it was a 40th Birthday present for a Spanish friend and he was delighted with it . I still use mine all the time and is great for expanding vocabulary.