3.5 Good Reasons Why You Should Start Translating On a Tablet

Most translators use a desktop PC or laptop for the majority of their translation work. However, with the tablet sales market continuing to boom – it grew by 142% year on year in the first quarter of 2013, according to the International Data Corporation – a growing number of tablet devotees are turning to their new device in order to complete their translation work. In light of the recently announced release date of the extra-large Samsung Galaxy Pro tablet, this number is likely to rise even further. 

Advantages of translating on a tablet

Translating on a tablet can have a number of advantages. The portability of tablets means that they can be used anywhere in the house, as well as outside of it. This allows translators to work from wherever they wish, including the beach if they so desire. 

Tablets are quicker to switch on and more versatile than laptops when it comes to using them in varied locations, so provide even more flexibility in terms of working venue. Their integrated email and web functionality means that wherever the translator happens to be, he can communicate online with his clients. 

Apps are another handy tablet feature of which translators can take advantage. Though using computer generated translation is unreliable in terms of a professional written end product, translation apps can be useful for those moments when writer’s block strikes and you can’t recall a particular word, or you are dealing with a grammatically complex sentence that you want to double-check. 

Disadvantages of translating on a tablet

The main disadvantage of translating on a tablet has to be posture-related. While laptops and desktop keyboards have been designed with ergonomic considerations in mind, tablets have not been designed as fulltime workstations. They can therefore encourage poor posture in the user due to both a tendency to hunch over the screen and due to the small size of the on-screen keyboard. 

Another potential flaw in using a tablet to translate on is the increased range of distractions that it provides. No doubt users will have a range of gaming, news, social networking or other apps available to them, which means that distraction is just a couple of taps away at any given moment. Willpower is certainly needed!

Additional extras

The posture-related disadvantages of working on a tablet can be overcome through the purchase of a well-designed tablet keyboard/case combo product. These allow for the tablet to be propped up on the case at roughly the same angle as a laptop screen, with a physical keyboard sitting in front of it. A small investment in this area can reap big benefits in terms of posture during the working day. 

Future technology

As tablets continue to evolve, so will their usage, by the translation community and others. Next generation curved glass tablets are likely to provide a plethora of new features and it remains to be seen how these will affect users’ devotion to these still relatively new devices. 
Even those not currently using their tablets for fulltime translation work are likely to be using them for smaller, urgent tasks such as corrections to a completed translation following client feedback. In this way, tablets can provide a Band-Aid tool as well as a fulltime working device. 

Summary

Tablet pros	Tablet cons
Portability – can work from anywhere	Design can encourage poor posture
Functionality – communicate with clients while on the go	Increased range of distractions
Handy apps for sense checking

 

Do you have experience of translating on a tablet? Tell us how you got on via the comment box.