ABBYY has announced a major update to TextGrabber for iOS. The application now translates text in realtime online and offline.

The revamped TextGrabber instantly captures text in 61 languages and translates it in real time to 104 languages online and 10 languages offline. The app allows users to translate text of any colour on any background directly on the camera preview screen eliminating the need to take a photo or crop it. In contrast to other translation apps, it does not require users to download languages in order to translate offline.

TextGrabber automatically identifies if the device has access to a stable Internet connection, and if so, uses it to deliver full-text translation into 104 languages in realtime. If the device does not have Internet access, the app switches to offline translation, which is essential for travel and everyday situations such as reading menus, street signs and labels.

Offline translation works for 10 common languages including English, Spanish, French, German, Chinese, and Japanese. The user also has the option to switch to the offline mode manually.

TextGrabber for iOS is free to download. Upon installation, a user can leverage the full functionality of the app to capture, translate, and share three times. After  three uses you can still digitise texts and save them as notes in the app’s internal storage – this functionality is free. Full functionality requires a subscription for US 50 cents a month for the first two months and $US2 a month after that.

“We have added the new functionality to TextGrabber to help people travel with confidence, learn foreign languages, and communicate with ease. Now users will be able to download the app free of charge and use it to translate text in real time without effort or delay, online and offline. A Swiss army knife for any everyday situation involving text, the app empowers users to turn their mobile devices into digital transformation assets,” comments Bruce Orcutt, Vice-President, Head of Product Marketing at ABBYY.

The app helps to digitise books, magazines, manuals, screens, menus, posters, and street signs. The captured text can be copied, edited, shared, translated or read aloud via VoiceOver. All links, phone numbers, email addresses, street addresses and event details become clickable for the user to easily perform the corresponding task: follow, call, email, find on maps or add to the calendar.

As an additional feature, TextGrabber also works as a QR code reader. All the digitised texts and QR codes are saved in the app, easily accessible for further use.

TextGrabber also serves the needs of people with disabilities who can use it to capture and voice virtually any text from print, computer or TV screen

TextGrabber for iOS is available on the App Store: https://apple.co/2Loic2i