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Russian

An Honest Review of uTalk with Image of Person on Computer

uTalk Review – For Beginners Who Want To Learn Key Words & Phrases

uTalk

Rating 3.7
★★★
★
★★

Summary

uTalk is a software program and mobile app offering learning material in over 140 languages. Its approach is based on learning keywords and phrases through gameplay. It covers a wide range of phrases, each spoken by a female and male native speaker, consequently offering listening and pronunciation practice. uTalk is most useful for beginners who want to get started in a language by learning key phrases. It could also be useful for intermediates looking to fill gaps in their vocabulary and pronunciation, but it does not offer any in-depth language instruction or grammar explanations. It’s also worth mentioning that for some languages, such as Basque, the occasional overly literal translation leads to small errors and unnatural phrasing creeping in. However, we haven’t seen instances in which this would result in you being misunderstood, and there’s no denying uTalk’s value for languages with fewer learning resources.

Quality 3.5
★★★
★
★★

The app is very user-friendly, and the content is mostly useful, but little variation in practice activities can become repetitive.

Thoroughness 3.5
★★★
★
★★

The app does a good job of teaching key words and phrases, but review opportunities aren’t as transparent or comprehensive as they could be.

Value 4.0
★★★★★

The price is very low, there’s a lot of content, and the right learner could get some serious practical use out of the resource.

I Like
  • The number of languages on offer is staggering.
  • Each phrase is recorded by a male and female native speaker. This was especially helpful in learning pronunciation.
  • You frequently get to hear recordings of yourself producing the language. I found this motivating and informative.
I Don’t Like
  • The Memory Game exercise felt like a waste of time. It’s difficult to get a perfect score even if you know the language well.
  • I kept wishing there was a way to choose which phrases I could practice in games instead of them being randomly selected.
Price

$11.99 a month that can be cancelled anytime. 6 months costs $59.99 and for one year it is $99.99. 

VISIT UTALK

This was my first encounter with uTalk, so I didn’t know what to expect before trying it out. A quick search on the internet showed third-party reviews saying everything from “It’s just ok” to “Become fluent in another language with uTalk.” My experience was something much closer to the former.

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uTalk Review – For Beginners Who Want To Learn Key Words & PhrasesRead More »

uTalk Review – For Beginners Who Want To Learn Key Words & Phrases Read More »

An Honest Review of Living Language Online Course With Image of Man on Computer

Living Language Online Course Review – Not Very Good

Living Language Online Course

Rating 0.0
★★★★★

Summary

UPDATE – it appears that the online course Living Language no longer exists. This review covers the old course when it did exist. You can however find a series of books with this name available on amazon.

Quality 3.0
★★★★★

Though the information itself is useful, Living Language’s presentation reads more like a database than an educational/interactive tool.

Thoroughness 3.0
★★★★★

Again, a lot of the information is there, but it’s scattered. Additionally, some of that information appears incorrect.

Value 2.0
★★★★★

Cheaper options offer the same amount of content with more interactive features.

I Like
  • You can hop around between levels and topics, including Beginner and Advanced materials.
  • The subscription comes with a grammar guide, glossary, and forum access.
  • There’s a decent variety of games, including some games I hadn’t played before.
I Don’t Like
  • Although the games are fun, they get stale pretty quickly. It’s easy to guess at answers, thereby completing levels without really having learned.
  • The system doesn’t keep track of your mistakes, so it’s hard to know what areas you need to improve in.
  • I found several translation and presentation errors that made me question the rest of the material.
Price

An annual plan costs $150, and half a year costs $75. Three months is $50 and 1 month is $39.

Visit Living Language

An Overview of Living Language

Living Language offers you the opportunity to choose between over 20 languages. Once you pick your language, you’re taken to the home screen which has options for Essential, Intermediate, and Advanced categories. You can start with any of these options and jump back and forth between them.

…

Living Language Online Course Review – Not Very GoodRead More »

Living Language Online Course Review – Not Very Good Read More »

An Honest Review of Drops App With Image of Woman on Phone

Drops App Review – Decent As A Supplementary Resource

Drops App

Rating 3.9
★★★
★
★★

Summary

Drops is a phone app for iPhone and Android that covers 33 languages. Daily games test the user on thousands of vocabulary words, and many of these words are ideal for everyday use. Drops has an entertaining, user-friendly interface, but it also lacks grammar lessons, and it works better for some languages than others. For anyone looking to supplement their vocab lessons, this app is worth considering; however, the free version might be more worthwhile than the paid version.

Quality 4.0
★★★★★

Though cute and easy to use, some visuals are hard to distinguish.

Thoroughness 3.0
★★★★★

Drops will teach you thousands of words and phrases, from transport and hobbies to astronomy and spices. Some languages, such as Japanese, have extra modules for culturally specific vocabulary.

Value 3.0
★★★★★

The free app is a great supplementary tool to help round out your vocabulary, but the paid app doesn’t offer many useful extras.

I Like
  • The daily reminders keep me accountable.
  • If you already know a word, you have the option of swiping up and removing it from your lessons.
  • Though the app works better for some languages, the sheer amount of languages is a plus.
I Don’t Like
  • It can be difficult to tell certain images apart, which means you’ll likely identify them incorrectly during your review.
  • Some of the categories seem to include random, unrelated words.
  • In languages where a noun’s grammatical gender or case isn’t obvious from the article, you won’t learn that information.
  • Drops only teaches you vocabulary, not grammar.
Price

A monthly subscription costs $9.99, a yearly subscription is $69.99, and a lifetime subscription is $159.99. You can use the app up to five minutes every ten hours for free.

Visit Drops

I’d previously heard about Drops on Reddit, where it achieved rave reviews and some pointed criticism.

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Drops App Review – Decent As A Supplementary Resource Read More »

An Honest Review of Red Kalinka's Russian Course With Image of Russian Architecture

Review Of Red Kalinka’s Russian Course – Exceptionally Comprehensive

Red Kalinka

Rating 4.7
★★★★
★
★

Summary

The ‘Largest Russian School in the World’, Red Kalinka has lots of different products that will get you learning Russian. Its main course – Sistema Kalinka – is very well thought out and will certainly improve the reading, writing and comprehension skills of beginners and intermediate learners. While it may not be the most entertaining thing in the world, the videos and exercises are exceptionally thorough. Your Russian will almost undoubtedly improve if you stick to this course.

Quality 4.5
★★★★
★
★

The Sistema Kalinka videos and exercises might not be that innovative or entertaining, but you’ll learn a ton.

Thoroughness 5.0
★★★★★

Sistema Kalinka goes into a lot of depth when it comes to vocabulary, grammar, and cultural explanations – possibly too in-depth!

Value 4.5
★★★★
★
★

It’s not the cheapest course you’ll find, but it’s worth the cost.

I Like
  • Right from the start, you are encouraged to read, write and listen to Russian.
  • The lessons all build upon each other, and I imagine it would be very motivating to progress to lessons that are conducted almost solely in Russian.
  • Reading and writing aren’t neglected as they are with some other Russian language platforms.
  • It’s easily the most comprehensive online Russian course I’ve tried.
I Don’t Like
  • As all of the lessons follow the same format and go into such great depth, it can get a bit monotonous and boring.
  • The exercises aren’t very exciting to work through and could all likely be found in any run-of-the-mill textbook.
Price

The Sistema Kalinka Russian Course costs 29 euros a month. Through the link below, however, you can save 20% on the subscription cost each month, making it only 23 euros per month.

They also have a bunch of different products such as audiobooks, one-to-one lessons and online exercises for you to sign up for.

Visit Red Kalinka

At All Language Resources, we’ve tried tons of different resources for learning Russian. As we’ve often found, the best course for learning any language is rarely the most well-known.

…

Review Of Red Kalinka’s Russian Course – Exceptionally ComprehensiveRead More »

Review Of Red Kalinka’s Russian Course – Exceptionally Comprehensive Read More »

An Honest Review of Rocket Russian With Image of Russian Architecture

Rocket Russian Review – Uninspiring And Overpriced

Rocket Russian

Rating 2.8
★★
★
★★★

Summary

Rocket Russian provides a course that supposedly, “Takes you from beginner to intermediate.” While its audio, reading and writing lessons do get you practicing different skills, the content is actually quite boring and repetitive to work through in my opinion. The course is probably best for beginners and those that like a mix of audio/visual content, but more advanced learners, those on a budget, or anyone interested in engaging content should probably look elsewhere.

Quality 3.0
★★★★★

It’s got a sleek design and is easy to navigate, but content doesn’t feel well thought out.

Thoroughness 3.5
★★★
★
★★

While you do learn some vocabulary and grammar, you don’t really learn how to piece the language together.

Value 2.0
★★★★★

There are much cheaper alternatives out there with better content.

I Like
  • Rocket Russian is very nicely designed and easy to use so you’ll never have trouble knowing what you’re meant to do next.
  • I enjoyed the Travelogue series as they used a lot more Russian and show what it would be like traveling through various parts of Russia.
  • In the Language and Culture Lessons, you get to learn about everything from the 2018 World Cup in Russia to Russian loan words.
I Don’t Like
  • Rocket Russian is not very entertaining, and the various exercises become quite monotonous.
  • You’ll mostly learn words and phrases in isolation.
  • The vast majority of the content you work through is in English.
Price

Level 1 costs $149.95, Levels 1 and 2 cost $299.90, all three levels together costs $449.

Visit Rocket Russian

Having previously tried out both Rocket Portuguese and Rocket Arabic and come away pretty disappointed both times, I didn’t have very high hopes for Rocket Russian before trying it out.

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Rocket Russian Review – Uninspiring And OverpricedRead More »

Rocket Russian Review – Uninspiring And Overpriced Read More »

An Honest Review of RussianPod101 With Image of Russian Architecture

RussianPod101 Review – Testing Their Course

RussianPod101

Rating 4.3
★★★★
★
★

Summary

RussianPod101 is a fantastic resource that has hundreds upon hundreds of video and podcast lessons on offer. These take you all the way from learning your first word in Russian right up to an advanced level and so beginners and intermediates, in particular, will certainly learn a lot. While the course delves deep into Russian grammar, vocabulary and the cultural context of the language, the lack of speaking and writing practice means you would have to use it alongside another resource.

Quality 4.0
★★★★★

While the platform is a bit confusing to navigate, the lessons are very well put together.

Thoroughness 4.5
★★★★
★
★

There is an almost endless array of material for you to work through and in general, explanations are very clear and concise.

Value 4.5
★★★★
★
★

I’d say that RussianPod101 is very good value for money considering just how many lessons you gain access to.

I Like
  • RussianPod101 really does have a lesson for every imaginable situation and so you can learn important words and phrases for every scenario.
  • There is a clear progression in terms of difficulty from the Absolute Beginner level up until the Advanced level
  • You get to hear a wide range of native speakers and a lot of the material introduces you to various aspects of Russian culture.
I Don’t Like
  • I found the platform quite confusing to navigate and so it often took a while to get where I wanted.
  • The material could be a bit more engaging as you are never really asked to use the Russian you’ve learned.
  • The lack of speaking and writing practice means you would have to use it alongside other resources if you wanted to get fluent in Russian.
Price

For the Basic subscription it costs $4/month $10 for premium a month and $2/ for premium plus

Use the promo code “ALLLANGUAGERESOURCES” to save 25% on a subscription to RussianPod101.

Visit RussianPod101

Having previously tried out PortuguesePod101 and come away thoroughly impressed, I was very intrigued to see whether RussianPod101 was any good as I was hoping to learn a bit of Russian before going away on holiday. After using it for a bit, I could immediately see that it had the same positives and negatives as the Portuguese version.

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RussianPod101 Review – Testing Their CourseRead More »

RussianPod101 Review – Testing Their Course Read More »

LingoDeer Review

Lingodeer Review – A Better Alternative To Duolingo, Busuu, Rosetta Stone, etc.

Last Updated on December 12, 2023.

Lingodeer

Rating 4.3
★★★★
★
★

Summary

Lingodeer may not be as well known as other language learning apps, but it’s actually better and cheaper than most of them. You’ll practice the language by completing lots of different types of exercises. They also include plenty of grammar explanations and opportunities to review what you’ve studied. All in all, it’s one of the better options for getting started learning a language.

Quality 4.5
★★★★
★
★

It has a great design and everything works well with only a few minor issues.

Thoroughness 4.0
★★★★★

Not as thorough as some other courses but it’s good for what it is.

Value 4.5
★★★★
★
★

Quite a bit of content is free and the premium plan is very affordable.

I Like
  • Lots of different exercise types in the lessons.
  • Detailed grammar explanations.
  • Clear audio recordings.
  • Inexpensive!
I Don’t Like
  • The content isn’t always ordered well with some unusual words thrown in too early.
  • Not sufficient for developing oral communication skills.
Price

$14.99/mo, $39.99 for 3 months, $150.99 for a year. There’s also a lifetime option for $299.99. You may also occasionally find sales, such as the yearly rate dropping by 50% to $79.99.

Visit Lingodeer
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Lingodeer Review – A Better Alternative To Duolingo, Busuu, Rosetta Stone, etc. Read More »

Transparent Language Review

Transparent Language Review – Not Exciting, But Language Offering Is So Vast That You May Need It

Last Updated on December 13, 2023.

Transparent Language

Rating 2.3
★★
★
★★★

Summary

Transparent Language markets itself as “the most complete language-learning system for independent learners.” While there are lots of different exercises for you to work through in their Essentials Course, I thought that the material wasn’t all that helpful and that it got very repetitive. Although the courses might not be all that useful or in-depth, with over a hundred languages on offer it might be worth checking out if you want to learn the very basics of a more obscure language such as Buriat, Kazakh or Turkmen.

Quality 2.5
★★
★
★★★

While the exercises are for the most part well-designed, diverse and easy to use, it is the core material itself that I found lacking.

Thoroughness 2.0
★★★★★

I hardly came across any explanations at all; practice was almost exclusively memorizing words and phrases.

Value 2.5
★★
★
★★★

I would only consider using if I was studying a very rare language.

I Like
  • I really like the fact that they offer up courses in languages that are usually overlooked.
  • It’s pretty well-designed, easy to use and has lots of different activities to work through.
I Don’t Like
  • The core material is severely lacking in my opinion; it’s hard for me to imagine you’ll learn much grammar or how to form even a basic sentence yourself.
  • It gets very repetitive and so I didn’t find it that fun to work through.
  • You learn virtually nothing about the different cultural contexts of the languages you’re learning.
  • Their teaching methodology was the biggest issue for me, leaving you memorizing lots of words and phrases in isolation.
Price

There is a free two-week trial period for you to try it out. Otherwise, it is $24.95 per month or $149.95 for a whole year if you just select one language. If you want access to all of the languages it is then $49.95 per month and $249.95 a year.

Visit Transparent Language
…

Transparent Language Review – Not Exciting, But Language Offering Is So Vast That You May Need ItRead More »

Transparent Language Review – Not Exciting, But Language Offering Is So Vast That You May Need It Read More »

Michel Thomas Method Review – Avoid At All Costs

Michel Thomas Method

Rating 1.7
★
★
★★★★

Summary

One of the most famous language teaching courses out there, Michel Thomas is a household name. The platform advertises itself as “The method that works with your brain” and boasts a teaching method “with no books, exercises, memorizing or homework” in several of its course descriptions. It’s available in 18 languages with courses that have material suitable for absolute beginners. I tried out the French foundation course and found it to be severely lacking and as such cannot recommend it at all. You may, however, have more luck with the other language courses that they offer.

Quality 2.0
★★★★★

Very easy to use, and the audios are decent quality, but I found that Michel Thomas’ discouraging manner flustered students, which detracted from the content’s quality in my experience.

Thoroughness 2.0
★★★★★

In my opinion, Michel Thomas doesn’t go into much depth and any explanations he offers up are just at a surface level.

Value 1.0
★★★★★

I wouldn’t use these even if they were free due to Michel Thomas’ teaching style which ruined the material for me.

I Like
  • Um…in all honesty I’m not sure if I enjoyed any of it!
I Don’t Like
  • Michel Thomas never praises the students, often interrupts them and creates a negative learning environment.
  • The pacing of the lessons often seems off to me and in certain places they feel very hurried.
  • I thought all of the lessons were almost identical and so it got quite monotonous working through them.
Price

There are several different courses available with prices ranging from $11.99 to $100.

Visit Michel Thomas

Before working my way through the French foundation course, I had never tried a Michel Thomas course despite hearing so much about it.

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Michel Thomas Method Review – Avoid At All Costs Read More »

LinguaLift Review – You’d Be Better Off Using A Textbook

LinguaLift

Rating 2.7
★★
★
★★★

Summary

LinguaLift currently offers courses in Japanese, Russian and Hebrew. I chose Japanese and working my way through the lessons was very much like going through an online textbook. Very text-based, the material is best suited to beginners although the slow pace and heavy use of English means that it takes a while to make progress. While it’s nicely designed and includes lots of interesting content about Japanese culture, you don’t learn how to speak or understand conversations as the focus is on learning how to read (which it does very well).

Quality 3.5
★★★
★
★★

Very easy to use and nicely produced but all lessons look the same.

Thoroughness 2.5
★★
★
★★★

Great for teaching reading and the cultural context of a language but not communication skills.

Value 2.0
★★★★★

The material is comparable to a textbook but much more expensive.

I Like
  • LinguaLift is one of the best resources out there when it comes to teaching you about the cultural context surrounding the language.
  • The texts are quite humorous to read and each lesson concludes with a reward which usually comes in the form of a video about some part of the culture.
  • It really succeeds at teaching you how to read Japanese and the course is easy to follow.
  • Don’t have to pay extra to access courses in more than one language.
I Don’t Like
  • All of the lessons look almost identical which gets monotonous.
  • The course is mostly in English and it takes a while for you to actually encounter all that much Japanese.
  • Other courses will almost certainly have you speaking and learning the language at a quicker pace.
  • The focus on reading means you don’t get to listen to much Japanese and there is no way to practice speaking or holding a conversation.
Price

$19.99 a month or one year is $156.00. Languages: Japanese, Russian, and Spanish

Visit LinguaLift

In order to write this review, I subscribed to LinguaLift for one month. And, although they have courses available in Japanese, Hebrew, and Russian, I decided to focus this review on their Japanese course.

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LinguaLift Review – You’d Be Better Off Using A Textbook Read More »