Franklin Merriam-Webster ((Speaking)) Spanish-English Dictionary (BES-1850)

I have very little spanish background. I bought the device before going to Guatemala for a month for spanish lessons. Worked fine, no defects, all the buttons worked. The speaker works well enough to tell you where the accent on the word is, which is really all you need to know once you've grasped that all the spanish letters make the same sound with all the exceptions in the english language. No one in my spanish class laughed at me for having the device because I could look up words faster than anyone with the old-fashioned paper dictionaries. Sometimes my spanish teacher who spoke spanish as a second language would blank on a word - guess who everyone turned to? yeah that would be me. The friends that I made in Guatemala only spoke spanish, so I took this device with me everywhere and when they said a word I didn't know or I couldn't think of how to explain something, I used the dictionary. I admit that the screen is dull, it's certainly not as clear as the Franklin English dictionary. That makes it somewhat difficult to read at times, but never impossible for me. I used this device so much while I was in Guatemala that I burned out the batteries in 2 weeks - obviously, if it were impossible to read I could never have accomplished that. I was disappointed that the dictionary lacks profanity. Profanity is as much a part of the english language as it is the spanish language, thus you will hear it spoken in spanish speaking countries - surprised?. Most of us will agree that it is important to know when someone is using such language towards you. Is Franklin/Merriam-Webster on some sort of crusade to rid the world of profanity? Nevertheless, I strongly recommend this product for anyone learning spanish. The really awesome thing about it is that it conjugates the verbs - you won't find that feature in paper dictionaries, unless you get the really big ones. Once, while in Guatemala, I dropped my Franklin - that was when I realized how useful it was to me because I started thinking how am I going to keep increasing my vocabulary, how am I going to translate my assignments, how will I talk to other people? Fortunately, it still worked, and I was still able to function as well.

I do not know why folks like the 1890 more than this one. A half inch smaller in each dimension and curved edges make it fit into pockets better. The cover actually make it convenient to throw into a backpack, purse, or pocket with junks and not worry about the LCD getting broken. Folded up, the cover function fine. I have an 1890, and I always reach for the 1850 first. It automatically default to either the Eng/Span or Span/Eng dictionary first, whereas the 1890 default to the "books" section, and you have to toggle three times, or click down, and chose the dictionary of choice. An extra 3 clicks before you can access the screen you need. For the convenient size (wish Franklin will comeout with one smaller), direct access to dictionary (very useful if you are in the 2 min battery-saver-shut-off mode). Do not buy those rectangular ones, unless the dimension can be made smaller. And do not buy one that do not let you have direct access to the dictionary of your choice with one click. Vocab wise, I have found it to contain 99% of the definitions that I need. Much better than any pocket dictionary, and the breath of definition is sufficient for 99% of my need. All the conjugated forms are found, but it does not define which one, except for the infinitive's definition. I love this device and prefer it much over the 1890.

Franklin Produts are known to be limited and cheaply made. I paid $25 for this product because it was originally listed close to $100 several months ago. However, I over paid for this product and should of gone with my gut and not of purchased it. The technology seems to be late 80's and very basic. You can only find one word at a time and the dictionary is very small and worthless. I traveled to south america and gave up using this hunk of junk after 1 hour. Hard to see the screen, limited vocabulary, can't understand the audio playback of the words, and you can't form sentences. Good thing for me I was able to get online with my I-touch and use google translator which is free. I strongly sugguest you save your cash and use the free technology online to form sentences and translate real day activities. I will never use franklin products again, even if it was given to me. There must be a better portable product on the market because it would hard to find something this generic.

I bought the BES-1850 BACK IN 2004 (I used it every day since then), it worked very well until 2010 when the screen started working really bad because after entering the word it was impossible to see anything and the screen was looking totally opaque...but, after 6 years of use!!!!(what else can I expect? it was really good). When I bought it I did not English at all and it was a very helpful tool...it is fast and easy to use, gives you the pronunciation, conjugation and the meaning of the words. I am a Latin speaker and I know that some words are not the right ones we use (when you need to come from English to Spanish), but I do not see any problem because I know what the exact meaning could be....from Spanish to English I can not say the same thing because I have to trust the dictionary; However, I bought the SCD-1870 English-English dictionary and it gave me all the confidence I needed to be able to confirm and find real grammatical meanings...This combination was the best tool I have ever had to learn English. The problem is that they are so good that if I do not have them handy I feel uncomfortable writting or even some times talking. I am so perfectionist and I have been doing my best to learn the language the right way. I DO RECOMMEND THIS TOOLS TO ANYBODY WHO WANTS TO LEARN ENGLISH THE RIGHT WAY.

Excellent translator

Sent back

I live in Spain and found BES-1850 quite useful but a bit bulky for carrying around. Difficult to reed translated text. Good size dictionary, not many words beet it unlike smaller Franklins. Good battery life. Dont like funny lid.

Very easy to use. The light is not very bright but is ok. The same as the sound could be better. But for the price I paid is perfect :)