Skype Translator makes it easier to communicate globally on Surface

Six languages for voice and video calls and 50 languages for messaging have been added to the Skype for Windows desktop app.

Imagine conversing easily with someone in France—but you only speak English and the other person speaks only French. It may sound like something out of “Star Trek,” but this technical wizardry is possible now with Skype Translator.

This groundbreaking app translates in real time your speech and text into a language the person you’re conversing with understands—and vice versa. So if the other person speaks only French, you’ll hear his speech or read his Skype message in English.

The technology is rolling out to users of the Skype for Windows desktop app, which supports English, French, German, Italian, Mandarin, and Spanish for voice and video calls and 50 languages ranging from Arabic to Yucatec Maya for Skype text messages.

And yes, “Star Trek” fans, Klingon is one of the supported text languages.

Built on world-class machine learning technology, Skype Translator grows smarter the more you use it. The software learns from training data to better recognize and translate the diversity of topics, accents, and language variations of actual users.

Try Skype Translator by installing the free Skype for Windows desktop app on your Surface today. The Skype Translator update is being introduced over the next few weeks.

For more information on this Windows app, read about it here on the Skype Blog.