I am looking to start dipping my toes into practicing written and spoken Japanese, but as an introvert getting over that initial hump is proving difficult.
What tools does the community prefer for finding partners? I know lots of apps but not sure what the pros/cons are and would like to see what everyone here enjoys using.
I know about iTalki, HelloTalk, Tandem, and Speaky. Anyone have experience with these? Preferences?
Are any of these tools ones I can use without having to have a “live” one on one video chat with someone to start out? Something like Line where we communicate at our own pace?
I’ve used iTalki, but only for finding tutors/teachers. For partners, I tried HelloTalk, but I’m not really an app person, so I found it difficult to continue using. I personally didn’t experience any issues, but I have heard that a lot of people (especially women) tend to get people trying to use the app to date. So just a heads up there. HelloTalk does have a couple settings you can adjust to make info private and such to help midigate it.
I haven’t tried Twitter, but I’ve seen a big language learning community on there. I’d look into #langtwt and see what you can find. Everyone seems very active and interactive. (Even just replying to Japanese people on there can be a start. It doesn’t have to be the #langtwt community. )
Also, have you looked into Meetup at all? Depending on where you live, someone might’ve started a language/culture exchange group.
With Hello Talk I’ve never had any issue with Japanese men trying to date BUT I have noticed that you will get tons of messages (if you’re a woman at least) from people not even studying Japanese or native in it which I presume ARE trying to look for something ???Since obviously they aren’t studying or native in Japanese lol I always block these accounts immediately because its so annoying.
I do enjoy HT for the most part cause you can post questions/statuses and people will respond. It can be difficult to get a long term language partner but the general just posting things and letting people correct me and stuff is really handy.
iTalki is great for community tutors or even teachers! I highly recommend that but mainly only for once in awhile since it costs money.
Tandem is good, but you have to do a lot of introducing yourself to random people and getting a few replies.
Once you have some partners, though, it’s a pretty good app.
I particularly like that it gives the options of TTS, transliterating a message (converting it into romaji), and translating a message.
It also has good tools for correcting mistakes or making comments about what is being said, plus you can even set a preference of how often you want to be corrected, how you prefer to talk (text, audio, video), and at what times you’re available.
It’s very at your own pace, as long as you get an understanding partner, I think.
I’ve been talking to the same guy for a while, but it’s very chill and no one minds if you suddenly don’t reply in a few days.
iTalki is great. Yes it costs money, but that’s really the only way really to filter out the the bots, time-wasters and people looking for dates. There’s a vast range of different prices, many of which are really cheap (especially if you’re just looking for conversation practice). Everyone i’ve dealt with on there has been very professional.
)