Which messenger was benchmarked by WeChat
Was it KakaoTalk?
Hello.
As of September 21, MAU (Monthly Activity User Monthly Active Users) figure is 1.26 billionDo you know applications that range from? This service, which has huge numbers, is WeChat (Wechat), called the Chinese version of KakaoTalk.
WeChat (WeChat), called Weixin (Weixin) in Chinese, is a mobile messenger application launched in 2011 by the Chinese IT group Tencent. Although it supports PC mode, it is mobile-specific.
When WeChat was first launched, Tencent Group Chairman Ma Huateng said in an interview that he was benchmarking KakaoTalk..
It remains a famous anecdote, but it is rumored that there are more people who don't know it than expected...
📻 Wechat KakaoTalk benchmarking related articles
https://www.ajunews.com/view/20180525164035609
After all, WeChat and KakaoTalk are very similar services. Not only does it send personal messages like KakaTalk,
It offers a range of features such as voice and video calling, gaming, news, social media, business and payment services. It's especially great when it comes to sending and receiving voice messages. The seamless UI/UX structure is very attractive. Similar to KakaTalk, users can create group chats that can be used with friends and family, or create new relationships.
In particular, WeChat is unconditional if you want to do business in China! This is a service you must be aware of.
How does WeChat, which has more users than the total population of a country, meet people around the world? From the moment the Studio team first downloaded the application to the personalization part of the app, we checked whether the localization was good.
Localization of the global messenger WeChat
How will WeChat appear to local and international users? Let's take a look at software localization details one by one.
🤓 What if you don't know what software localization is? Please read the article below.
WeChat (software) installation screen wording comparison by language
Wechat installation pages
- Chinese phrase] More than 1 billion people on the go with great features like live and call
- English phrase] Connecting a billion people with calls, chats, and more
- Korean phrase] Connect to billions of people via phone, chat, and more
Localization is translation that takes into account the local culture. The main difference between the concepts of translation and localization is that the target of localization is (strictly speaking) the product, not the textThis is it. Rather than translating the language in a 1:1 manner, the purpose is to convey the nuance of the original language according to the contextI have it. Depending on the purpose, you can ignore the original text and create a new one.
When translating and localizing software, there are a few things that are more important to consider than the literal translation of a language.
First, keep in mind the number of characters in the origin and arrival words. Since the translated text is not the source text, it is necessary to determine whether it matches the allocated space according to the source text string and begin translation.
Does that sound too complicated?
If you look at the text on the WeChat application installation screen at the top, the length of the sentences introduced in each language is different due to the linguistic characteristics of Chinese, English, and Korean. In the case of instructions, the space for entering strings is relatively large, so the acceptable range is large, but there are many important things to check for localization of parts such as CTA (Call to Action) buttons that are closely involved in user behavior. It must be psychological, intuitive, and concise through proper line reduction, and it is necessary to determine whether it is a noun type or a verb type, and choose whether to use plain language or jargon, translate to convey meaning, or use the original text as it is.
Can we say that WeChat's localization went well?
I don't know what the localization process was, but let's compare the translated results with AI.
Emerging AI translators ChatGPT and DeepL; traditional powerhouses Papago and Google TranslatorI left the translation (serious) of the localized phrases to and compared them. *ChatGPT was asked the most common question based on the original text.
Emerging powerhouse] ChatGPT/DeepL translation
ChatGPT/DeepL screen clutches
ChatGPTThe meaning of link (link) was translated as a proper noun (Link). I didn't know it was because it was a one-dimensional question, but when I asked it again, I showed the results with a disappointing translation. Even considering the nature of GPT, which requires good questioning, the results were more disappointing than expected. (Editors' Special 6.5 points /10 points)
DeepLExcept for the part where the basic form of the sentence is translated into a verb, I feel that it was better than the localized expression. I feel that the expression “many other means of connection” of localization was better because it was more natural to express the part of the original text as “a powerful function such as ~,” and omitting the word provide (provide) in context. (Editor's Special 8.5 points /10 points)
Traditional powerhouse] Papago/Google translation
Papago/Google translate screen ruckles
PapagoI translated it as a noun form. It's not thoughtful, but the translation was appropriate. (Editor's Special 8 points /10 points)
Google TranslateOf the four types of artificial intelligence translation, I feel the most awkward. Compared to localized expressions, I feel most sorry because it is a mistranslation that personifies a link, or an expression of breaking through, or as a verb rather than a noun. (Editors' Special 5 points/ 10 points)
Considering that Papago is a translator in his country (the target language is Korean), I can understand that it gave it a high score, but ChatGPT seemed to have a lot of disappointing points compared to its reputation. Also, it was refreshing that the German DeepL translator did an excellent level of translation. Overall, it seemed difficult to keep up with human translation in areas that still needed some effort. (Hugh~)
WeChat PC/mobile localization
Let's take a look at WeChat's localization examples one by one by dividing them into PC and mobile versions. First, WeChat is mobile-specific. Mobile supports 20 languagesthough Chinese and English on PC It only supports two types. If you want to log in for use on a PC, you must scan the QR code with your mobile, and you cannot enter a separate ID/PW.
PC settings screen text comparison
Let's take a look at the Chinese/English settings (Settings) screen compared in PC mode.
Wechat PC screen
Overall, I like the fact that it uses intuitive and noun phrases rather than difficult expressions. Also, in the Chinese version, the part that uses the proper name Wechat as it is stands out. Let's take a look at the characteristics of the detailed items.
[Settings]The screen will guide you through a total of six setting items.
[ACQUENTLY SETUp] You can check the ID of your account and whether it is automatically logged in.
Due to the nature of the language, Chinese has the characteristic of being written with an even number (2 or 4 syllables). The intention is to provide a unique sense of security (?) Maybe because of this, back in the [Settings] tab [User settings, general settings] It is shown again.
English is not an account [My Account] I expressed it like that. (Is it a reflection of individual/ownership culture?)
[Message Notice] On the tab, you can check items related to overall notification settings.
The interesting part of this tab is the localization of WeChat's social media features called [Friend Zone] and [Take a look]. It's called “Moments” in English, but it contains cultural nuances. [Moments], which is a phrase that records “moments” centered around “me,” and [Circle of Friends], which contains the phrase that I can create interactions through communication within the domain of my friends, can be seen as well-localized parts of each culture. At the same time, this function is a concept that is in line with Instragram, Facebook, and Linkdin.
[SHOUTSHOT] Tabs [shortcuts] This part represents a shortcut.
The interesting thing is that the expression [Shortcuts] has already been recognized by Koreans as a [shortcut] due to the influence of MS Windows, and on WeChat, it is expressed as a part explaining [shortcuts].
Mobile settings screen text comparison
On mobile, let's compare the settings screen in Chinese, Korean, and English.
Let's take a look at the Korean version in numerical order.
Zone 1 [Collection] has the meaning of collecting, keeping, storing, and storing, but it has been localized as [Favorite] in Korean or English. Also, [Circle of Friends], which is one of the most representative features of WeChat, has been localized as [My Posts] and [My Posts] respectively. The literal translation of [video number] is about the (same) video number, but the part localized as [channel] is also impressive. I tried to pick just one or two examples, but I can see that they were localized because they cared about each one rather than translation.
Zone 2 (lower GNB) The navigation bar also appears to have been carefully localized. For the purpose of conveying the meaning, it is not composed of simple icons, but rather explains different expressions for each language. How do you see it?
Zones 3 and 4Overall, I understand the characteristics of the [Settings] tab and conveys objective information.
It's a pity that there are typos in the [Help and Comments] section.
Of course, WeChat has major weaknesses in security, as can be seen from various political issues. However, it is a service you can't help but use if you do business in China or if you are a local study/expatriate. If you are interested in localization, I think it would be a good idea to study WeChat's localization examples.
Our Studio team excels at localization. If you have any questions, please report them to the Studio team.
👇 Ask the Letterworks team for a more sensible localization than WeChat.
I hope WeChat's localization example was helpful to those who were curious. We'll meet in the next post~
*This content has been transferred from Gicon Studio to Letterworks.
