Rosetta Stone Chinese (Mandarin) Reviews
Level 1, 2 & 3 Set (149 Reviews)
The Complete chinese set will enable you to fully express your ideas and opinions in chinese and master the conversational skills required to plan adventures, care for your health, and move abroad.
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Chinese (Mandarin) Level 1, 2 & 3
149
149
Great content, horrid delivery
In a day and age where people have multiple devices, limiting this to two computers makes this unusable. The wife and I would like to use this on our home computer and our own personal laptops. I called sales and they said we can have up to 10 people use this on 2 devices. We are looking to use this on 3 computers for 2 users. The product has not been thought out well since part of the functionality we are looking for is mobility and the ability to learn when we have the time. Forcing this to just two devices is makes this borderline useless.
May 1, 2013
Good only for basics
I am on level 2 Rosetta Stone and I am to the point a few pictures just doesn't cut it. I cannot tell if this person is waiting, or late. I do not know all of the little adjectives and adverbs, and half the other stuff it teaches. I DO however, know now how to say "One man is swimming!" "The baby cannot talk." "The girl is eating rice." and a bunch of other meaningless phrases.
Why reviews are so great? Rosetta Stone is pretty easy/understandable until about the middle of Level 1. And then, half of the pictures I can't even tell what they're about!!!! And then some conversation, which is SO hard!!
As for its "learn a language like a baby", a baby is immersed in a language 24/7. I would be going to China, ordering my meals, booking a hotel, and talking with locals.
Overall, for the price, do not waste your money.
March 5, 2013
Awesome
I have been studying Mandarin for a year now with Rosetta Stone and am getting ready for my first trip to China next month. Having studied Russian in college, I feel that the online lessons available from the very beginning are critical to learning how to speak with confidence. Many people who have tried RS that I run into, don't seem to know that you can pay a small fee to have internet access to a class and a teacher. That is the best part of the program!
I also use the audio studying a lot, although I didn't at the beginning. Now I listen to the lessons a few times a week and this helps tremendously with keeping all of the vocabulary in mind.
August 27, 2012
Pronunciation Concern
I've been using RS for about 3 weeks. So far, I am pleased by the effectiveness and easy of use. As a native English speaker, I must say that I am proud of my progress but I'm concerned about how well I'm speaking. There have been a few lessons where I mumbled something wrong and the software showed a big green checkmark as if I did well. I don't want to get a false sense of accomplishment when I mispronounce words. Has anyone else experienced any issues with pronunciation detection?
July 29, 2012
A great product
Rosetta Stone is great language learning software. It provides structure and curriculum management to walk you through learning a new language. I really like the 'no translation' approach, and the immersive use of photographs and gradual building of vocabulary and sentence complexity.
Rosetta stone is also very easy to use, which is an advantage to busy adults looking to learn a language. I found that by setting aside 20-30 minutes each morning to study with RS, I was able to get consistent practice with listening and speaking. Over time this added up to better pronunciation and a better "feel" for the language (I was studying Mandarin).
Something lacking from Rosetta Stone would be more conversation practice. Though some of the new online tools have promise for that.
May 6, 2012
Rosetta Stone has been life-changing for me!
Rosetta Stone has been life-changing for me. With no background in Mandarin, I began three years ago with Level 1 and continue to enjoy every moment of my daily study. I also continue to be surprised at the programme's incredibly clever layers of teaching, and the learning scope it provides. As well as reading the characters, I look forward to exploring their beautiful world, through writing them and learning their history and full meaning.
I meet many Chinese and Malaysian visitors to New Zealand through my work. They always understand me and are delighted that I can speak to them in Mandarin, with what they say is excellent pronunciation. My Rosetta Stone study has brought about an enjoyment of reading about all things Chinese and has been a wonderful catalyst for a vast area of personal interest. When we visit China our stay will be far more meaningful.
I continue to recommend Rosetta Stone as a marvelously intelligent product, with excellent support, whose teaching style brings me immeasurable pleasure. Having nearly finished my work with Level 3, I am tremendously excited that Levels 4 and 5 are now winging their way to me, along with all that TOTALe offers.
September 1, 2011
Chinese/Mandarin
I am very pleased with the program. I am especially fascinated how it works without having to integreate english with its cirriculum. The only possible downside is that it seems to move a little too quickly when I try to review an enunciation/pronunciation. However, I understand that this may be my problem as I tend to be a slow reader.
June 8, 2011
Excellent refresher
I studied Chinese for 3 years in College, but have not spoken it for nearly 4 years. I purchased Rosetta Stone to help me "refresh" my skills, and it worked wonders. I have replenished my vocabulary and grammar and am now using it when speaking with clients and manufacturers in China.
May 10, 2011
The closest thing to living with the locals
I have taken two mandarin courses at universities which were great for getting you used to the beginning mechanics of a language but you don't get enough of what you really need to communicate in another language... speaking it! We are not all outgoing people and we often feel shy in a classroom setting, we become the biggest hinderance to experiencing a new language. Rosetta Stone eliminates that hinderance, you will be speaking as you learn bit by bit, I knew about 500 Chinese words before starting Rosetta Stone, so I should be able to formulate thousands of sentences but its not natural for me. Rosetta Stone makes learing vocabulary and formulating sentences second nature. There really is nothing else that comes close other than being in a foreign country that will get you speaking and thinking in a knew language!
April 15, 2011
learning Chinese
This program is actually a lot of fun. I look forward to my lessons and if I had the time I would easily spend hours doing the lessions. At first I didn't believe I was getting it ,Then all of a sudden it all started to fall into place. This learn ind method is excellant. Good job RS
April 15, 2011
ARABIC LANGUAGE BEST COURSE EVER
In this arabic course I found a very usefull tool for me to learn this difficult language.I am very happy with this investment that is why I got a Chinese mandarin course from Rosetta, for my son:At this time it is very important kids know at least 2 languages to have a better future.I love this Rosetta courses.I really recomended.Chinese mandarin is easy to follow the sessions and disapeared that wrong idea about chinese is so difficult.
April 11, 2011
LOVE THIS PRODUCT!
This product is amazing in what it can do. It is clear that all of the research this company has done in truly analyzing how we learn languages has paid off. I am confident that this type of learning would allow even the biggest nonbelievers to learn a langauge. Studying an hour a day is all it takes, to be able to learn a language while also not interfering with your daily life.
April 8, 2011
Amazingly Interactive & educational!
This program is really great. I never thought that learning a new language could be this easy. Rosetta Stone is the best!
April 8, 2011
Worth the investment
I have used different methods to learn Chinese and other languages. I find Rosetta Stone to be very easy to use, sequential learning and consistent layout. I bought it for my children who are 1/2 chinese and used to speak when they were little. However, now as teenagers have lost the ability to speak what was their first language. They do speak Spanish (my native tongue) and English (we live in the US) This method has inspired to relearn and continue to learn this wonderful and useful language. Rosetta Stone is worth the investment!!!! No more weekly trips to Chinese school where they learn so little at at time. Rosetta stone makes is convenient for busy families.
April 8, 2011
EXCELLENT
I am a linguist, I have worked as a language teacher for 12 years, and I am using nor Rosette Stone for Mandarin.
Due to the complexity of the language I found Rosetta stone to be very creative software and learning tool that has made my learning a very interesting and enjoyable experience,
Congratulations, hope more new resources come on the way on the development of the language courses
April 8, 2011
Good Investment
Today there are many language learning software programs out there but this program dials in the basics for pronunciation and vocabulary. The other great aspect is that it is fun to learn along with! Though I wish to have nothing but positive things to say about Rosetta Stone it would be unfair to not address the main problem that I have encountered. With the image learning aspect it is often difficult to interpret the direct meaning and with no translation you are hesitant to jump to the conclusion of the meaning.
Thanks,
Starbuck
April 7, 2011
Great Product
Rosetta Stone is a great language Product.
It makes learning a difficult language such as Mandarin fun and interactive. I can't wait to pass level 1 and move on to the other levels!
April 7, 2011
i love rosetta stone!
i love Rosetta stone! it makes learning SO easy, all are family can learn! i myself am a very visual person, and seeing or visualizing stuff helps me so much, and Rosetta stone makes that possibly for me!i love Rosetta stones way of learning a new language, and thank to all Rosetta stone employees!
April 7, 2011
Its pretty fun!
I started learning Chinese to help break the language gap between my girlfriend's mother and me. It's going to be a little while before we can actually have full conversations but the system seems to be working. Words just stick to you over time, you don't really need to try to learn! There aree some points when the learning curve seems to get a little more difficult, but its nothing you can't handle! The one thing I do wish the program had was an english subtitle option so you could see the way the language breaks down and what it is you are saying. I think that would probably help me with the grammar a little better. Other than that its a great system!!
April 7, 2011
BEST WAY TO LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE
Rosetta Stone allows me to work on the language I am learning at anytime of day or night. Unlike classes, this allows me to be very flexible with my time. It is also much cheaper and much more effective than any classes or any other software out there. The way it has you learn is not through translation, but by having you make the connections themselves, as you did with your primary language. Whenever in the future I want to learn a new language I will always buy Rosetta Stone.
April 7, 2011
No time to learn...Now you'll want to make time!
I have been pushing off learning another language for quite a few years. Given my job, I travel extensively to China and thought it would be helpful to speak more of the language when conducting business so I finally purchased Rosetta Stone. Before committing to learning another language, I always felt there was a time issue but with Rosetta Stone, you have the opportunity of learning at your own pace and therefore my attitude has changed into wanting to make time to learn more. Thank you Rosetta Stone! Although I am still working on it, I have improved significantly since I began!
April 7, 2011
very good programme
We purchased the mandarin programme. So far, I have only had time to do unit 1 (what with childcare and work to do as well). I have not yet tried the internet support as I am not skilled enough in the language to do that yet.
I have found the programme enormously helpful because it tests and retests your understanding of the words and pronunciation repeatedly within the lessons and the audio tapes until you find that key phrases, grammatical constructs and pronunciations start to pop into your head automatically.
As an adult, having the opportunity to repeatedly mimic native speakers is very helpful because it is so much harder to pick up the correct pronunciation as an adult.
It is also useful how the programme builds on prior vocabulary and grammar as the stages progress in order to expand one's understanding of the language.
It is much more useful than buying a book and CD combination as you can so easily keep revisiting material to make sure you understand it, it is so repetitive and the use of visuals really helps to link words and meaning. Of course, it is also cheaper, more convenient and more intensive than individual tuition would be.
However, there are a couple of added features I would like to see.
There have been a couple of times where I have had to try and find external references to explain things e.g. I could not understand the inclusion of words like 'fen' or 'ge' or 'ben' (and why these different words were in front of nouns) until I managed to find out that in mandarin you need to use 'measure words' with nouns and that these vary depending on the noun (I hope that is a correct interpretation of measure words!). Initially it also took me a while to sometimes work out the meaning of sentences e.g. when 'you' was first used it took me a while to understand that it meant 'has/have'. I therefore think the programme would be improved if there was a reference one could go to that provides a bit of explanation of what is basically being covered in the lesson (not a full translation but essentially what kinds of phrases are being covered) and some basic grammatical explanations.
It would also be very useful to have some information on the sounds the pinyin text are meant to sound like when spoken, using one's native language as the reference e.g. that even though a 'z' is used for the pinyin, it needs to sound not like an english 'z' but more like 'ds' in english or 'q' is like 'ch' in english (I had to look these up independently). Otherwise I find that I am not really understanding how to say a new word when I see it - somehow words like 'xie' or 'zi xing' (part of the word for 'bike') do not really stick in my brain, I struggle to say them properly for a long time and then when I see a new word with that pinyin letter, I am not really sure how to approach the sound.
I also find the audio tapes a bit fast sometimes and would like the native speakers to speak a bit slower. I am thinking particularly of when the sentences one is repeating is quite long sentence. This is probably partly because I listen to them while I am in the car, but I think a lot of people would be doing that and mandarin is a difficult language for an english speaker like me to learn because the sounds are so different.
April 7, 2011
language made easy
I have been taking an online mandarin course through school and been picking it up rather slowly. After getting rosetta stone I can't believe the ease of learning a new language. If you are intrested in learning a new language rosetta stone is by far the best way to learn
April 7, 2011
bad for me
don't understand anything. you just start with no explanning. my wife is chinese and she agree with me.
November 22, 2010
Chinese Redemption
When I called home from college about Chinese, it was always the same story. My Chinese professors said that my tones need work and I need to work harder. No matter what I tried, I never could seem to make concepts, vocabulary, or conversations click. So my mom took a leap and got Rosetta Stone to help me learn Chinese.
Everyday since I've been using it, I feel that I'm finally able to not only keep up in class but also impress my professors and my parents with my improved grades.
November 19, 2010
It's a very easy and fun to use product. At first I just used the software part and was doing pretty good. Some times I had trouble understanding what was being taught but then that is the whole point in learning, right? I started using the audio companion and noticed a big difference. It was easy to picture what the speaker was saying, especially if I just finished that section in the last couple days. I was having trouble connecting to Rosetta World and Rosetta Studio. Of course with my luck it was something the one guy had never heard of, he passed it on to someone more knowledgeable and after a few tries I'm now using the Rosetta World games and they are just as helpful as the audio companion. You get to see the pictures again with the words that go with it. I have no doubt that I will be able to fly through the rest of the levels and be enjoying my new skill in no time.
November 16, 2010
Better Approach than Memorization!
I found RossetaStone's approach quite simple. As I breeze through the exercises, I realized I was not just memorizing what the words meant but the differences between certain words.
By learning how to differentiate between the different words, I've realized that when I see/hear the word "man", the word "woman" automatically pops into my head.
While I am not saying this method is better than the traditional approach to teaching a language, I am saying that this method offers an alternative for the wide variety of learners out there.
November 14, 2010
Satifactory Purchase
An excellent choice to help you learn a language. I've learned Spanish in the past through some independent study while living in Mexico. The approach that Rosetta Stone takes makes it easy to learn by relating words to direct images instead of translations. The only downside I've seen thus far is that some of the grammer rules I didn't understand exactly what they wanted to convey, mainly relating to past or negatory clauses.
Overall though, I am happy with my purchase and would recommend it to anyone wishing to learn a language.
November 10, 2010
Amazing!
I love Rosetta Stone!! I have been learning Mandarin Chinese and I look at it daily, some days just a little bit but other days a ton!! I get so much each time! I am always surprised by how much I can soak in through the lessons.
November 8, 2010
Nothing Else Comes Close
Rosetta Stone TOTALe is an unmatched language experience. Its Dynamic Immersion method could take someone with no prior knowledge like myself from a place of total novicehood to actually thinking and dreaming in Mandarin in a matter of months.
Having studied other languages through traditional classroom methods; I have concluded that nothing else comes close to Rosetta Stone.
My comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary advanced in a matter of weeks to a point that previously took years (and significantly higher outlays of money) to arrive at using the traditional approaches to language instruction.
Rosetta Stone is an essential learning tool for those who want real language skills in real time to produce real-world results. Nothing else comes close.
November 8, 2010
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