Here is one more thing the smartphone has now replaced: Your Chinese-reading friend you drag to restaurants to read the Chinese-only menus. Waygo, an app for the iPhone, is built to translate Chinese characters into English. (An Android version is being tested.)
It is a bit challenging to use but worth the effort. You point the phone's camera at the menu - or other written materials - and position a box in the app over the Chinese characters, or hanzi. If you hold the camera steady enough, a translation appears beneath it. The $9.99 No. 42 is revealed to be stir-fried pork intestines with pickled chili pepper, which may or may not be a good thing to know.
Usually, Waygo's translation is spot on and helpful. Sometimes, though, the translations seem to cry out for more, like when you discover a 'Rich Signature Dish' or 'Secret Tea-Flavored Chicken.' And on occasion it just doesn't seem to be able to figure out a translation at all. But it is still far better than not knowing what you are missing.
A limited version of the app is free and the full version is available at $2 for one week's use. But the full version for $7 is well worth the money if you love eating - and demystifying - Chinese food.
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