Review by K. R.

For the price this is a pretty decent language program, but it’s pretty basic. To break it down, you get several items in this set. First there is the pocket guide, which in my opinion isn’t really sized for a pocket. It’s a 7 x 20 piece of cardboard that is folded so that it’s 7 x 5 when closed. There are six-pages of words & phrases printed a bit too small for my eyes (about 5pt). The small print and high-gloss finish made it hard for me to read. Second there is an smart-phone/tablet app, which is apparently the new feature for this package. The app was easy to install (I downloaded it from the Amazon appstore to my Kindle HD 10). There is an access code that you have to put in to download the Level 1 Spanish language module. The app is pretty basic, with a male and female speaking each word. I actually like this as there are some differences in the pronunciation, which I think helps to make it easier to understand the different way people can say the same thing. It’s a bit disappointing that you only get the module for the one level. I think you have the option of purchasing others.

The bulk of the language package is the software and the interactive DVD. The software was simple to install and worked well on my computer with MS Windows 7 Pro. While I’ve used the lesson/tutorials, I haven’t played with the Oscar Lake game much. You can also record yourself as you’re doing the lessons so that you can compare your efforts to say the words and phrases. I didn’t have a microphone so I haven’t been able to do that yet. The lessons seem to be broken down well, and are easy to follow. The interactive DVD is pretty clunky, you have to advance through the individual parts of the levels using your DVD player remote. I’m not really sure what you get out of doing the DVD over the computer program you pretty much cover a lot of the same material in the same way.

As I mentioned, I think this is a pretty decent language program, and I think eventually I’ll be able to pick up some basic Spanish from using it. But like learning most things you have to put in the time and effort to make doing this successful. You’re not going to learn Spanish overnight.