Category:

Vocabulary for Phones, Computers and Internet

5/6/2016

Update 2016-07-24: Added Phonescoop glossary to Telephones > General.

Left to right: smartphone, laptop, tablet computer.

A big post with lots of vocabulary lists from online dictionaries of words related to ICT (information and communication technology): telephones, computers and networks & systems like the internet, the worldwide web and e-mail. Go to the list and click on the words to see definitions, examples, pronunciation etc.

This vocabulary can be useful for our classes on: using the telephone, mobile phones, technology, office work, digital marketing, innovation, e-mail, communication etc.

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Mobile phone audio exercises & podcasts

19/11/2014

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Update 2017-10-08: Added Culips Chatterbox # 114, ESL Library and Podcasts in English 2.126. 2017-10-05: Added Culips Chatterbox #195 & vocab links. 2017-05-23: Fixed link for ESL Podcast #837. 2016-12-22: Changed ESLPod links to Lizhi.fm. See ESLPod Links Broken. Added ESL Podcast #203. 2016-07-22: Added DrewsESL.

Here are some audio exercises and podcasts for English learners on the topic of mobile phones / cell phones.

Podcasts

Culips - Chatterbox #195 – Apps. A slow conversation in natural English about apps (short for "applications" (Collins 柯林斯 #3)), programs used for different functions and activities on smartphones.

NOTE ON PRONUNCIATION
The word is app (singular) or apps (plural). It is one syllable, pronounced "ap" (singular) or "aps" (plural).

It is not A P P. It is not three separate letters. It is not three syllables pronounced "ei-pi-pi".

If you say "ei-pi-pi" to an English speaker, they will probably not know what you are talking about!

You can listen to the pronunciation of the words and example sentences with these links:
* Fanyi Baidu - "app"
* Fanyi Baidu - "apps"

In this Culips podcast they talk about how you can use an app store to download and install apps on your phone.
They talk about the app ecosystem (the whole world of people making and offering many different apps and related services) on different smartphone operating systems / platforms (COMPUTING), like Apple's iOS and Google's Android, and the differences between them. (And they comment that nobody uses Windows Phone or BlackBerry any more.)
They talk about apps for utilities (useful things, especially small programs for your computer or smartphone), online banking, weather, translation & dictionaries, social media ( like Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook), online shopping (also called m-commerce if done on a mobile phone), language learning, making notes, grocery lists and to-do lists, even horoscopes.
They talk about games like chess, and puzzles like sudoku.
They talk about apps for texting / messaging / chatting (e.g. WhatsApp, SnapChat, Telegram, WeChat/Weixin, Facebook Messenger, Kakao Talk), and the problem of people using different ones that can't communicate with each other. Except for SMS texting /messaging which works with everyone. (Note: very few non-Chinese people use WeChat /Weixin, so if you want to text them, you'll probably need to use a different app.)
They discuss paying for apps (which supports the developers who create the apps) compared to using advertising-supported free apps.
They also compare using a phone app with using a website on a computer (e.g. their bank offers two ways to access the banking service: both a website and an app. Which way is better? It depends if the app is comprehensive and streamlined and has caught up with (REACH SAME STANDARD) the website or if the website has better functionality. Also some apps have bugs (Collins 柯林斯 #3 & 双语例句 > 错误).) The man Andrew mentions that he's much better at typing on a real keyboard than on his phone's touchscreen, which is why he is resistant to doing some tasks in apps on his phone (although he does now have a Bluetooth keyboard).
They also discuss room / space / memory on your phone: downloading and installing apps uses up your phone's storage space, so you might need to add a memory card, but iPhones don't have expandable storage (权威例句) / expandable memory.
They discuss different models of smartphone like the Apple iPhone 6Plus (which the woman Morag "inherited", probably meaning that one of Morag's relatives got a new phone and then gave Morag their old one because they weren't using it any more) and the Android phone the Nexus 6P and their different benefits, like memory and screen size. Once Morag tried the iPhone, she totally fell for it (she fell in love with it) because of the apps. The man Andrew says he's a diehard Android fan.
More info on apps for mobile phones: Wikipedia - Mobile apps
More info on app stores: Wikipedia - App store
Podcasts in English - Level 2.126 - Not just a phone. A short intermediate conversation about a person's favourite apps on her phone.
Culips - Chatterbox #114 – Cell phones
ESL Library - Smartphones. A short podcast about the evolution of smartphones and how we use them.
ESL Podcast 179 – Shopping for a Cell Phone
ESL Podcast 647 – Using a Smartphone
ESL Podcast 810 – Switching Cell Phone Plans
ESL Podcast 341 – An Annoying Cell Phone User
ESL Podcast 203 – Text Messaging
ESL Podcast 837 – Driving While Calling and Texting
ESL Podcast 1224 – Setting Timers and Alarms. Nowadays usually done with our smartphones. Discusses key vocab like: set [#3] an alarm, go off [#5], the snooze button, ring tone etc.
Business English Pod - BEN 14 - Battle of the Mobile Platforms

Audio + exercises

See also:

GALESL - Vocabulary for Phones, Computers & Internet

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Sales: More Podcasts

10/12/2013

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UPDATE 2017-2-23: All ESLPod.com links changed to Lizhi.fm. For more info, see this post: ESLPod Links Broken.

Following on from the sales podcasts in my previous post, here are some more podcasts you can listen to on the topic of sales.

Intermediate

ESL Aloud - Podcast #85 The Word SALE - it covers the many different ways of using the words "sell", "sale" and "sales" (the sale, on sale, for sale, having a sale, salesperson, sales force, Vice President of Sales, sales tax, sales receipt etc), with explanations and chances for you to listen and repeat after words and example sentences. (More info here about using ESL Aloud.)

ESL Pod - ESLPodcast 84 - Bargaining with a Seller

ESL Pod - ESLPodcast 103 - Making a Sales Call - Calling a lead on the phone.

BBC - 6 Minute English - Business English: Describing sales - context: mobile phones

ESL Pod - ESL Podcast 340 – Office Competition - sales teams from two different branches compete to have the most sales.

Upper Intermediate

Business English Pod - BEP 85 INT – Sales: Informal Product Presentation - talking casually over dinner with customers and soft-selling (using gentle persuasion & relationship building, not heavy pressure; more on soft selling here and here.)

Business English Pod - BEP 92 INT – Sales: Features, Advantages, Benefits (or FAB Presentation)

Business English Pod - BEP 93 INT – Sales: Taking an Order

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Podcasts about Business Telephone Calls

23/9/2013

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UPDATE 2017-3-6: All ESLPod.com links changed to Lizhi.fm. For more info, see this post: ESLPod Links Broken.
Update 2016-5-22: Added several more BEP podcasts and 1 more ESLpodcast.

In our course on Business Communication, we have a class on telephoning, with topics like answering the phone, leaving/taking messages, setting up & changing appointment, making/respondng to complaints etc.

Here are some useful ESL podcasts you can listen to about making business phone calls.

ESL Pod

ESL Pod has lots of useful podcasts for intermediate & upper-intermediate learners. Usually a short conversation followed by explanation of the words, idioms & ideas; followed by the conversation again at normal speed for native English speakers.

Business English Pod (BEP)

Business English Pod has many podcasts for learning business English, some for advanced learners, some for intermediate learners.
The audio is free. For some podcasts, you have to pay for other resources, but others might have free resources like "Quiz & Vocab".

All their telephone English podcasts listed here:

Business English Pod - Telephoning

More Telephone English

I also have a few more links for telephone English here on my website, mostly shorter exercises for beginner and intermediate levels.

G.A.L.E.S.L. - Telephone English

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Tencent Weixin 微信 ("WeChat") the Best Thing Since Weibo?

25/4/2012

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Update 2014-04-07: I eliminated all links to Bing online dictionary and replaced with links to other dictionaries & encyclopedias.

WeChat, a.k.a. Weixin

I just saw an article on TechRIce about the latest version of Tencent's mobile messaging and social networking app, Weixin 微信 4.0, which now has an English name too, WeChat. TechRice is very optimistic about the new product, as you can tell from the title of the article:

Weixin 4.0 is Vintage Tencent and the Most Important Chinese Internet Product Since Weibo

TechRice describes the new features and explains why they think WeChat/Weixin will become big. Below I'll explain some of the vocabulary from that article, to make it easier for students of English to understand.

Click to see rest of article.

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Vocabulary for Phones, Computers and Internet

Mobile phone audio exercises & podcasts

Sales: More Podcasts

Podcasts about Business Telephone Calls

Tencent Weixin 微信 ("WeChat") the Best Thing Since Weibo?

G.A.L.E.S.L. / joe3

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