Imagine yourself a living walking dictionary with a vocabulary of between 30,000 and 500,000 words.
This word power is now within your reach - literally at your finger tips at anytime and anywhere - with an electronic dictionary of increasing sophistication in both visual and audio presentation.
To assist consumers in their choice - and avoid post-shopping complaints - the Consumer Council has surveyed a total of 16 models of electronic dictionaries for comparison of their features and price.
Electronic dictionaries these days varied quite considerably from model to model in their features and contents and it is therefore important that one has to know fully his or her own requirements beforehand to choose the right model with the necessary functions.
Further, they come in over a vast price range from $349 to $2,980 - the 3 models in the survey that provide sentence translation function are priced higher from $1,880 to $2,980.
Almost without exception all models are installed with an English dictionary published by such well recognized names as Oxford, Cambridge, Longman, American Heritage, etc., with claims of a vocabulary ranging from 30,000 words to 500,000 words.
The vast difference, however, cannot be ascertained as there is no generally established standard in the way that the number or classification of words is taken into account.
Consumers are advised to check the edition and publishing date of the dictionary before purchase as the survey found no arrangements for updating the installed branded dictionary via the internet or by other means.
Consumers will do well also to check whether the installed dictionary is compiled based on British or American English as the spellings, pronunciations or even meanings of some words may differ.
Included in an electronic dictionary are other features such as specialized dictionary for different professions, and dictionaries in other languages (e.g. Japanese, Korean, Putonghua and even other Chinese dialects), encyclopedia, etc.
In the past year, the Consumer Council has received from consumers a total of 14 complaints relating to electronic dictionaries. Many involved warranty service with the most common problem concerning damage caused by the leakage of the electrolyte of the batteries.
Apparently many consumers are unware that such damage is not covered by the product warranty and have to pay extra for the repairs during the warranty period.
To minimize the chance of battery leakage causing damage to the product, consumers are advised to remove the batteries from the gadget when it is not expected to be used for a long period of time.
To clearly understand the terms and conditions of the warranty, consumers should ascertain from the retailers or sole agents of the precise scope of coverage such as maintenance period, exclusion items, fees and charges, etc.
To renew their maintenance cover, consumers should approach the sole agent direct to avoid unnecessary dispute arising from dealing with an intermediary.
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