Google claims that prototype real-time speech translation systems are performing with "close to 100% accuracy" in laboratory conditions, but has given no indication as to when a finished product will become a reality.
Google Translate, the web and mobile tool for converting text from one language to another, is already indispensable for most business travelers, expats and holidaymakers. Being able to type in a foreign text and get an immediate translation has saved countless people from accidentally ordering horse in a French restaurant or from using the wrong public toilets.
