Canon Wordtank IDF-3000
The Canon Wordtank IDF-3000 seems to be the updated version of the IDX-9700. It looks much better, with a bigger, clearer screen and much faster lookup. However, the functions don’t seem to work quite as well as the older models.
The IDF-3000 seems to contain different dictionaries from the older models like the IDX-9700. Japanese word lookups come up blank quite often, apparently more so than with the IDX-9700. For example, if you look up “refrigerator” in the English-Japanese dictionary you get “reizouko”, as you would expect since it’s a common word. But if you look up “reizouko”, it’s not in the Japanese-English or even Japanese-Japanese dictionaries. I can’t quite understand why this newer model doesn’t have all the words that the older ones do.
This model costs about 10,000 yen, and English manuals are available.
The more I use the Canon Wordtank IDF-3000, the less I like it. The mismatched dictionaries and minimal English in the so-called Japanese-English dictionary are very irksome.
[...] A word of advice for any would-be dictionary purchasers - first note that this survey is of Japanese people, so the ones they find popular, even though they may use the English lookup features often, does not necessarily mean they are best for foreigners. In fact, I personally would not recommend an electronic dictionary as the primary source for new learners of Japanese; they require a decent level of Japanese to get the best out of them, and they tend to be rather terse, especially for example sentences. When I was learning, I found the Kodansha’s Furigana Japanese Dictionary excellent, as did most of the Amazon reviewers, by the looks of things! I’ve got a slightly old Canon WordTank 3000 which I find very good and easy-to-use, but perhaps newer models will have more expansive dictionaries? Q1: Do you have an electronic dictionary? (Sample size=7,327) [...]
[...] A word of advice for any would-be dictionary purchasers - first note that this survey is of Japanese people, so the ones they find popular, even though they may use the English lookup features often, does not necessarily mean they are best for foreigners. In fact, I personally would not recommend an electronic dictionary as the primary source for new learners of Japanese; they require a decent level of Japanese to get the best out of them, and they tend to be rather terse, especially for example sentences. When I was learning, I found the Kodansha’s Furigana Japanese Dictionary excellent, as did most of the Amazon reviewers, by the looks of things! I’ve got a slightly old Canon WordTank 3000 which I find very good and easy-to-use, but perhaps newer models will have more expansive dictionaries? Q1: Do you have an electronic dictionary? (Sample size=7,327) [...]