Have you ever heard about Lingopie? Personally, the first time I heard about Lingopie, I was scrolling through my Facebook feed when I saw one of their Ads. I couldn't believe all the features highlighted and I decided to go for a free trial to see by myself. I then tested the platform and was happily surprised to find more interesting features than announced. Instead of taking notes, I ended up spending time just exploring the platform, and my trial ended. I had to retake another trial last week with another account to be able to write down this review for you. Here is what I can say about Lingopie's features and my personal opinion about this language-learning platform.
What is Lingopie?
Lingopie is a language learning platform that helps language learners learn a language by simply binge-watching movies and TV series. It is a streaming service just like Netflix but for language learning. They currently have 9 languages available: English, Spanish, German, Italian, Portuguese, Korean, Russian, Japanese, and French.
You can browse thousands of hours of movies, TV shows, web series, cartoons, and more, depending on the types you are interested in.
How does Lingopie Work?
Lingopie has an app that you can download on your phone. It also has a desktop interface. Once you have Lingopie available on your desktop or phone, you just need to choose the language you are learning, and from that, choose the movie you want to watch from different categories; drama, cartoon, romance, action, travel, sci-fi, .... You can also listen to French music and podcasts.
Here is what a Lingopie dashboard looks like on a desktop.
Lingopie has many features that make language learning easier and you can try them for free before subscribing, thanks to their 7-day free trial. Let's go through the main ones.
The subtitles - script - click and learn features
When watching a show on Lingopie, you have dual subtitles, in your target language and native language. They both appear on your screen, but you can decide to turn them off depending on how much you are at ease with the language.
Every time you encounter a new word, you can click on it to get the meaning and also listen to its pronunciation as you can see in the image below.
Another thing is the full script that you can read on the right side of your screen when you are not in full-screen mode. If you find it too much disruptive, you can just go on full screen and they will stop appearing.
Lingopie movies and TV shows
Lingopie has many movies and TV shows in the 9 languages listed above with more or fewer shows depending on the language. They are classified by categories, and anyone can find something for himself. You can binge-watch romance, comedy, drama, action, thriller, travel and cooking shows, sci-fi movies, series, TV shows, as well as documentaries.
They also have some TV series of Netflix like Lupin, or Plan coeur (The hook-up plan). However, they don't have all the episodes.
Among popular shows, you will find:
The Dalton: this is a popular French cartoon known internationally. To tell you the truth, I don't feel it's only for children. Myself I like watching the band of 4 Dalton brothers as they are so funny.
French grammar: this is a series of grammar lessons explained in bite-size lessons and in a fun way.
Learn with a Chef: a TV show that will teach you the basics of French cuisine like kitchen material, and how French people talk about food, ...
Bertrand: this is the story of a guy whose girlfriend asked for a break and he pretended to be on vacation while he was just staying next door, spying on her with his neighbor's illegal surveillance system.
There are more popular shows, but just to list a few of them. Most of the movies and series are from France, which makes it a great immersion tool if you are looking to speak as French people do.
Lingopie has web series with each episode having an average duration of 2 to 5 minutes. They also have short movies that are great for people who do not have much time but want to practice regularly.
While subscribing, Lingopie will ask you for your language level, and the types of movies you like, and they will make suggestions of films you can watch. If you are a beginner, they will even recommend beginner-friendly shows.
The "Speak" and " say it" feature
With the speak function, you can repeat the sentences heard, for more practice.
The "Say it" feature allows you to record yourself while watching the movie or show by repeating it, trying to have a pronunciation close to a native speaker.
Lingopie will ask you to share your microphone and you will be able to pronounce the phrase or sentence after the countdown. Once done, you validate to send to the judges, and you will get immediate feedback on your pronunciation in a score format out of 100. If your pronunciation is far from the native's, the Lingopie app might ask you to retry. You can also listen to yourself to see how you sound.
Lingopie's video loop feature
The loop feature is a great way, to listen again and again to a sentence you would like to get familiar with. It helps you to develop your listening and you can practice your pronunciation skills at the same time. The repetition is on and on until you stop it.
As per a general French saying " La répétition est pédagogique". The best way to learn is by repeating over and over, just like when we teach kids. It helps you keep in mind and for good the pronunciation, and the sentence in a context of use.
Speed management per level
Something that I found interesting is the possibility of playing the video according to your language level. I know how difficult it can be to understand native speakers when you are just starting and this feature is a lifesaver. It allows you to adjust the speed according to your level. You can choose between a beginner, a novice, intermediate, or advanced level, or even decide to play the video at full speed.
For a beginner, that is awesome, as you can go at your rhythm and increase the level as you get more confident.
The flashcards and Quiz features
Everytime you click on a word while watching a movie on Lingopie, it is automatically added as a flashcard that you can review later in the learn and review section. Similar to some gamified apps like Mondly or Duolingo, the Lingopie App has this gamified learning style with its pop-quiz and Word Master features...
What I found particularly useful is the fact that you can learn in context with flashcards. You don't just have an isolated word to review. The word is used in a sentence, extracted from the movie or TV show. A short clip of the movie is played when reviewing the word. That helps you really memorize the word for good in your mind.
Private lessons
Yes, Lingopie is not only a language TV streaming app, their platform has been made with the needs of the learners in mind. They offer private lessons for those who want to practice more with real teachers and have the possibility of interacting with native speakers. Lingopie is indeed a great way to improve your vocabulary, listening and pronunciation skills but it will remain a complementary tool if you do not interact with real people and put into practice all the things you learned.
So, if you are looking for private lessons, now you know that Lingopie, just like Lingoda or other learning platforms, can help you achieve your learning goals. For reference, 4 private classes of 45 mins each will cost you 80$. They even have weekly free classes that you can join to learn a grammar point, and practice conversation around a movie in their catalog. You will have to watch a specific movie or episode before going to class.
Lingopie's forum
As a subscriber of Lingopie TV, you become part of the community and can enjoy weekly free classes on Zoom, and short lessons posted in the forum. You can also get some help if you have a question. the teachers of Lingopie will reply or other learners will do.
Lingopie's language dictionary
I discovered it today, and I think it is just perfect! If for instance, you have a word you've just heard for the first time, you can go to the dictionary and type it. If ever it has been used in some of their videos, you will have all the extracts of movies or shows where it has been used, and that will help you understand better the different contexts of use.
How much does a Lingopie subscription cost?
Is Lingopie free? This is a question I am sure you had in mind. Unfortunately, Lingopie doesn't have a free version and is not free. However you do have a 7-day free trial to see if you like it or not.
A Lingopie subscription starts at $12 per month for a monthly subscription. But if you opt for an annual subscription, you can get it for about $5.99 per month with a 50% discount, and if you go for a lifetime subscription, you can get up to 70% off.
A few things to note about the payment: if you choose the monthly plan, be aware that you have to pay 36$ every 3 months and not 12$ each month as you can see in the screenshot below. The payment will be quarterly. Annual subscriptions are to be paid annually, and a lifetime subscription is paid once and for all.
The price is not that expensive when you consider that you can learn several languages with the annual plan for only $71.88
The plus about Lingopie
You learn while having fun watching TV and unconsciously developing your vocabulary, pronunciation, and listening skills
You can enjoy various types of movies: cartoons, drama, romance, comedy, and more. There is something for everyone.
You can adjust video's speed to your level and don't have to fear not understanding most of the speech.
You can learn new words by clicking on them, to learn how to pronounce them in context, and reviewing them later as flashcards.
You can enjoy weekly free lessons to learn grammar rules, idioms or have conversations with other people.
You can practice your pronunciation and get feedback
You can go beyond learning with TV and also listen to podcasts and French music with the same features as in a movie (script, subtitles, Flashcards,...)
It doesn't cost so much to learn with Lingopie and you can try all the features during the 7-day free trial.
The down sides
=> Some perfectible points in the transcripts and translation
During my testing period, I noticed some typos in the transcripts, and sometimes the translation is not 100% accurate. I experienced the same thing with streaming services like Netflix. As with any tools made by human beings, there will always be imperfections, but in overall, Lingopie's features are very helpful for language learning.
=> The Number of movies and TV shows needs to be increased
I can't compare Lingopie to Netflix or Hulu or any other big movie streaming app. Lingopie is a newbie and has a quite limited number of shows as of today. Some of the series have few episodes but luckily, they are regularly updating the platform with new episodes and movies. Hopefully, we can watch movies and series on Lingopie one day without limit.
So, finally, is Lingopie really worth it?
Does Lingopie work? My overall opinion of Lingopie is very good. You develop your listening skills, pronunciation, speaking, and somehow your writing skills as you visually memorize the way words are written. Except for the limited choice of movies, some typos, and translation issues noted, I consider it to be an almost complete way of Learning a language. In the same app, you have several features gathered: movies and TV shows, flashcards, quizzes, online classes, music, and podcasts. You get more, by paying less and you can try it for free!
It is clear that it is not as big as Netflix but it has been specially designed for language learners and that makes it a great tool for any language learner or polyglot, I can only recommend it. So why not test it by yourself?