Our smartphones are recently our most frequently used devices. The smartphone has its downsides but the good news is that it can help everyone who is learning to improve massively. There are mobile apps that are designed purposely for learning kanji and below are the top 5 free apps to help you learn kanji effectively.
I. The Flashcard Fiend: Anki
Anki allows you to import kanji and vocabulary from popular textbooks or JLPT lists and then convert them into flashcards. You are able to personalize your own flashcards. The kanjis can range from just a word or kanji to vocabulary placed in sentences to help you understand the context. There are audiovisual representations in the form of photos to make the learning process more fun.
Users of this app will be presented with a flashcard, and they will have to think of the answer and click to have it revealed. Every user is able to self evaluate their abilities. Then there is a repetition of the same process with many other kanji options.
Along with being able to create your decks, Anki comes with a range of useful features, including an answer timer and the ability to flip the questions and answers. This is particularly good for when you want to switch between reading kanji or vocabulary to being able to write them.
Anki can be used as an app, online, or a desktop version. For creating decks, you might find it quicker to use the desktop version and then sync it with your device. This app can be used on the iPhone and on android phones.
II. The Sensei: Tae Kim’s Guide to Learning Japanese
If you’re looking for structure or can’t grasp meaning from context, Tae Kim’s Guide to Learning Japanese is the answer to your prayers. This app is made up of logically organized lessons, beautifully clear explanations, and conjugation tables. There are also exercises for the first chapters on basic grammar for users to practice.
A vocabulary list with examples, kanji readings, and English definitions are available for every lesson. All the kanji in this app are clickable, so users do not need to refer to a dictionary.
Unfortunately for this app, the lessons are not considered as games, so there might not be much fun for users who are seeking entertainment but if you seriously learn and understand Japanese extensively, Tae Kim's Guide to Learning Japanese is your best choice of App!
It is also important to note that this phone has only iPhone supported versions so android cannot access at the moment.
III. The Quizmaster: Obenkyo
With Obenkyo, users will start from the basics of katakana and hiragana and advance through to kanji and vocabulary. Comprehensive Japanese learning is taking one step at a time.
The app quizzes users with multiple-choice and writing tests using your touchscreen. Kanji lists can be displayed according to JLPT levels, making this the ultimate tool for preparing for the exam. You can easily access a list of vocabulary, classified by word type as in a dictionary.
The most important feature of this app is the handwriting recognizer. It corrects not only your form but also your stroke order. If it makes a mistake in recognizing your writing, you can quickly tell it so, and your score will be adjusted accordingly. The app has also imported Tae Kim’s guide for grammatical references.
It is unfortunate that iPhone users cannot use this app because it currently only has android versions.
IV. The Dictionaries: imiwa?
This is one of the most popular apps among foreigners in Japan. Imiwa is an offline dictionary with a variety of methods for finding words. You can search using romaji and Japanese characters, but you can look up kanji by SKIP (System of Kanji Indexing by Patterns), multi-radical, and Chinese radical. Its clear interface allows for the easy creation of lists and favorites and straightforward copy to clipboard/export to email functions.
This App has example sentences and definitions in multiple languages. If your first language is not English, you do not have to worry, hopefully, your language will be found in the translations.
The other fantastic feature is an automatic look-up of any text that you have copied to the clipboard. This app is also for iPhones only.
V) The Government-Approved: WaniKani
This app called WaniKani has over 2,000 kanji and 6,000 words sourced from the official joyo kanji guide established by the Japanese Ministry of Education. Through spaced repetition, you learn to depend on memory recall as you ascend through the various levels. However, it’s recommended that you have a solid grasp of reading both hiragana and katakana before starting. While this isn’t a service designated to teach grammar, there are example sentences for everything you learn that is useful for syntactic exposure or review.
If your daily life as a user becomes hectic and busy, you can freeze your progress. If enough time has passed that you forget or feel overwhelmed, you can also reset your level, but it’s permanent. It might take approximately one or two years to completely master all the items in this textbook. WaniKani is free to try for the first three levels. Afterward, there’s a small monthly fee. This app is built for iPhone and Android systems.
VI. Kanji App
Last on the list of recommended apps for learning Japanese kanji is none other than Kanji App! Within the timeline of a year, users of this app will be able to learn 2,200 kanji and 7,000 words. Radicals, kanji, and vocabulary are taught to users through lessons and mnemonics.
This App uses 5 main study methods to help users to learn Japanese effectively. These methods are; lessons & reviews, spaced repetition systems, radicals, kanji, and words.
Under lessons & reviews, users of this app can practice kanji items via reviews until recalling has become not necessary anymore. Since practice makes perfect, this is the best chance for users to review all that they have learnt. Spaced repetition systems offer more than just flashcards. The Algorithm adjusts the time between reviews for each item, calculated by your last correct answer. This way, users will learn radicals, kanji, and vocabulary at the optimal time for you. This guarantees success.
Radicals on the other hand are the building blocks of Kanji and this App. This app uses them to help you memorize kanji items within minutes. Concerning kanji, users will learn over 2,200 kanji that are hand-picked and cleverly ordered by the Japanese language test system. This way you can learn the kanji meanings and readings more efficiently. Finally, there is vocabulary that users can learn too! Users of this app will learn thousands of Japanese words that are useful to their daily life.
Fortunately for every phone user, this app is available for iPhones and for Android phones too.
