Casio NEW EX-word Electronic Dictionary XD-N6500BK Black (Japan Import)

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Price: $261.92 $246.69   

Product Feature

• Includes 100 dictionaries and contents.
• 2 color liquid crystal screens.
• 130 hours approx. by 2 AA batteries.
• You can use the contents by connecting with PC via USB.

Product Description

Includes 100 dictionaries and contents. 2 color liquid crystal screens. 130 hours approx. by 2 AA batteries. You can use the contents by connecting with PC via USB.

Casio NEW EX-word Electronic Dictionary XD-N6500BK Black (Japan Import) Review

When buying a Japanese electronical dictionary, it is not easy to know which model is suitable for a foreigner with limited kanji skills. It may also be difficult to learn to use one, and while reviewing this device, I'll drop some hints how to use it.

1. You need to be able to read hiragana and katakana to use this. You do not need to be able to read kanji, although it helps if you feel comfortable with them and can recognise that two different kanjis are different characters. I don't read much kanji.

2. When I got this device, shipped directly from Japan, there was nothing in English inside the box. Everything was in Japanese, the manuals, buttons and the texts on the screen. Here is a quick English guide that is essential to learn the basic functions:
[...] (To find this, search for casio guide xd-n series)

3. How to choose your model? The model number for this device is N6500. N refers to how new it is, there are older models with A, B and D, and some other(s?) I can't remember. At the moment I'm writing this, N seems to be the newest. The English quick guides are also found for the older ones, and they look quite similar.

The number 6500 refers to the amount and type of content. You can find a list here:
[...] (To find this, search for casio releases their 2011 Ex-Word)

The number 10000 has the most of content and seems to be directed to professional translators. You can also find models that include a dictionary from some other language than English, like 7100 German, 7200 French, 7300 Chinese, 7400 Italian, 7500 Spanish, 7600 Korean, and 7700 Russian.

4. To get an idea of how to use it, here is a Youtube video of an older model XD-A6500:
[...] (To find this, search for youtube casio xd-a6500)

Even though some dictionaries are different and the main menu system has chainged since A-series, this video was still very helpful to me. Please note that the Oxford English-English dictionary that was in A6500 and B6500 is not included in D6500 or N6500. The most useful dictionaries for a foreigner in N6500 are the Genius dictionaries, Japanese-English and English-Japanese. You can find them behind the 6th and 7th buttons in the uppest row (click twice if it doesn't appear, the same button has two different dictionaries).

If you search for a term with two words, like "thank you", just write "thankyou". Japanese language does not use space characters, and there is no space character on the keyboard.

Most functions can be used from the keyboard, and you can do basic searching without touching the screen. When additional buttons appear on the left side of the screen, they can be used by clicking them with the stylus pencil or finger. I have not been able to figure out if you can use these buttons from the keyboard. (If one can and you know how, I would appreciate very much if you wrote it in your review.)

5. Jump ("janpu") is a very important function. As shown on the video, it helps to find out how to read Japanese words written with kanji. Here is another video that will help you to learn more about how to use it:
[...] (To find this, search for youtube denshi jisho quick tip)

The dictionary list is different in N6500. The first dictionary on the list and the default is quite good for checking readings for Japanese words. If you want to change the default into English, that is the Genius dictionary on the list ("Jiiniusu"). With many words, you can see how to read them with Genius option, but not with all. Usually you can then find the reading if you move back to the first dictionary from the horizontal top bar as shown on the video. If you work with unknown and difficult words trying to search from English to Japanese, you may not always be able to figure out the right Japanese word and its reading. It depends a lot on words. It is much easier if you want to check words you heard somewhere, or search for a word you have forgotten but will remember when seeing it. Some words have a lot of Japanese explanation on the screen that may get confusing. Here is some help for it: When searching from English to Japanese, write the word and click enter (round button) when the list shows the right word. Now you have a screen that shows different translations for the word, if there are more than one. It helps a lot to keep in mind that the actual search results are those words that do not have any parenthesis or brackets around them. Click "janpu" and move the green highlighting over the first character of such word. When you now click enter, you are jumping. If you set your jumping default to "Jiiniusu", you are likely to see the hiragana for the word and English translation. If you don't think it's the right one, or want to see the others too, click back button. Move the green highlighting over another word without parenthesis, and click the round enter button again.

As shown on the video, three buttons appear on the left side of the screen when you are jumping. The third option shows the word's reading on the subpanel. This can often be useful too to check the reading. The downside is that you can't jump on from the subpanel, so if some word appeared in the explanation you would like to check, there is no further jumping option.

6. Now I'm coming to the function that would earn this dictionary more than five stars. I didn't know it would be here when I ordered it. When you are jumping ("janpu"), and when you are looking at the horizontal top bar with different options, there is a very useful option next to "jiiniusu" (shortened in the top bar as G and some kanjis). Click right arrow once (or more if you weren't in "jiiniusu") to get there, it says "akusento". This will show you the word in katakana with a line above the accented part of the word. I have been hoping for a good Japanese dictionary with accents. In addition, you can click the voice button, and you will hear the word recorded by a native Japanese speaker (female voice). On some screens you need to click the round enter button after the voice button, but here clicking the voice button is enough. With some long words you may get only the first part of the word. For example, if the word you originally searched included four kanjis, in some cases you will get the whole word, and in some cases only the first half of it. The kanjis are also shown on the screen.

7. There is a history function you can reach with "hisutorii" button. The history is dictionary specific. It shows you your search history on the dictionary where you currently are. If you don't have history in the dictionary you have open, the button doesn't do anything. To remove history information: go to some dictionary you have history (or make a search to create history), and click "historii" button. You will get a list of the history. Click delete key that usually deletes characters. You will get four options. The first one doesn't delete anything. The second one deletes the line you have highlighted. The third one deletes the history from the current dictionary. The fourth one deletes the history from all dictionaries.

"Kantansaachi" (simple search) doesn't have a history of its own. There is one thing related to this I don't like about the device: if you are in the middle of reading some search results and accidentally click a character button, the dictionary takes you back to search and you lose where you were. If you happened to use "kantansaachi", the history button will not help you to get back where you were (the "back" button won't take you back in this case either). So you lost what you were reading (unless you can remember which dictionary it was, go to that dictionary and click "historii" there). I was not happy when this happened to me the first couple of times, but now that I know about it I can mostly avoid it.

8. There are other interesting things, too. For example, there is a dictionary about computer terms. You can reach it through "kantansaachi", or if you are especially interested in looking for these words, you can go to it directly. It's the first dictionary on the 3rd last category, and its name starts "pasokon" written in katakana.

There are some picture dictionaries, for example about plants, birds, butterflies and insects. After you open such dictionary (the main menu has pictures of dictionaries), you will get different search options. One of these options lets you search through pictures. It's often the second option, sometimes the first or third.

There is audio content both in English and in Japanese. I was able to find some Japanese audio book that was read with a pleasant male voice. I found it after I was watching the first Youtube video instruction above, although it was not in the same place than on the video (can't remember its location now).

Many dictionaries allow you to enter kanji from the subpanel or screen with the stylus pencil. You can do this for example with the Japanese-English Genius or with Japanese Britannica "Buritanika". It works ok if you know the stroke order. If you get the wrong kanji, you can touch it and the screen will show you ten different options to pick from.

9. It is possible to find out more about the different dictionaries and content by reading Casio's Japanese info page with Google translator. Japanese:
[...] (To find this, search for casio jp xd-n6500)

Google translated:
[...] (To find this, search for the previous page and enter it to Google translator)

You can read about different models by changing the model letter or numbers in the address. For example 9800 has a lot of English content, and 10000 has more dictionaries. 6500 already has a lot of things, and you can see pictures of the dictionaries and some explanation in the above link.

10. It will take some patience to learn to use this dictionary. I made friends with it in a few hours. Knowledge about Japanese language helps to use it, even if you don't read kanjis. I recommend it to those who are serious about their Japanese studies, for those who are going to stay in Japan for a longer time, and for those who have advanced knowledge in Japanese and want to be able to check things.

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