Hugo in 3 Months updated January 2022

[jeffers]

DK have recently reissued several volumes of their "in 3 months" series. The new editions are book only, but there is a "free audio app" which is available from their website as well as the Apple and Google Play stores. There is one app to download, which covers all six books currently available. As far as I can tell, the audio is identical to the audio in the 3 CD edition I own. The actual course content does not seem to have been updated at all. Current languages are: French, Dutch, German, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese. So far there's no sign of them releasing their Advanced courses, but let's ask honestly, how many learners actually finish the first book and therefore need the advanced one?

Advantages: The price is much cheaper. The retail price in the UK is £9.99 or less, whereas the latest edition with CDs which I've seen in bookstores recently were going for something like £27.99. The French edition is currently £3.99 on Amazon. For some users, listening to the audio in the app will be handy. There is also a Kindle edition which is going for £3.99 in the UK.

Disadvantages: Needing to use a phone for the audio might not suit some learners. The Kindle edition apparently is basically a picture of the textbook, rather than actual text, so according to one reviewer it is impossible to highlight, underline or add footnotes.

My initial reaction: Overall I think this is a positive development: classic and quality introductory courses are now available at a bargain price. Moving the audio to an app is a neat way to cut costs, and should probably work well for most learners. I was slightly surprised that the courses were not updated at all, and thinking cynically, this is a way for the publisher to squeeze a bit more money out of an old and dying course.

I discovered the new versions because I very nearly bought the German edition with CDs from a bookstore in Oxford this week for £27.99, but decided to compare the price with Amazon. Although I would still prefer to have CDs to listen to for review while driving, I'll happily save some money and get this edition instead.

[tractor]

I was slightly surprised that the courses were not updated at all, and thinking cynically, this is a way for the publisher to squeeze a bit more money out of an old and dying course.

Huh! If they haven't changed anything, we can't complain about them dumbing down their language courses!

[simmong3]

One option for the audio (that I used for Hugo Dutch) is to record the audio from their App. It's a little tedious, but if you do one week each day, at about an hour or so per day, in 12 days you're done. I bought a cable (with an attenuator) to connect my phone to a digital recorder, and it worked perfectly; now I have all 163 of the audio files as .mp3's. My biggest complaint with their (admittedly very excellent) online app is that it's for phones only, won't work with a computer. For what it's worth, I think their Dutch in 3 Months book is excellent; and it does appear to me that it will take a person close to, if not up to, A2 level.