Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Have you ever struggled to explain a problem with your
phone in English? Have you ever struggled to talk about
your phones and devices in English? Or maybe you have
bought a new laptop and you're really excited to tell
your friends about it, but the English phrases don't come
to you. If that is you, or if you want
(00:22):
to learn more new words and phrases related to devices
and technology, then this episode is for you. Technology is
such a big part of our lives now and we
talk about phones, apps, and the Internet almost every day,
so being able to talk about this in English is
super useful. My name is Jack from Toffluency and in
(00:46):
this English lesson, what we're going to do is this,
We're going to go through key phrases to talk about
your devices. We're going to go through English phrases to
talk about apps and websites. Then we'll talk about how
to explain common tech problems, talk about social media including posting, scrolling,
(01:08):
going viral, and then we'll finish on some great conversational topics.
So get ready for this lesson because it's going to
be really useful for you. Check the description for all
of the examples that we use in this lesson and
also check the description for English learning resources. Are you ready?
(01:29):
Let's get started. Let's start with a really common topic,
your devices. These are the things that you own, and
this includes phones, laptops, tablets, and smart watches. Now, in
the future, there'll also be other types of devices, and
(01:50):
maybe you even have smart glasses. Right now, so, let's
imagine you've just bought a new phone. The first thing
someone is likely to ask is this, how is it?
How is your new phone? How is it? Here are
some ways to answer. Firstly, you can say I just
got it, I just got it, and it's amazing, So
(02:14):
the just suggest it is in the recent past, I
just got it. In British English, you're here, I've just
got it, I have just got it. You can also
say things like the camera is incredible, it takes such
clear photos, the camera is incredible, and the screen is huge.
(02:36):
The screen is huge. And the battery lasts all day.
The battery lasts all day. This is a really good
phrase to know how long something lasts. The battery lasts
all day, which means you have battery power all day. Now,
let's say you're thinking about replacing your old laptop. Here
(02:58):
is what You can say, my laptop is really outdated.
I need to upgrade. I need to upgrade, and to
upgrade something means to replace something old with a newer
or a better version. For example, I upgraded my phone
last week and it's much faster now now. Of course,
(03:20):
devices don't always work perfectly and they can be frustrating
as well. So here are some common complaints when talking
about devices. My phone keeps freezing. It's so annoying. My
phone keeps freezing, which means that no matter which buttons
you press or how you try and turn on your phone,
(03:44):
it won't happen. It freezes. You can't do anything about it.
Another complaint could be the battery on my tablet doesn't
last anymore. The battery on my tablet doesn't last anymore.
So we're using that phrase last again here. Now, if
you do have problems with your devices, you're going to
(04:05):
need some help, and this is what you can ask
to your friend or somebody who knows what they're doing.
You can say, my phone keeps freezing. Do you know
how to fix this? Do you know how to fix this? Now?
The first thing people say here is usually this, have
you tried restarting it. Have you tried restarting it? And
(04:28):
if you go into a store, you might say to
the person, can you take a look at my phone?
Can you take a look at my phone? It's not
working properly. The next section, we're going to talk about
apps and websites because these are part of daily life now.
So most people have many apps on their phone. I
(04:49):
know I have too many, and I do something that
annoys other people, and I keep them open. I don't
close my apps when I have stopped using them, keep
them open. Do you do this? Let's go through some
of the phrases you can use to talk about apps
and websites. The first thing to do is to download
(05:10):
or install apps. Download and install apps. You might hear
a friend say I downloaded a new app to help
me learn english. I downloaded a new app to help
me learn english. Or I have a new fitness app
and it's really good to help me track my exercise.
I just got a new fitness app and it's great
(05:31):
for tracking my exercise. Now, if somebody is talking about
their favorite app and a new app, and they seem
excited about it, you might ask them these questions, is
it free or do you need to pay for it?
Is it free or do you need to pay for it? Now?
Most apps these days have a free version and a
paid version. You could also ask, could you send me
(05:54):
the link? Could you send me the link? Now? This
is true of apps and websites. So you have links
to the website, somebody could share the link to the
app as well. And if you forget what that app
was called, you can say, what's the name of that app? Again?
What's the name of that app? Again? I've got two
phrases when you're browsing online that are really useful for you,
(06:18):
and here is one to use the verb look. Okay,
are you ready? I looked it up on Google and
I found everything I needed. I looked it up on Google.
So to look something up means to research this, to
search in Google. And then, in terms of activity using websites,
(06:38):
you might hear people say I spend way too much
time online shopping. I spend way too much time online shopping.
When you have apps and when you have devices, oftentimes
you need to update them. So you could say things like,
my phone updated automatically last night, my own updated automatically
(07:01):
last night. I remember when you used to have to
spend some time with these updates, but now they do
it overnight. Now the next section is all about social media,
because social media is everywhere and people are using social
media more and more. So let's go through some phrases
for talking about platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Now,
(07:26):
there are two ways to use social media. The first
way is to consume social media, which means to go
through and use the app, and then you can also
post on social media. Now, these days, I don't post
much on social media, and I try to reduce the
amount of time I spend on social media. But you
(07:46):
might hear people say I spend way too much time
scrolling through Instagram. I spend way too much time scrolling
through Instagram. And if you do post on social media,
most people are really interested in the number of likes
that they get. So here is a phrase to talk
about this. I posted a photo yesterday and it got
(08:09):
lots of likes. I posted a photo yesterday and got
lots of likes. Now, when something is very popular, we
say it goes viral. To go viral, And I'm sure
you have this phrase or a similar one in your
own language, and a question could be have you seen
that viral video of the cat dancing. Have you seen
(08:30):
that viral video of the cat dancing? Now, if you
do spend too much time on social media, you might
want to take a break. And oftentimes you'll see people,
especially in the new year, when they have new goals,
to say I'm going to take a break from social media,
and usually they post this on Facebook or whichever social
(08:51):
media account they're using. So you might hear people say
I deleted my Facebook app because I needed a break.
A lead to my Facebook app because I needed a break.
And you might also see people put limits on their
social media apps. So you can use the iPhones built
in limit device, so you can use the iPhones built
(09:14):
in tool for this, but other people also use third
party apps where it limits the amount of time they
spend on social media. Let's talk more about technology habits now,
because these are all about how often you use your
phone and your screen time and how you balance technology
in your life. So some key phrases here are I'm
(09:38):
trying to cut down on my screen time. I'm trying
to cut down on my screen time. So this is
not just social media, but time that you spend on
your phone. So to cut down on something means to
reduce how much time you spend doing something. And I
remember seeing some posts on Twitter on x where people
(09:59):
talked about how they I spent fifteen hours a day
on their phone. Fifteen hours a day, so it's more
or less every waking moment they are on their phone.
Some people do this for work. Some people are just
addicted to their phone. So to cut down means to
reduce the amount of time you spend doing something. And
then example will be I used to spend hours a
(10:22):
day on my phone, but now I'm cutting it down.
But now I'm cutting it down. The next one is
I check my phone first thing in the morning. I
check my phone first thing in the morning. Now a
lot of people try to avoid doing this, but it
is a common habit for many people. So for example,
(10:42):
I wake up and the first thing I do is
check my email. The first thing I do is check
my email. Now, when reading a book, you might say
I can't put this book down, and you can say
that about your phone too. So the next phrase around
habits is I'm addicted to my phone. I can't put
it down. I'm addicted to my phone, I can't put
(11:04):
it down. So to be addicted to something means you
feel like you can't stop doing something. Another example is
I check social media every five minutes. I'm totally addicted.
I'm totally addicted. Now. The next segment is the future
of technology. This is a fun topic and it's a
great way to have an interesting conversation in English and
(11:27):
also to talk about the future. So when you talk
about the future, we use going to. We use WILL,
and when you are giving your opinion for a prediction,
you can say, I think so you'll here going to
WILL and think a lot when talking about the future.
We made a lesson recently on AI and tools like
(11:50):
chat GPT, and a prediction for the future could be
I think artificial intelligence AI is going to change everything.
It's going to change everything. So tools like chatterbut are
already helping people learn languages faster, and I think AI
(12:10):
is going to change everything. The next one is about
VR virtual reality. So think about those goggles, those glasses
people put on to go into this virtual reality world.
And the phrase here is virtual reality is going to
change how we work and play. Now, you might have
(12:30):
noticed the Apple goggles, Apple Vision. I can't remember what
it's called they were really hyped up a few months ago.
To be hyped up means they were very popular, people
were talking about them. I haven't seen much about them
recently in at the end of twenty twenty four, but
(12:50):
I still think that virtual reality is going to be
really important in the future, and it's going to change
how we work and play. An example of this is
iagine learning English in a virtual classroom with people from
all over the world. And if you mix AI and
virtual reality together, you might see a future where you
(13:13):
are wearing these goggles and learning English with robots. Now,
to ask people about technology, especially something new and talking
about the future, you can ask them have you heard
about self driving cars? For example, have you heard about
self driving cars? And if you're predicting a future, you
(13:35):
might say, I think self driving cars will be everywhere
in ten years. I think self driving cars will be
everywhere in ten years. Now, at the end of twenty
twenty four, we are seeing we are seeing self driving
cars become a reality, especially in certain cities in the US.
(13:56):
So there are certain taxi services that are self driving
cars in cities, especially in California. Let's now go through
a couple of really useful idioms that are related to technology.
The first one is game changer. A game changer this
refers to something that is revolutionary that it's really going
(14:18):
to change everything in that area or that industry. So,
for example, the introduction of AI in tools such as CHATCHPT,
they have been a game changer. They have changed the
way people work, the way people study, in the way
business is done. So if something is a game changer,
(14:40):
it means that it has revolutionized that area in which
it is in. The next one is to be off
the grid, to be off the grid, and this means
to be disconnected from technology or society. So for example,
if you go camping and you don't have survey, you
(15:00):
don't have Wi Fi, then you will be off the grid.
You won't have internet connection or phone service. And sometimes
it's good to get off the grid if you feel
like you have been using your phone in technology too much.
So today you have learned about how to talk about devices, apps,
tech problems, social media, and some habits. So my question
(15:24):
to you is this, what are the top three apps
that you use currently? So what are the top three
apps that you use currently? Leave a comment below. Thank
you so much for being here with me in this episode,
and before you go, don't forget to click the light
button if you're on YouTube, and also share this podcast
(15:47):
no matter which platform you're using, so send this to
a friend on WhatsApp, send it to a friend on
social media, and also check out the description for all
of the phrases that we've used in this lesson with
some key English learning resources. Thank you so much for
being here and I'll speak to you soon. Bye for now.