Languages and models

What it translates into

Translation directions depend on the language pair. Select the languages you need in My Languages and download the required components. The app shows which translation directions are supported and ready.

Only the ru/uk→en dictionary ships inside the app. Dictionaries for other directions, including the reverse en→ru/uk, are downloaded from cdn.verbaide.com when you request them. Some directions use Apple’s on-device translator and its language packs instead.

What it hears

Recognition uses our downloaded model and Apple’s engine depending on the language and mode. Russian dictation uses Parakeet because Apple’s system dictation does not add the punctuation it needs.

Apple recognition models are listed under Settings → Downloads → Recognition. The available languages are shown by the app.

Some languages can be read but not heard: Serbian, for instance, is a language the app can translate for you but not one it can listen to.

What gets downloaded, and when

The main speech model. Pulled the first time it is needed — usually on the try-it screen of the first-run setup. It is needed for dictation, including the free tier.

Additional term model (98 MB). Downloaded in the background on first dictation. In the current mode, dictionaries substitute preferred spellings in the finished text after recognition.

Translation components. Add and download languages in My Languages. A dictionary file may serve several directions; Apple language packs are managed by macOS. Selecting an already available language does not install files again.

The local language model. Only if you choose to install it, for the voice prompt and the optional AI improvement of translation under the cursor (paid features). The weights come from Hugging Face; the app downloads them itself.

Smart Keyboard

Smart Keyboard works with the English, Russian and Ukrainian layouts installed on your Mac, in three pairs: English ↔ Russian, English ↔ Ukrainian and Russian ↔ Ukrainian. It downloads no dictionaries: whether a word exists is answered by the macOS spell checker. The tables of letter combinations and the lists of frequent words it relies on ship inside the app. The one download is the local judge model (1.8 GB, the same one the term dictionaries use), for borderline words — see What leaves your Mac.

Where to see all of it

Settings → Downloads shows recognition and local AI models. Add and download translation languages in My languages; Downloads → How It Works shows translation directions and their files.

How much disk it takes

That depends on how many languages you picked and whether you installed the local language model, so there is no single honest number to print here. Settings → Downloads shows the size of each item before you download it.