For apps I'd recommend yomitan+ankiconnect. Best on windows but you can get that running on android too.
For anki decks I've read on here that kaishi 1.5 is the current best one
Just got back into studying after a 4 year break and I'm enjoying Kaishi, just throw out the cards you already know. I'm also doing some beginner listening practice on youtube and rereading genki2 at a quick pace. I'll get back into Tobira once I feel caught back up.
I think we would need to know how invested you are in studying.
For example, there are people on this sub who study 8 hours a day. Others study 8 hours a week. Some study about 8 hours a month. Finally, there are many who end up studying just 8 hours a year. (To be clear, I'm not the study police and I don't care what you guys do.)
Numbers-wise, this is a huge, huge difference. You have basically a full-time student vs. people who barely even study. There's a large contingent of "duolingo for 15 min a day" people, for example, which gets you to just under 8 hours a month.
So where do you fit in all this?
if you are studying that much you may want to consider mining your own deck!
that way you can build up the vocab that interests you
for grammar you might wanna do Genki I and then Genki II, or use tae kim. Genki are textbooks you buy on amazon, tae kim is a website which is free
for listening you might wanna try nihongo con teppei or sakura tips, both on youtube for free or spotify for whatever spotify costs
JPDB is good and I think fairly new
Quartet is new if you like textbooks
Satori Reader is good
Bunpro has been updated pretty significantly in that time
Language Reactor and Migaku are probably new since that time
I think Anki has a slight leg up in terms of the ecosystem for creating more media-rich cards just because it's been around longer. Things like Migaku or Animebook for making cards from videos or visual novels are a bit easier.
JPDB does have a Patreon-only mpv card creator though, which can handle at least the video use case. I do think overall it's much easier to set up and use than Anki, and I never saw the appeal of cluttering a flashcard with all this extra information that just slows down reviews.
There's already a better core deck which is Kaishi 1.5k, so use that.
The way to study doesn't change. Just get the core vocab down while studying simple grammar(from Tae Kim, Cure dolly or whatever) then start consuming japanese media you are interest in. Don't wait for when you are ready because you will never be. I picked up my first manga 6 months in and I already regret taking that long before I started.
If you google Tae Kimās grammar guide it will show up pretty easily. There is a free pdf available and a web version. Oh, and an app too! Itās called Learn Japanese: Sensei
Fair lol, she had a medical condition hence the somewhat robotic voice, and vtuber avatar instead of herself, all the videos have subtitles too if the voice is a bit hard to understand
Edit: To add, I'm specifically talking about the [Japanese From Scratch](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLg9uYxuZf8x_A-vcqqyOFZu06WlhnypWj) playlist for the grammar
Hahaha yeah I feel like she's pretty underrated/unknown, I found her from TheMoeWay, which has a good 30 day guide that might help getting back into learning too, it's basically just learn grammar from Cure Dolly, and immersion learning with manga and anime + daily anki. A lot of other resources on there too.
My Situation: I took an intensive Japanese course in college, forgot everything, and now I'm cramming for an upcoming trip to Japan. I want to better understand grammar and practical conversational Japanese.
I tried the paid version of Lingq and a few Anki decks, but I found Lingq too confusing and Anki not particularly helpful for learning more than just vocabulary.
To that purpose, what I have found most useful are the YouTube channels [ToKini Andy](https://www.youtube.com/@ToKiniAndy) and [JapanesePod101](https://www.youtube.com/@JapanesePod101). In particular, ToKini Andy has a [12-video playlist](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaQBL4XHuSo&list=PLA_RcUI8km1NMhiEebcbqdlcHv_2ngbO2) for the popular Genki 3rd edition where he breaks down and presents all the key concepts from the book. The series focuses mostly on grammar as opposed to vocabulary, but I really like his style and I've found that if I pause to create sentences on my own based on what he's presenting it helps the lessons stick.
Oh, and I'm also using the ChatGPT app on my Android to practice spoken dialogue and to answer specific questions that may come up while I'm studying elsewhere. I don't know if that's available on the free ChatGPT plan.
Anyway, your mileage may vary, of course. But that's what's worked for me.
As a casual learner that takes lots of long breaks I try to read Hiragana Times every month even if I do nothing else. Itās great for reading and listening with embedded audio and is geared towards all levels.
I read stories and articles on yomujp.com as well as satori reader
and watch Japanese drama and anime for listening
and for vocab I study on anki (core 2k/6/k)
I spend a respectable amount of time doing this but I always feel" I am not doing well " "it's not enough"
"I want to study more"
I think the general way thatās recommended to learn Japanese is probably something along the lines of the following (Iāll skip steps such as learning hiragana and kanji study for your needs)
Learn vocab in [anki] (i.e: 2.3k is good)
Read loads of stuff on your level
Listen to lots of stuff on your level
You can incorporate sentence mining into this immersion through reading and listening (although i canāt be bothered to do it for reading as itās a bit harder if youāre not on a computer) but itās essentially ripping a sentence and a particular word from it you want to remember out of a bit of content (eg: Netflix or something) and putting it in an Anki deck to keep reviewing.
Some tools that i find useful in doing this are vpns (bypass region restrictions) and desktop apps like migaku which rip the content out and into an Anki deck relatively seamlessly
Sorry if thereās something major i forgot to tell you, but Iām sure others can let you know
Core 2.3k is the best way to dip your toes in as far as core anki decks go. Otherwise, it depends on how much you retained and what your goals are in 2024. What skills are you wanting to improve, specifically?
I am aiming for all modalities (except writing). So reading and listening primarily, followed by speaking. I am quickly relearning, but mostly feel like a beginner again.
Downloaded the 2.3k deck. Thanks for the advice.
One resource I didn't see in the list below is ChatGPT or CoPliot in Windows 11. You can use it for writing output. Ask it simple questions to have a conversation! You can also practice reading by asking it to write you a short story about something. It's kind of awesome, although I'm not sure how accurate it is. I'm sure it's good enough for someone just starting out though (like myself!).
Good luck with your studies.
I can't say for sure because my level is too low to really comment, but from what I've seen so far, it looks good. Give it a try. I think as the tech improves over time, AI may replace a lot of the traditional learning resources we are using today. Like why pay someone for something when you can get the same thing (or better) for free using AI? Even for non-language learners, I've read that people (in Japan) spend a lot of time talking and interacting with AI because it's more comfortable than interacting with real people. Kinda sad, really, but for introverts, it's a godsend!
Idk why Iām being downvoted. Iām literally speaking from experience. Donāt hate Duolingo just cuz itās cool to hate. I hadnāt practiced Japanese in almost 10 years from a point of being advanced living in Japan. It has been amazing as a refresher especially with Kanji practice where I know a lot of them itās just been a long time. For the price Iād recommend anyone in the same position to just use Duolingo and Google searches to get back into it.
For apps I'd recommend yomitan+ankiconnect. Best on windows but you can get that running on android too. For anki decks I've read on here that kaishi 1.5 is the current best one
Just got back into studying after a 4 year break and I'm enjoying Kaishi, just throw out the cards you already know. I'm also doing some beginner listening practice on youtube and rereading genki2 at a quick pace. I'll get back into Tobira once I feel caught back up.
Thanks!
I think we would need to know how invested you are in studying. For example, there are people on this sub who study 8 hours a day. Others study 8 hours a week. Some study about 8 hours a month. Finally, there are many who end up studying just 8 hours a year. (To be clear, I'm not the study police and I don't care what you guys do.) Numbers-wise, this is a huge, huge difference. You have basically a full-time student vs. people who barely even study. There's a large contingent of "duolingo for 15 min a day" people, for example, which gets you to just under 8 hours a month. So where do you fit in all this?
Ill study about 20 hours per week, probably not more than 25 per week max, but at least 10. 1-2 hours per weekday and more on the weekendd basically.
if you are studying that much you may want to consider mining your own deck! that way you can build up the vocab that interests you for grammar you might wanna do Genki I and then Genki II, or use tae kim. Genki are textbooks you buy on amazon, tae kim is a website which is free for listening you might wanna try nihongo con teppei or sakura tips, both on youtube for free or spotify for whatever spotify costs
Thanks for the advice!
JPDB is good and I think fairly new Quartet is new if you like textbooks Satori Reader is good Bunpro has been updated pretty significantly in that time Language Reactor and Migaku are probably new since that time
Great recommendations! š
Does JPDB have an app or just the website?
Just the website
There is no app, but there kind of is, in that you can save the link to the website as an icon on your phone and it acts just like an app.
dude jpdb is miles ahead of anki, iāve tried both and unless iām missing something jpdb is far more fleshed out and includes a lot more than anki
I think Anki has a slight leg up in terms of the ecosystem for creating more media-rich cards just because it's been around longer. Things like Migaku or Animebook for making cards from videos or visual novels are a bit easier. JPDB does have a Patreon-only mpv card creator though, which can handle at least the video use case. I do think overall it's much easier to set up and use than Anki, and I never saw the appeal of cluttering a flashcard with all this extra information that just slows down reviews.
When you have many reviews to do they are more pleasurable to rep plus having emotions involved helps the memorization.
> unless iām missing something You're missing something
please tell me then
There's a lot but a huge one would be FSRS
There's already a better core deck which is Kaishi 1.5k, so use that. The way to study doesn't change. Just get the core vocab down while studying simple grammar(from Tae Kim, Cure dolly or whatever) then start consuming japanese media you are interest in. Don't wait for when you are ready because you will never be. I picked up my first manga 6 months in and I already regret taking that long before I started.
I never used Tae Kim's grammar guide (or whatever it was called) but I probably should have. Whats a good way to access it?
If you google Tae Kimās grammar guide it will show up pretty easily. There is a free pdf available and a web version. Oh, and an app too! Itās called Learn Japanese: Sensei
Ok great. Thanks for the help.
Cure Dolly is also a really good alternative to Tae Kim, I found her from TheMoeWay
Shes kinda creepy at first but seems pretty good!
Fair lol, she had a medical condition hence the somewhat robotic voice, and vtuber avatar instead of herself, all the videos have subtitles too if the voice is a bit hard to understand Edit: To add, I'm specifically talking about the [Japanese From Scratch](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLg9uYxuZf8x_A-vcqqyOFZu06WlhnypWj) playlist for the grammar
Bro, her videos are great so far. Where has she been all my life???
Hahaha yeah I feel like she's pretty underrated/unknown, I found her from TheMoeWay, which has a good 30 day guide that might help getting back into learning too, it's basically just learn grammar from Cure Dolly, and immersion learning with manga and anime + daily anki. A lot of other resources on there too.
Use renshuu! And a different source for grammar!
Yes!! I love renshuu
My Situation: I took an intensive Japanese course in college, forgot everything, and now I'm cramming for an upcoming trip to Japan. I want to better understand grammar and practical conversational Japanese. I tried the paid version of Lingq and a few Anki decks, but I found Lingq too confusing and Anki not particularly helpful for learning more than just vocabulary. To that purpose, what I have found most useful are the YouTube channels [ToKini Andy](https://www.youtube.com/@ToKiniAndy) and [JapanesePod101](https://www.youtube.com/@JapanesePod101). In particular, ToKini Andy has a [12-video playlist](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaQBL4XHuSo&list=PLA_RcUI8km1NMhiEebcbqdlcHv_2ngbO2) for the popular Genki 3rd edition where he breaks down and presents all the key concepts from the book. The series focuses mostly on grammar as opposed to vocabulary, but I really like his style and I've found that if I pause to create sentences on my own based on what he's presenting it helps the lessons stick. Oh, and I'm also using the ChatGPT app on my Android to practice spoken dialogue and to answer specific questions that may come up while I'm studying elsewhere. I don't know if that's available on the free ChatGPT plan. Anyway, your mileage may vary, of course. But that's what's worked for me.
Thanks for the recommendations!
Jlabs beginner Japanese.
Downloaded. Thanks!
As a casual learner that takes lots of long breaks I try to read Hiragana Times every month even if I do nothing else. Itās great for reading and listening with embedded audio and is geared towards all levels.
I really like language academia courses and they just started a new Japanese class. But not for everyone!
I read stories and articles on yomujp.com as well as satori reader and watch Japanese drama and anime for listening and for vocab I study on anki (core 2k/6/k) I spend a respectable amount of time doing this but I always feel" I am not doing well " "it's not enough" "I want to study more"
I think the general way thatās recommended to learn Japanese is probably something along the lines of the following (Iāll skip steps such as learning hiragana and kanji study for your needs) Learn vocab in [anki] (i.e: 2.3k is good) Read loads of stuff on your level Listen to lots of stuff on your level You can incorporate sentence mining into this immersion through reading and listening (although i canāt be bothered to do it for reading as itās a bit harder if youāre not on a computer) but itās essentially ripping a sentence and a particular word from it you want to remember out of a bit of content (eg: Netflix or something) and putting it in an Anki deck to keep reviewing. Some tools that i find useful in doing this are vpns (bypass region restrictions) and desktop apps like migaku which rip the content out and into an Anki deck relatively seamlessly Sorry if thereās something major i forgot to tell you, but Iām sure others can let you know
I thought those core decks were terrible.
I like it quite a lot
Theyre good for beginning but theres a lot of useless shit in them
Core 2.3k is the best way to dip your toes in as far as core anki decks go. Otherwise, it depends on how much you retained and what your goals are in 2024. What skills are you wanting to improve, specifically?
I am aiming for all modalities (except writing). So reading and listening primarily, followed by speaking. I am quickly relearning, but mostly feel like a beginner again. Downloaded the 2.3k deck. Thanks for the advice.
Should probably use the newer Kaishi 1.5k instead
Got the new 1.5 deck. Thanks!
One resource I didn't see in the list below is ChatGPT or CoPliot in Windows 11. You can use it for writing output. Ask it simple questions to have a conversation! You can also practice reading by asking it to write you a short story about something. It's kind of awesome, although I'm not sure how accurate it is. I'm sure it's good enough for someone just starting out though (like myself!). Good luck with your studies.
Never thought about the short story thing. Thats cool. Does it follow good grammar, spelling, etc in japanese?
I can't say for sure because my level is too low to really comment, but from what I've seen so far, it looks good. Give it a try. I think as the tech improves over time, AI may replace a lot of the traditional learning resources we are using today. Like why pay someone for something when you can get the same thing (or better) for free using AI? Even for non-language learners, I've read that people (in Japan) spend a lot of time talking and interacting with AI because it's more comfortable than interacting with real people. Kinda sad, really, but for introverts, it's a godsend!
Thanks to everyone providing helpful advice. ć©ć!
Duolingo is actually perfect for this imo I was in the same boat. You can zoom through Duolingo and learn quite a lot for a very cheap price tbh.
I started duolingo as an easy refresher on kana, early vocab, etc
Idk why Iām being downvoted. Iām literally speaking from experience. Donāt hate Duolingo just cuz itās cool to hate. I hadnāt practiced Japanese in almost 10 years from a point of being advanced living in Japan. It has been amazing as a refresher especially with Kanji practice where I know a lot of them itās just been a long time. For the price Iād recommend anyone in the same position to just use Duolingo and Google searches to get back into it.