Help Center

Find answers to the most commonly asked questions below.
Question still not answered? Get in touch with us through our contact form!

General

What is Sabi?

Sabi is a language learning extension for Chrome that lets you learn a language without any extra effort. All you have to do is watch your favorite shows and videos! While you're watching, Sabi will periodically test you on what you just heard and let you know how you did. You get to watch and enjoy popular shows, and still feel like you're learning and practicing a new language. 

Why use Sabi?

Learning a language is not easy, especially if you're in an environment that doesn't let you practice it often. One way that many people try to get around this is immersing themselves by watching shows and videos in other languages. However, sometimes it can still be difficult to follow what's going on. Sabi helps by testing you on what you're watching in an easy and fluid way. You're still watching like you normally are, but you're improving your language skills and comprehension. And best of all, you're being tested on real life examples of when you would actually need to know some vocabulary, not just memorizing lists in a classroom. 

How does Sabi help me learn a language?

Put simply: by finishing a show in another language. Immersion is one of the biggest factors in how well someone can learn a language. If you're constantly surrounded by a language, eventually you will start understanding it. Sabi helps by aiding in that immersion. While you're watching, Sabi will periodically test you on what you just heard and let you know how you did. Even by understanding only a small portion of a show, you will better remember the vocabulary, because you will then always associate it with that moment in the show. 

How much does Sabi cost?

Sabi currently has two subscription plans for individuals: €4,99 per month for one year, or €7,99 per month. For groups, get in touch with us through our contact form here.

Can I try Sabi for free?

Yes! After signing up, your account will automatically receive a 30 day free trial. No need to sign up for a subscription or enter payment information, you can just start watching! 

Which languages do you support?

Sabi currently supports the following languages: Arabic, Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Filipino, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese. 

Which websites does Sabi work on?

Sabi currently works on Disney+, Netflix, Prime Video, and YouTube, with more streaming platforms coming in the future. 

Using Sabi

What is the best way to use Sabi to learn a language?

There are two main ways to use Sabi. The more conventional way is by watching a show or video in a language that you are trying to learn/improve. This is quite straightforward as you're being tested on your comprehension and what you understood. The second way to use Sabi is by watching a show or video in a language you already know, and translating it to a language you are trying to learn/improve. This is a bit more difficult as it not only tests you on what vocabulary you know, but also on how well you know to use that vocabulary. 

What types of exercises will I experience while using Sabi?

Sabi currently offers 8 types of exercises: Listening: You are prompted to write exactly what you heard in the preceding scene Speaking: You are prompted to repeat exactly what you heard in the preceding scene Transcription: You are prompted to write exactly what you heard in the preceding scene Multiple Choice: You are given a word that you heard in the preceding scene, and you need to choose from four choices the most accurate translation Complete the Translation: You are given a partial translation of what you heard in the preceding scene, and you need to complete the translation by filling in the missing words Rearrange: You are given a scrambled translation of what you heard in the preceding scene, and you need to rearrange the words to their proper order Full Translation: You need to fully translate what you heard in the preceding scene Conjugation and Declension: You are given a sentence that uses a form of a word that you heard in the preceding scene, and you need to choose from three choices the correct form of the word 

Can I become fluent with Sabi?

Yes! However, becoming fluent in a language is about mastering communication with that language in all sorts of situations. Though Sabi is an incredible tool and will improve your language proficiency, there is still the chance that you won't be exposed to certain vocabulary or certain aspects of a language that are needed for fluency. For that reason, we do still recommend you to use Sabi with other learning materials.  

How does Sabi select what I am tested on?

Sabi takes a number of different factors into account to determine at what points you should be tested. These can be language specific factors like how advanced the vocabulary and grammar is in that specific language. It also takes into account user specific factors, such as whether you've seen it before. Sabi remembers what you've seen before, as well as how well you understood it, and uses that information to try to test you on phrases that are appropriate for your language level. 

My answer was correct even though it was a different way of saying it. How did Sabi know?

When grading your response, Sabi looks at how close in meaning you were to the original translation. In practice, this means your response doesn't have to be the exact same as the original. There can be a number of different ways to say the same thing, and Sabi tries to take that into account when grading. 

Will you support [insert language] in the future?

We hope to support as many languages as possible! We already have a shortlist of the next languages we want to add, but we are always open to suggestions. Let us know which language you would like to use for Sabi in our contact form here.

Where does Sabi get its translations and sentences from?

Sabi uses the existing subtitles for a show or video as its main source of information, and will create the various exercises and evaluate your responses based on that. It also offers individual translations, such as when hovering over specific words. These translations come from both neural machine translation services as well as professional human translators. Machine translation can be very accurate but is not always perfect, so we try to double check all of our translations through human translators. For Japanese translations, Sabi also uses the JMdict and KANJIDIC databases, released under a CC BY-SA License. For Korean translations, Sabi also uses the National Institute of Korean Language's Learners' Dictionary, released under a CC BY-SA License. For Chinese translations, Sabi also uses the MDBG Chinese Dictionary, released under a CC BY-SA License. Sabi also uses external sentences for certain exercises. Those sentences are primarily sourced from Tatoeba, released under a CC-BY License, with some translations coming from machine translation services or human translators as mentioned above. 

Where does Sabi get its recommendations from?

Sabi's recommendations come from a selected collection of shows and videos from the various supported streaming platforms. This collection was curated predominantly using machine learning models, with limited human input. Each of the shows and videos were selected based off of a number of different criteria, such as popularity with their respective language audience and average number of Sabi exercises. We try to make sure that the shows and videos you receive as recommendations are things that people actually watch and that they can be used effectively with Sabi. It is important to note that the views and opinions contained in the recommendations, as well as views and opinions of the original creators of that content, do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of us here at Sabi, nor does the existence of those recommendations constitute an endorsement by us. We also want to make clear that the recommendations were made available for informational and educational purposes only. We do not make any representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness, or completeness of the recommendations. We also do not warrant the performance, effectiveness or applicability of any sites listed or linked to in the recommendations. Finally we here at Sabi disclaim any and all liability to any party for any direct, indirect, implied, punitive, special, incidental or other consequential damages arising directly or indirectly from any use of the recommended content, which is provided as is, and without warranties. If you believe that any of the shows or videos given as a recommendation should not be included, please let us know through our contact form here.

Where does Sabi get Whisper subtitles from?

Some shows and videos have subtitles that were created with OpenAI's Whisper automatic speech recognition model. These subtitles are usually more accurate than other machine generated subtitles, and are also more appropriate for situations when the audio selected is a dubbing and does not have correct corresponding subtitles. If a show or video you want to watch doesn't have Whisper subtitles yet, let us know through our contact form here.

Where does Sabi get its grammatical information from?

For most languages, Sabi uses data from Wiktionary, released under a CC BY-SA License. For Japanese, Sabi also uses the JMdict and KANJIDIC databases, released under a CC BY-SA License. For Korean, Sabi also uses the National Institute of Korean Language's Learners' Dictionary, released under a CC BY-SA License. For Chinese, Sabi also uses the MDBG Chinese Dictionary, released under a CC BY-SA License. 

Account

How do I change my email?

Unfortunately it is not possible to change your email. Every Sabi account is permanently associated with the email used at account creation. 

How do I change my password?

On the Account Dashboard (reached after signing in), you can go to the Account settings page where you can change your password. 

I forgot my password! What do I do?

On the Sign In page, you can click "Forgot Password". From there you can enter the email address for your account and you will receive an email with a reset code that will allow you to create a new password. 

How do I change my payment information?

On the Account Dashboard (reached after signing in), you can go to the Account settings page where you can click "Manage Payment Information". This will take you to our external payment provider where you can update and change your payment information. 

If I sign up for one subscription plan, can I upgrade to another one later?

Of course! All you have to do is go to the Account Dashboard (reached after signing in) and then go to the Account settings page where you can click "Manage Payment Information". This will take you to our external payment provider where you can update your subscription plan. 

How do I cancel a subscription?

On the Account Dashboard (reached after signing in), you can go to the Account settings page where you can click "Manage Payment Information". This will take you to our external payment provider where you can cancel your subscription. 

How do I delete my account?

On the Account Dashboard (reached after signing in), you can go to the Account settings page where you can click "Delete Account". After confirmation, this will start the deletion process; all subscriptions will be cancelled and your account will be disabled. After 30 days, your account will be completely deleted and you will receive a confirmation by email. 

Data Privacy

What kinds of data does Sabi collect?

One of our main priorities at Sabi is your privacy. For that reason, Sabi only collects the data that it needs to give you consistent access, maintain our software, and improve Sabi as a whole. That can consist of stuff like email and payment information (so you can sign in and activate your account), process data (what streaming platform/video you're using Sabi on, what languages you're learning with), and support (when you report errors or contact us). We do not and will not ever share your data with a third-party without your consent. For more information, check out our privacy policy here.

Does Sabi track my browsing history?

Nope, and we don't ever plan to! Sabi only collects the data that it needs to give you consistent access, maintain our software, and improve Sabi as a whole. That can consist of stuff like email and payment information (so you can sign in and activate your account), process data (what streaming platform/video you're using Sabi on, what languages you're learning with), and support (when you report errors or contact us). We do not and will not ever share your data with a third-party without your consent. For more information, check out our privacy policy here.

Is my data kept private?

Yes! We do not and will not ever share your data with a third-party without your consent. For more information, check out our privacy policy here.

How is my data secured?

All of the data we collect is stored in an encrypted format. We also anonymize data such as your language learning progress, and restrict access to the deanonymized data to only select individuals here at Sabi. For more information, check out our privacy policy here.

How is my payment information secured?

Your payment information is passed directly to our payment processor and does not go through our servers. All we do is check whether your payment was successful or not. For more information, check out our privacy policy here.

Does Sabi sell user data?

Absolutely not! One of our main priorities at Sabi is your privacy, and we value the trust you put in us to keep that data private. We do not and will not ever share your data with a third-party without your consent. For more information, check out our privacy policy here.

Reporting Issues

How do I report a bug?

Bugs or errors can be reported by either clicking on 'Report Issue' when using Sabi or by using our contact form here.

How do I report feedback?

Any feedback or concerns can be reported by using our contact form here.

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