engine - 6:16 pm on Nov 9, 2012 (gmt 0)

That is very interesting. Working one direction is a the first step. I guess we'll have to wait a while for Chinese-English.
Star Treks's universal translator still has the edge. ;)

Software that can translate spoken English into spoken Chinese almost instantly has been demonstrated by Microsoft. The software preserves intonation and cadence so the translated speech still sounds like the original speaker. Microsoft said research breakthroughs had reduced the number of errors made by the instant translation system. Microsoft Shows Off Instant English-Chinese Translation Software [bbc.co.uk]

"Of course, there are still likely to be errors in both the English text and the translation into Chinese, and the results can sometimes be humorous," said Mr Rashid in the blogpost. "Still, the technology has developed to be quite useful."