Mobile software company XS2TheWorld has launched a mobile phone application of the same name that turns a mobile into a multilingual holiday or business lifeline. The application contains up to 300 phrases for each of the seven languages which it currently supports, which include Mandarin, Cantonese, French, Dutch and Spanish. Not only does it display the phrases on the screen phonetically, it also speaks them fluently in the local language. 
Phrase books are dead, says inventor Sander Munsterman. Even if we can find the words we need in a phrase book, trying to ask where is the nearest cash machine is in Mandarin is beyond most of us. The ability of the mobile to speak clearly for you has shown some amazing results. People warm to you. It becomes a point of interest and communicating and getting what you want become much simpler.
The range of words available on XS2 The World is based around a number of activities, from local customs, travel, doctors and emergencies, to general conversations, flirting and fun. In addition, a city guide provides spoken directions to places of interest and cool places to hang-out. The current list of city guides includes Shanghai, Hong Kong, Beijing Bangkok, Amsterdam, Madrid, Paris and Buenos Aries. There are 5,000 free downloads of the application available on the XS2TheWorld website, after which each language will retail for 5.
You can see a demo of the application here.