Why 'no app download' matters more than it sounds
Research on technology adoption shows that each additional step reduces uptake significantly. Asking a 70-year-old first-time visitor to find the App Store, search for a specific app, download it, create an account, and then use it during the service — before the sermon even starts — is asking too much. Browser-based translation removes every one of those steps. Scan. Choose language. Read.
How browser-based translation works
Modern web browsers are capable of handling the real-time text streaming that live translation requires. Voco uses WebSockets — the same technology behind live sports scores and chat apps — to push translated text to every attendee's browser the moment it's available. No app required, no native code, no installation.
Does it work on older phones?
Browser-based translation works on any phone with a modern browser — which means anything running iOS 14+ or Android 8+ (both released in 2017–2019). The vast majority of congregants' phones qualify. The attendee reader is lightweight by design — it loads in under 2 seconds even on a slow connection.
Which tools offer no-app translation?
Voco, Glossa, Wordly, and LiveSunday all offer browser-based no-download translation for attendees. Kaleo AI has a browser-based caption option but its audio translation requires the app.