Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to common questions about our resources, downloads, and website.
Can’t find the answer you need? Contact us.
Chinese & Device Help
You can change the language used for menus, buttons, settings, and other system text on Windows, Mac, Chromebook, iPhone, iPad, and Android devices. Follow our step-by-step instructions for changing your device’s display language.
You can add a Chinese keyboard on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Windows, Android, and Chromebook.
Our step-by-step guide shows you how to enable a Chinese keyboard and start typing with Pinyin on your device.
If you can see a Chinese character but do not know how it is pronounced, you can draw it using a handwriting keyboard on iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac or Windows. Follow our step-by-step instructions for typing a Chinese character without knowing the pinyin.
You can type Pinyin with tone marks using several methods, depending on your device. See our How to Type Pinyin with Tone Marks on Any Device guide for step-by-step instructions.
You can add pinyin above Chinese characters using annotation tools, specialized pinyin fonts, or built-in phonetic guide features in programs such as Microsoft Word, Apple Pages and LibreOffice. See our step-by-step guide to putting pinyin above Chinese characters.
You can use Google Fonts to browse Chinese fonts, compare them using your own Chinese text, and download the fonts you like. Follow our step-by-step guide to finding and downloading Chinese fonts on Google Fonts.
You can install and remove fonts on a Mac using Font Book, Apple’s built-in font manager. Follow our step-by-step guide to installing and removing fonts on a Mac.
You can use custom fonts to change how Chinese characters look on your Anki flashcards. Follow our step-by-step guide to adding custom fonts to Anki for setup instructions.
Supported iPhone, Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy phones can translate Chinese messages directly within conversations, while other Android phones can use translation tools such as Google Translate and Gboard. See our guide to automatically translating Chinese messages on your phone for setup instructions and device compatibility.
You can convert Chinese text from Simplified to Traditional characters or from Traditional to Simplified using online conversion tools. See our guide to converting Simplified and Traditional Chinese text for recommended options.
Use your device’s built-in text-recognition tools to select Chinese text in photos, screenshots, and other images, then copy, translate or look it up. See our guide to copying, translating and looking up Chinese text from images for step-by-step instructions for iPhone and iPad, Android, Windows and Mac.
Website, Audio & Streaming
You can save frequently used websites to your phone, tablet, or computer for faster access. Follow our step-by-step instructions for adding a website shortcut on iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, Windows, Linux, and Chromebook.
Having trouble getting audio to play in Safari on your Mac, iPhone or iPad? We have a dedicated troubleshooting page with step-by-step solutions to help get your audio working again.
Please use Google Chrome or Firefox when viewing the site. If the volume is still too low, please try a volume booster extension such as those described in the YouTube video here.
On mobile? Try using a Volume Booster app such as this one for Android: Volume Booster GOODEV
I do not endorse these tools, but are simply giving you a starting point to resolve your audio issues.
Documents & Files
Many downloads on the site are provided as ZIP files to reduce their file size and make them easier to download. If you need help opening a ZIP file, click here.
Most of our downloadable documents are available as PDF files only. We do not generally offer editable versions, such as Microsoft Word documents, because PDFs help preserve the original formatting, images, and layout. The exception is our Create Printable Flashcards with Word page, which includes editable Microsoft Word templates specifically designed for creating and customizing your own flashcards.
About Mandarin Mania
No. Our resources are designed for self-taught language learners or to supplement instruction received through a school, teacher, or other language program.
We are happy to consider affiliate partnerships, but we are very selective about what we recommend. We will only promote products and services that are relevant to our audience, that we genuinely believe in, and that we would personally feel good about recommending. We will never recommend something simply because it offers an affiliate commission.
If you would like to propose an affiliate partnership or send a product for consideration, please contact us with more information.
MandarinMania.com is committed to keeping its resources free and accessible to Chinese learners. Advertising helps cover the ongoing costs of maintaining the website and providing free learning materials.
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