Chris uses the data from TelemetryDeck to decide which features of Nihongo are paid and which are free

Nihongo is a Japanese dictionary and study toolkit designed to elevate your Japanese language proficiency by using words and materials you’re encountering in real life. Whether you're reading books, watching TV, enjoying manga, or playing video games in Japanese, Nihongo equips you with the tools you need to move beyond “top 1000 most common words” vocabulary decks.

Nihongo: context is key for effective learning

Nihongo revolves around the idea that understanding the context of the words you're studying is essential for long-term retention. It automatically generates flashcards for words you look up, be it through your camera or direct searches. It even creates flashcard decks when you paste text into the app using the Clippings feature. Moreover, Nihongo links every word in the dictionary back to where you first encountered it, ensuring you always remember the context.

Nihongo

Japanese dictionary and study tool

With Nihongo, learning Japanese becomes easier and the lessons and vocabulary exercises can be better connected to everyday life in Japan.

Website iOS App Store

I originally crated this app to solve the problems I encountered myself while learning the language. And it looks like many others who want to learn Japanese have the same problem, because since its launch in 2014, Nihongo has garnered a dedicated user base with around 20,000 monthly active users and 4,000 daily active users. These are:

• Students studying Japanese in a classroom setting.
• Expats living in Japan who want to enhance their language skills.
• Self-learners looking to master Japanese from the comfort of their homes.

The Privacy-First Shift: From Firebase to TelemetryDeck

I had long relied on Firebase for analytics, but concerns began to surface regarding the privacy implications associated with Google. Furthermore, the insights provided by Firebase often felt invasive. Analytics play a pivotal role in shaping our app's development and understanding user behaviors, making it vital to find a solution that both respects user privacy and offers actionable insights.

Privacy stands as a fundamental tenet in my approach. I firmly believe in the importance of gathering anonymous analytics data without compromising users' privacy or assisting in the creation of user profiles for advertisers. TelemetryDeck's commitment to privacy resonated with this principle.

I initially stumbled upon TelemetryDeck through the iOS developer community on Twitter. It wasn't long before I realized that TelemetryDeck outshone Firebase in terms of data responsiveness and the flexibility it offered in iterating on insights, which further solidified my decision to embrace it.

App analytics makes decision-making easier in every day’s operations

TelemetryDeck plays a vital role in my daily operations. It helps me determine when it's safe to discontinue support for older iOS versions, gain insights into user interactions with new features, identify the features that drive paid subscriptions, and understand user preferences for dictionary language and user interface. This data-driven approach empowers me to make informed decisions that enhance the app's performance and user experience.

Thanks to TelemetryDeck, I can confidently answer essential questions like:

1. When is it appropriate to phase out support for older iOS versions safely?
2. What is the right moment to transition a feature from a paid subscription to a free offering?

I feel like TelemetryDeck is tailor-made for independent developers like me who place a high premium on user privacy while seeking robust analytics capabilities.