Selection translation browser extension

Facts worth checking first

• What it does: Translate selected text instantly, or run AI full-page translation under the originals.
• Page content, selections, and generation results stay on this device by default and are not uploaded to KnowIt.
• This tool calls a model with your own API key. KnowIt does not provide a model account.
• Lifetime license, ¥6.66.

Read the full FAQ

Design notes: Selection Translate

1. Why not just use Chrome's built-in translation

Chrome does ship with translation, but for users in mainland China there's a very practical problem: it needs a VPN to work at all. Plenty of people simply can't use it, and those who can often fight an unstable connection. On top of that, the entry point is tucked into the top-right corner of the browser, and the result appears in a panel that feels detached from the page you're reading — you have to dismiss it by hand when you're done. Translate a long passage and that little panel can't hold it, which leaves you scrolling inside a popup.

2. Not just web pages — anywhere

Chrome's translation only handles text on a web page. Copy a foreign-language passage out of a PDF, a chat window, an email, or an image, and you're on your own. At that point the only option is to open Google Translate or DeepL, paste it in, and hit the button — too many steps. That's the problem Selection Translate is meant to solve: wherever the text came from, once it's on your clipboard, one shortcut gives you the translation without a detour through another site.

3. The translation belongs right under your eyes

The point of translating is to help you understand what's in front of you, so the result should appear next to your cursor or beside the text you selected, with no need to move your eyes across the screen. When you trigger a clipboard translation by shortcut, the result should show up close at hand too, and disappear with another keypress once you've read it, leaving your workflow intact. That kind of immediate feedback feels far more natural than a new tab or a panel pinned to the corner.