[jghn]

People just need to properly set expectations. I've been using Duolingo for about 15 mins per day on average for a few years now. What I've found is that my reading skills are actually pretty good (roughly A2/B1 level), for instance I can open up a Spanish language subreddit and mostly make out what's going on. My listening is rudimentary at best, I can generally have a vague idea of what people are talking about if I listen to a Spanish conversation. My speaking is almost nonexistent.

But you know what? That makes sense. I'm mostly just reading text and clicking words to fill in the blanks. And the listening component is so unrealistic that it barely builds anything up. And I don't do speaking at all.

As you say, it beats doomscrolling. For a free service I'm not expecting that I can parachute into a Spanish speaking country and be fluent. At the same time, I'm a lot better in terms of my skill level than I would have been otherwise.

[theshrike79]

TBH native Spanish speakers talk FAST. Like fast-fast.

[jghn]

Exactly, that's a big part of my issue. I'll catch some words & phrases so can sometimes catch a big picture view of what they're saying, but that's it. If I watch a video intended to be educational & at a slower speed, then I'm much better off.

And that's not a surprise to me. 95+% of my listening experience is listening to Duolingo's unnaturally slow, computer generated voices and that's a poor substitute. But hey, I can also do it quickly while drinking my morning coffee instead of putting a lot of effort into it, so it is what it is.