A languatron, sometimes referred to as a languatron translator, is a hand-held Colonial computer device that acts as a real-time speech translator.
Original Series
The languatron consists of a speaker through which the translation is output, a series of four lights that flash during translation, as well as buttons for various functions.
Apollo uses a languatron to communicate with the Ovion queen, Lotay. Her speech consists of a high pitch squeaking, which the languatron translates (TOS: "Saga of a Star World").
Galactica 1980
A modified version of the languatron is furnished by Doctor Zee, who programs it with Earth terminology and basic information (1980: "Galactica Discovers Earth, Part I"). This is built into the wrist computron, which Troy and Dillon refer to whenever coming across terms, sayings, and slang they do not understand.