Awareness! ($4.99) uses your on-device microphone to make you more aware of your surroundings while you listen to the soothing sounds of Justin Freaking Bieber.
Ideally, the volume of your music should never be so high as to actually block all external sound, but the way that most people use their iPods in reality is deafeningly different. The idea behind Awareness! is not to lower the volume of your music, but to use your on-device mic to help you hear particularly loud external noises (e.g. incoming train, enraged bull, etc.) so that you can expertly dodge them and be on your way.
There are a couple of expensive headsets that actually have this “external microphone” feature built-in (Shure makes a set for about $500), so the $4.99 Awareness! app seems like a relatively cheap way to try this system out in comparison. The app states that it is multitasking compatible, so I’m assuming it can play your audio while displaying that flashing red bar (which indicates a backgrounded app).
I haven’t tried the app out myself, but it’s another one of those interesting new front page apps that’s made possible in iOS4 with multitasking. I have my doubts about how well it works from inside a pocket, though, and that’s usually where I stuff my iPhone while I listen to Bieber.
Continue reading:
- Everything New Apple Just Announced (Septembe
- Apple Watch Pre-Order
- Apple Research Kit launches with 5 Apps
- Apple TV now only $69
TAGS:
