Saturday, May 31, 2014

Review: VoiceSnap allows you to control your iOS camera remotely with voice commands [giveaway]

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VoiceSnap, a new app from MocaApps LLC [1] , allows you to take photos using voice commands on an iPhone or other iOS device. Rich in features, the app is very customizable and includes the settings needed to make it an effective solution for taking photos.

When you first open the app, it asks for permission to use your microphone, and then brings you into a concise, helpful tutorial comprised of seven screens you flip through.

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As I started to use the app, it worked pretty much as the tutorial indicated. There is a brief delay between when you say the command “Voice Snap, take a picture,” and when the shutter actually clicks. The app then saves the photo to the camera roll.

VoiceSnap permission camera roll

Settings can be accessed with the gear icon on the bottom right. The app has a nice selection of options, such as a square cropping mode, a grid to properly align your photos, and burst mode. I liked that when I changed certain settings, a prompt was generated that explained what that setting does.

Also in settings, the Remote Snap feature allows you to use another iOS device to take a photo from a distance by using voice commands or simply tapping the button at the bottom of the app.

The two iOS devices must be paired via Bluetooth to enable this mode. The images below reflect the pairing process and remote snap mode using an iPhone remotely via an iPad.

The Remote Snap feature also allows you to control the iOS camera by pinching to zoom, changing the flash settings, setting a timer, and switching between the front and rear cameras. The flash setting has an always-on lighting option that can act as a flashlight, which can be handy if you want to take multiple photos without startling your subject with the flash.

At the bottom of the settings is a theme setting, which allows you to use the app in light or dark mode, with an option to switch between the two automatically.

The app can also use shorter, more practical voice commands. At the bottom of the settings page, tap Info, then Voice Commands. A list of commands that the app can recognize is displayed.

Taking photos remotely from another iOS device gives the app significant additional functionality. For example, you can mount your iPhone on a small tripod [2] , and then snap a nice photo that is very steady with no jiggle. You could already do this with the center button on a pair of earbuds with remote and mic, but that method only allows you to move a few feet away from your iPhone when snapping the photo.

Voice Snap can be very useful in situations where you have a perfectly-framed shot set up on a tripod and want to remotely snap it without accidentally moving the camera. To me, much of the usefulness of the app is because of the remote snap feature, which can also be used with non-iOS Bluetooth devices.

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After spending some time with the app, I’ve found it to be a great deal for the price. VoiceSnap [3]  is available in the App Store for $1.99.

Giveaway:

10 download codes for Voice Snap will be given away randomly. To enter the giveaway, post a link to this article on Twitter and mention @whitneyjmarks and @mocaapps. Winners will be announced on Twitter on June 6th.

Links
  1. ^ MocaApps (mocaapps.com)
  2. ^ Joby Tripods (www.amazon.com)
  3. ^ VoiceSnap (itunes.apple.com)
source: 9to5mac.com

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