10 iPhone apps that you wouldn't expect to work
Last week we compiled for you a list of ten Android applications that we thought you wouldn't expect to work even though they were fairly good at serving their intended purpose. But you didn't think that such apps were not available for the iPhone too, did you? Well, here is a whole bunch of them. From the clever and practical to the plain silly, all of these iPhone applications are pretty good at doing whatever their author intended. We had fun experimenting with them, and we believe that you will be entertained as well. So, without further ado, we present you our list of ten iPhone apps that you wouldn't expect to work, starting with...
BreathalEyes
As impossible as it may sound, BreathalEyes attempts to measure your blood alcohol content, and it does that by scanning your eye with the iPhone's camera. What the app is actually trying to do is to detect a very specific type of involuntary eye movement known as Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus. Alcohol consumption is one of the causes for it to appear, and the more severe the case is, the higher the blood alcohol content of the subject is presumed to be. However, it goes without saying that the app cannot be used as a substitute for a real breathalyzer. It also appears that some people have gotten pretty inaccurate results, so make sure you have read all the guidelines for using the app (while still sober) before measuring anything with it later.
Price: $0.99; Download
Instant Heart Rate
As its name suggests, Instant Heart Rate is an app that can measure one's pulse. And surprisingly, it does a pretty good job at it, as we found out for ourseleves. The way the magic is done is by placing your index finger over the smartphone's camera for a few seconds. During that time, the software detects every beat of your heart by spotting the slight changes in skin color, which occur due to the flow of blood. Of course, Instant Heart Rate should not be used instead of a professional instrument, so don't rely on it if precision is of utmost importance.
Price: Free; Download
FatBooth
From the creators of BaldBooth and AgingBooth comes another app that fills the blank in a “What if...” question. By cleverly manipulating a picture of your face, FatBooth can give you a fair representation of what you would look like if you gain a few pounds. Try it on your friends too! The app is guaranteed to give you a good laugh.
Price: $0.99; Download
Telepath
Reading someone's mind? There is an app for that. Well, kind of. Telepath is more of an easy to perform trick rather than true mind-reading software, but it is still fun to pull off on an unsuspecting friend. In a nutshell, the app displays four objects on the display, and the one who is getting their mind “read” has to pick one of them. Place the iPhone on a table and... voila! The object they have in mind magically appears on the smartphone's display. Make sure you watch the instruction video before performing the trick.
Price: Free; Download
HoloToy
Glasses-free 3D is one of the last things that we will ever see on an iPhone, but that won't stop developers from emulating the functionality in one way or another. Take HoloToy for example – the software does its best at creating a sense of depth by cleverly manipulating images in accordance to your point of view. Tracking your eyes is done by using the iPhone's front-facing camera, and the gyroscope determines the angle, at which you are viewing the device's display. It is no IMAX 3D, of course, but it is arguably as close as an iPhone can get to displaying 3D content without the need for any accessories.
Price: $1.99; Download
Driver Feedback
Provided by the folks at State Farm, Driver Feedback is an app that can tell you how good of a driver you are. Want to know how? Well, it is quite simple actually. By using the iPhone's GPS radio and accelerometer, it can detect risky driving behavior, such as hard braking or sharp cornering. After each trip you are given a score from 1 to 100, as well as useful tips, should the software determine that you need advice. And in case you are wondering, no, your data is not collected and will not affect your car insurance in any way.
Price: Free; Download
MealSnap
If you are concerned about your weight or following a strict diet, MealSnap is the app that might come in handy. By allowing it to snap a photo of your meal, it can give you its calorie content after comparing the image to the ones in its extensive database. Of course, do not expect the feature to work as a charm each time, but having a collection of the meals that you eat will surely help you with following your regime.
Price: $2.99; Download
Light Writer
Imagine that you could write words in mid air with nothing more than your iPhone. Light Writer makes that possible using a technique called Persistence of Vision, or POV for short. We won't get into details because these action shots are pretty descriptive. The effect is much more impressive in photos taken in dark environments without a flash.
Price: $0.99; Download
Baby Gender
Some mothers would prefer the gender of their future baby to remain unknown until the very end for surprise’s sake. For the rest there is Baby Gender. With the help of some basic information, the app can estimate the chances of giving birth to a boy or a girl, should you already be pregnant. And if you are planning on conceiving, but want to have some control over the gender of your baby, the app can tell you which the optimum days to do so would be.
Price: Free; Download
Annoy-a-teen
The title says it all. Annoy-a-teen uses high frequency sound waves to irritate youngsters and possibly shoo them away. What makes the app work is the natural degradation of hearing with age. While elderly folks are not capable of hearing frequencies that lie in the higher end of the audio spectrum, teenagers can hear them just fine.
Price: $0.99; Download
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