Best new apps

Hope Corrigan reviews the most interesting new apps for iOS and Android.

Dog Scanner – Dog Breed Identification ABOUT AS GOOD AS GUESSING.

Android/iOS, Free/$24.99

We’ve scanned plants and rocks, now it’s time to identify some furrier friends. Dog Sanner boasts being able to identify dogs based on their photographs. To do this either upload or take a picture with the app – you can choose more than one if you have them. Dog Scanner will then spit out its estimate, and like most of these apps it’s... ok at best. Every dog I’ve scanned has come out as ‘mixed breed’ which is the best dodge of confidence I’ve seen yet. It does give percentage based options for what those breeds might be, and credit to it husky was the first result for my very obvious husky. However, it had no idea about less common dogs like my white shepherd. As with these things it may learn with time, and it does have a forum section to get other users’ input. Unfortunately, this social aspect of the app is also already full of bots posting ads, so I don’t have a lot of hope.

Tonestro for Brass & Woodwinds: Learn & Play Songs ALL YOUR WIND IN ONE PLACE.

Android/iOS, Free/$68.99 first year There have been some saxophone apps in the popular section lately, and as someone who already wasted their time learning to play this instrument, I thought I might be able to help assess. One of the biggest is Tonestro and, aside from sounding like an MCU villain, it comes in a few packages. One looked geared towards wind instruments in general, so I tried it first. For better or worse this is actually more of a catch all app for Tonestro’s more specific versions. You choose an instrument and the app will be the same as the one you would download for that instrument. It’s for people who are wanting to swap between a few different things or for paid memberships to keep everything in one place – as it’s the same cost for all or one. If you’re wanting to save space on your device you might want to grab one of the specific app variants.

Android, Free/$68.99 first year I used the saxophone section within the Tonestro wind app as well as downloaded the specific version and they seemed exactly the same. However, the saxspecific app registered in my phone as a game, so that might be of some consideration. The beginning lessons are nice and slow and start with basics like rhythm and tempo with single notes. It’s also fairly easy to read and use. When playing songs, the sheet music is easy to understand with the combined prompts, and it will mark notes you miss or just mess up a bit. The app picked me as an advanced player and offered to turn on further criticisms in reference to my tone and stability of notes, so that’s cool and not at all soul-shattering. Overall it really felt like this app could do a fair job of teaching folks how to play, and that’s pretty damn cool. It is fairly limited without paying, but the free version gives a good idea of whether or not this is for you. Tonestro Saxophone ANNOY YOUR NEIGHBOURS.

3D Saxophone Fingering Chart HUR HURR HURRRR.

iOS/android, Free

Looking into apps that teach Saxophone I found one thing wanting in particular. Fingering, as lovely a word as it is, refers to the buttons on the saxophone that need to be pushed to get certain notes. This seems straightforward but there are a surprising number of random keys on a sax. The very top key on a saxophone, and where many players instinctively put their fingers, is one such appendix of a key. Most diagrams don’t make this obvious enough. That’s why a good clear chart is important. Despite looking very basic, this is the best I found for clarity. It always shows a full yet simplified saxophone rendering with hands that can be toggled on or off. The keys also become coloured so you can actually see what the hands are pushing. It even has some high octave notes that experienced players may wanna check on, so it has uses for many skill levels.

Sleep Sounds MORE THAN SNORING.

Android/iOS, Free/playpass/$49.99

Apps to help you sleep are a dime a dozen and litter the stores, so I’m always keeping my eyes closed for the best ones. I saw an advert for Sleep Sounds being pushed so I figured I’d check it out, and I’m quietly impressed. This gives a wide range of options for almost anything you could hope to listen to falling asleep. But where it really shines is in all the little customisations. You can layer the sounds, so if a thunderstorm isn’t really doing it for you, you can add more thunder, or perhaps some bird sounds, or even music. You can even create custom tracks and play lengths to suit your needs. That dime a dozen comment wasn’t for nothing. Most of these apps try to get money for every little feature but Sleep Sounds does a lot at little cost, or everything for free if you have a play pass sub. Well worth looking into for some relaxing ambiance.

Parcel PART AND...

iOS, Free/$4.99 per annum

I get a lot of deliveries from tonnes of different places. I might have things coming from Auspost, Amazon, Couriers, and frankly who knows what other unholy delivery beast. Parcel is an app that lets you display all of these in one handy place on your i-device. Plus it has widget features so you can have this all displayed on your home screen which is neat. It even has functionality to import from Amazon and your emails if you choose to connect those accounts, so in theory Parcel was looking good. Unfortunately, in use so far I’ve been a bit let down. I’ve had a few consignment numbers simply not be recognised so they can’t be added to the system. The free version also only lets you add three items at a time, which doesn’t really feel worth the effort of the app, though $4.99 per year is pretty reasonable for a paid sub. I still don’t mind it as a quick glance widget but overall Parcel hasn’t delivered for me.

Unfortunately, in use so far I’ve been a bit let down. I’ve had a few consignment numbers simply not be recognised so they can’t be added to the system.