App Name: Vlingo Voice | Vlingo Corp.
I spent several days using Vlingo to be sure to get the most out of it before review the app. Here are the results of those days.
Description: Vlingo is the safest & easiest way to use your phone on the gp. Simply tap the home screen widget and speak to send text & email messages, update your Twitter status & much more.
How it works: You will first need to download the app at a cost pf $9.99. Then install it. to properly use it you will need to add the Safe Reader and Vlingo Tap & Speak widgets on the home page. Then just tap the button and start talking. To have the app read your text messages to you, tap the Safe Reader button to turn it on. It will then read each text message as it comes through.
Opinion: This is a great app with lots of potential. It is easy to set up and configure. However there are some issues. First, Safe Reader. It can be very very intermittent. Some times it works flawlessly and I love it. Other times it absolutely will not work properly. At times the instant the message comes through it starts reading it, but often it takes a couple of minutes before it starts to read it, or it may just not read it at all.
Second, Tap & Speak. The app is probably the most accurate voice app I have tried so far, but it has lots of problems with words like “he”, “her”, “them” you can get some strange results sometimes, but it is by far the most accurate I have used.
The app is also supposed to launch applications via voice command. This would be a great feature but the apps that it will launch are very limited. Not only that but several times when I have told it to launch an app, it instead took me to a search page. Another problem is network requirements. If you aren’t on 3G or WiFi it will not work. I was never able to successfully complete a task when on EDGE, so make sure your network speed is up to par or just complete your task manually.
Ratings :
·Speed (4/5) – When the app works correctly it is fast, very fast. Even long messages are converted to voice or to text from voice very quickly.
·Features (3/5) – I’m giving it a three because of the limited functionality on launching apps, and the trouble it had at times with launching apps and sending me to search instead.
·Theme (5/5) -No troubles here it is nice. Great design.
·Overall (4/5) -I’ll give it four. Once the issues with Safe Reader are fixed, and the app launcher is fixed, I would give it 5/5.
Pro: Reads SMS to you when you are driving so you don’t get distracted. Allows many functions to be controlled by voice rather than manual input.
Cons: Not always accurate in detecting SMS arrivals, and limited functionality of the voice controls. Price.
Conclusion: When I first started using the app I really didn’t think I would like it. After using it for several days however, I am beginning to like it more and more. It needs some work, for sure, but all in all it is a good app that can be very useful when you are busy or driving and can’t be distracted. In the end however is this app worth $10? I certainly say it is not. A good price for this app would be $5. With the issues it currently has it is over-priced, and even fixed i don’t think $10 is really justifiable. So over all Good app, over-priced.
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