Dare to find out how old you look?
We're rather familiar with Mendzapp on windows Phone. The small UK student start-up brought us both Travelnapp and YuleTile (charity focused Christmas app), which were both unique and interesting projects. We especially love seeing indie developers advance and create more immersive and better looking apps, which is exactly what these guys are doing. We met up with James from Mendzapp at the previous WPUG for a good ol' pint and a chatter about his current projects and what's next in the pipeline.
James recently got in touch with us about a new app called VizAge, which is basically an app that uses face recognition technology to calculate an estimation of one's age. It really is as humorous as it sounds. Whether you're on your own and wish to quickly see how old the system believes you to be, or you're out with friends and decide to see who looks older than their actual age, VizAge provides ample fun in such a small and simple app.
The main functionality of the app is of course the capturing and analysing of innocent people to have a computer calculate their age. VizAge can be used on anyone, but requires a clear shot as age results may differ depending on how the photo was taken - much like taking passport. Once the photo has been taken (supports both front and rear cameras), the image is sent off for "wrinkle analysis", which is then sent back with the anticipated details. Of course, this is a novelty app and should not be taken seriously.
With the photo successfully taken and humiliating data now present on the screen, VisAge offers a number of options for the user. Using the integrated Windows Phone social profiles, the app is then able to publish a quick announcement to the world stating the age, etc. If you'd like to compare with celebrities, this is possible, or you can look up what they scored compared to their actual ages, which leaves plenty of room for sniggering and giggling.
I really like the design and feel of VizAge, as it's something new which stands out. The UI and transition effects used are both intuitive and refreshing. But what's an age calculation app without some test subjects? Well, I guess I should really boast what I received when I made use of the superbly, wonderfully and incredibly accurate functionality of VizAge, right? Here we go:
I'll take those five years off me, thanks! Not to mention the app reporting that I could be as young as eleven - not too bad if I do say so myself. What makes things worse is I was compared to Jusitin Bieber, who "looks" two years younger. That's pretty much VizAge in a nutshell. While it doesn't pack an awful lot of features, the functionality is amusing to say the least.
You can download VizAge from the Marketplace for $0.99 (£0.79). A free trial is available with a maximum of 3 photos. Let us know your results in the comments below, or better yet, share them with us @wpcentral to reveal your secrets to the social sphere!
Rich Edmonds is a word conjurer at Windows Central, covering everything related to Windows, gaming, and hardware. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a device chassis. You can follow him over on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.
