Swipe Tunes for Windows Phone enables you to control your music with gestures

By Rich Edmonds
last updated

If you're an avid fan of the array of music apps already available on the Windows Phone Store, but are seeking a unique experience with gesture-based controls, you may wish to check out Swipe Tunes. As the name implies, this is an app for Windows Phone 8 that enables consumers to manipulate playback through the use of gestures, instead of having to locate and select the desired icon or menu. 

This is particularly useful when you'd rather be focusing on something else, driving being a good example. Here are some of the controls that can be used in Swipe Tunes:

  • Swipe left / right to change songs
  • Tap anywhere on the screen to play / pause
  • Hold anywhere on the screen to enter the music selection page

Music that's located on the Windows Phone is imported automatically, including tracks that have been saved for offline playback from Xbox Music. As noted above, the developer is marketing the free app as a solution for those who require quick playback control and to aid with this is the option to disable the OS from locking the screen.

Swipe Tunes App

A number of quick tasks are listed (you can also select your own playlists, songs, albums and more), which include playing all songs, all songs shuffled, as well as some random options. What makes Swipe Tunes rather interesting the sheer level of customisation here, for a media player. You're able to configure the app and Live Tiles to either match the system theme or to choose from the variety of colours available. Even a high contrast theme is ready to rock and roll.

Don't worry if you're struggling to choose from a theme, a random cycle option will go through each colour and will automatically update both the Live Tile and app theme in the background. You can download SwipeTunes from the Windows Phone Store for free.

QR: Swipe Tunes

Rich Edmonds
Rich Edmonds
Senior Editor, PC Build

Rich Edmonds was formerly a Senior Editor of PC hardware at Windows Central, covering everything related to PC components and NAS. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a PC chassis. You can follow him on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.

37 Comments
  • Cool
  • great, going to try this now
  • Is it better than the built-in Xbox music player?-.-
  • I wouldn't use the term "better" .... it is designed to compliment the in built player, that is why I default the theme to that of xbox music, to signify that you create and manage your playlists and whathave you in xbox music but you use my app for various scenarios like driving, as it makes things better in landscape mode and a bit easier to swap music on the go!
  • I think the app is pretty neat! Keep it up I'd say!
  • Thanks :)
  • Let see... I am seeking unique music app other than the stock music app from windows 8
  • I thought the gesture meant waving your hand in air in front of the phone to change tracks but :( sigh....i could do it in my nokia 5800 with an app called moove
  • Hi, unfortunately the guestures you descripe are not currently built into the Windows Phone SDK (See here for official Guestures for use on Windows Phone http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/how-to/wp7/start/gestures-flick-pan-and-stretch).
    That being said, your idea is a good one, and you have given me food for though to see if I can detect a hand wave past the proximity sensor to provide an "unoficial" support for this gesture. This is definitely something I will look into, thanks for the comment!
  • the touching anywhere to pause, and holding the screen to open the songs menu thingy is new... but swiping left and right already changes the song...well atleast it does on my Wp7.5, i havent used WP8 yet
     
  • Yep, but does it do it in landscape mode ;P
  • well then i guess it works our great :P but i really dont know anyone, except iOS users, who use their music player in landscape mode.....Still, Great job man
  • I agree to a point, Landscape mode is awkward in the hand, but if you use your phone as a GPS as I do very much, you appreciate the map coverage landscape mode gives you and it just feels more like a decent GPS in landscape mode, but yes I'm willing to admit that beyond a car mounted phone, landscape mode is restrictive no matter what the OS!
  • The stock music player lets you change track by swiping the screen. I'm assuming the screen has to be on for this to work in which case this isn't a new feature.
  • Hi woodbane,
    You are correct the stock music player does allow swipe to change songs, but try doing it in landscape mode ;P
    I assure you I'm not out to reinvent the wheel, Swipe Tunes was born from the need to be able to swipe to change songs when the phone is mounted in a windscreen mount in Landscape mode streaming music to the reciever via bluetooth (as my phone is also my GPS and I use Nokia Drive in Landscape mode as well).
    So as the stock music player just wasn't cutting it in Landscape mode for me, I devised Swipe Tunes which I now also release for everyone to utilise!
    I would have liked more features such as allowing the updating of the live tile with album art etc on each song change, however in the SDK this is currently not possible utilising the Media Library on the device (Is possible if you provide the media content via streaming so Pandora, Nokia Music, Spotify etc provide audio through the BackgroundAudio class and this can update live tile) so what you see is the best I have been able to conjure up with the SDK.
    The stock music player does also allow the pinning of albums etc, but I made Swipe Tunes do it as well so that you can jump in the car, tap one tile and be off and swiping through songs while driving down the road.
    Enjoy everyone!
     
  • I really like it. Simple. Only feature I really gain is tap to play/pause, but that is incredibly helpful. One thing I suggest is tapping on playlist in OS music control should open it instead of default. See how Pandora and Nokia Music handle it. Maybe I missed that option?
  • Hi, what you are describing is integration with the music + video hub.
    You are correct that I have not put this into the app, however this is certainly a feature I am going to put on the todo list :)
    Thank you for the comment/suggestion!
  • Let me guess Cheeky, this is your work?
  • Do you mean did I make the app? Sure thing buddy! https://twitter.com/CheekyGhostApps
  • Good to se a developer actively interacting with the users here.
  • I was just about to say the same thing!
  • This could work nicely with the CR-200 car dock. The car app for that accessory does not let you add the default Music + Videos app as a quick link.
  • My thoughts exactly, I'm currently using a Belkin mount I had from my old phone, but the plan is to look at a CR-200, the biggest holdup is I'm using a belkin AirCast for my Bluetooth music receiver so I need to find a graceful way of allowing 2 12v plugs to be plugged in at once, I bought a cheap double adapter but its ridiculous and keeps popping out :/
  • Great app from the looks of it, but what makes it stand out/better than Hey DJ!? I currently use that when driving and was wondering how your app is different in terms of music navigation while driving.
  • Hi! I downloaded the lite version of Hey DJ! So I could answer this question for you. Unless I missed it, I was unable to swipe the screen to change songs in Hey DJ! Lite. For me the most natural way to change a song without looking is a quick swipe of the screen. The voice feature provided by Hey DJ! While a nice feature, I would find trying to talk to it while driving a bit clunky as it stops music playback etc and imagine doing that every song! Not bad mouthing Hey DJ! I like the UI, I'm just tailoring to what I feel is a better way to control music when driving, based purely in my own experience and preference of course! You may like the talking to the phone thing and that's cool too!
  • You can check CarTunes, a gestures based player already in the market for a long time with great reviews and controls...
    hint - tap and hold song image to get help on controls and settings.
    I really feel you can review it also...:)
  • Hi, The thing with CarTunes last I looked was you had to be specific with your swipe, I.e couldn't just swipe anywhere on the screen. You need to swipe/tap/hold the album art image exclusively and so need to glance at the screen which starts to defeat the point for me! Trust me, I looked at CarTunes befor making my app, I actually had CarTunes on iOS before I switched to Lumia and it is a beautiful app on iPhone. The functionality of the iPhone version of CarTunes is what inspired me to bring that sane experience I was enjoying on iOS over to WP :)
  • Well...i don't think you really need to look at the screen to change song, playlist, shuffle, play all song and so on...
    saying that, I can fix the next/previous song to be a full screen thing...
    anyhow, there is always a space for another app :)
  • Cartunes was updated with full screen support. Thanks for pointing this out
  • My favorite part about this app is that it has a landscape player mode.
  • Indeed, landscape mode with swipe was the reason for the birth of the app, glad you enjoy it :)
  • Is it possible to access the playlist in progress?
  • Hi, please pardon my ignorance, what do you mean by playlist in progress?
  • Quick access to the list of previous and next songs in a playlist, album, artist... like the Nokia Music app (swipe right).
  • Oh I get you, not at the moment, but I'll consider adding it thanks!
  • super is very good news!
    Thank you for your excellent work
  • Not free in Malaysia. That's the reason our country has so much debt.