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SynchStep: musical speedometer

by Brett Terpstra May 16th 2008 at 7:30PM

Here's an iPhone app with some potential. Greg Elliott of Poke has released SynchStep, an app for iPhones and iPod touches that chooses songs based on your walking pace. The project began before the iPhone, conceived as a self-contained MP3 player with the necessary hardware. Upon the advent of the accelerometer-toting iPhone/touch, it became more feasible to bring the idea to the masses.

The app has a simple, good-looking interface. I couldn't get it to work very well, though, after about 20 minutes of building and analyzing playlists followed by many carefully paced steps. Quite a few people witnessed me walking quickly by, only to see me pass a while later at a much slower pace, repeated ad nauseum nauseam with an increasingly frustrated look on my face.

I love the concept, though. I want it to work and I'm hoping I'm just doing something wrong. Maybe you should give it a try. I've always wanted a real-time, personal soundtrack. Coincidentally, the previous name for the project was PersonalSoundtrack, which I mention only because I like the former moniker slightly better for its more intimate connotations. Now, back to walking around like I'm in a Monty Python sketch.

Update: After working a little with the Greg (the very helpful developer), I'm happy to report that I do actually have a personal soundtrack now. I had initially assumed that SynchStep would round to the nearest available BPM match, but it's pretty fine-grained. The more songs you have at different BPMs, the more likely you are to get great results. The documentation has been updated to reflect this. Give it a shot, it's impressive.

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Here's an iPhone app with some potential. Greg Elliott of Poke has released SynchStep, an app for iPhones and iPod touches that chooses...
 

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13 Comments

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greg elliott

hey all,

first, beaTunes is mac/win friendly. my site detects your browser and offers you the correct version.

second, brett, i'm sorry you're having issues with synchstep. let's see if we can figure it out. this app has worked well for a lot of folks during private beta testing, so i'm confident we can solve it.

are you hearing a metronome at any point during your walking? it should kick in 5-6 seconds after the start up chime finishes playing.

wanna email me so we can sort this thing out? my email is gelliott followed by the atsign then the word gmail then a dot and a com.

May 18 2008 at 5:59 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
frank

if it'll make me walk like john cleese in that sketch, i'm in.

May 17 2008 at 11:39 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
pnarse

Haha I automatically do the opposite, I adjust my walking pace to the music I'm listening to without even thinking about it!

Except when it goes over 150bpm, because I'd look ridiculous!

May 17 2008 at 6:07 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Allister

So, I checked, using my Mac just now. Last night I spotted the app on Installer and visited the page from my iPod Touch - try it!

May 17 2008 at 5:18 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Allister's comment
Brett Terpstra

You're right. That's kind of funny.

May 17 2008 at 5:30 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Allister

This is an Apple site, right? Why is no-one mentioning a Mac-friendly BPM solution then? All I saw on the site was a Windows one.

May 17 2008 at 3:23 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Allister's comment
Brett Terpstra

Where exactly are you looking? beaTunes (a mac program) is the recommended BPM generator and the only download link I see provided...

May 17 2008 at 5:12 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Rick

wow. another pointless 3rd party app that drains my battery.

May 17 2008 at 1:09 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
JeffZ

Maybe it has to do with where you wear your iPhone? Not sure if it's intened to be in an armband or on your waist, perhaps. I'd love it if this works -- it'd be a great motivator to pick up the pace on the treadmill.

May 16 2008 at 11:39 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to JeffZ's comment
Brett Terpstra

As detailed in the site's instructions, I had my iPod touch in the front pocket of my pants. However, I am quickly coming to believe that something may be wrong with the accelerometer in my touch...

May 17 2008 at 5:14 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
dswift

Helpful note intended for the entire world: it's spelled "ad nauseam."

May 16 2008 at 9:55 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to dswift's comment
Brett Terpstra

Argh, I *knew* that. Thanks :).

May 16 2008 at 10:15 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Quine

I have the counterpart to that embedded in my brain :P I just sync my steps to my music most of the time.

May 16 2008 at 8:29 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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