The Bottom Line
The iPhone is a great companion on long car trips. Besides letting you stay in touch with people not in the car with you, it can offer tons of entertainment in the form of music, video, and apps, and it can also help you get where you're going via its built-in GPS.
But long car trips have a danger: drowsy driving, something that can lead to accidents. Anti Drowse is an app that aims to help drivers prevent drowsy driving. Unfortunately, it's more likely to startle or bother drivers than help them.
Pros
- Free version
Cons
- Startling, unpleasant noises
- Can't run in the background
- Can't change length of trip once it's begun without restarting phone
- Notes indicates that it's not recommended for use when driving
Description
- App that periodically makes loud noises in an attempt to keep drivers from becoming drowsy
- Both Free & Paid versions (US$0.99) adds more sound and vibration options, and removes ads
- Requires iOS 4.1 or higher; works on iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad
Guide Review - Anti Drowse Safe Driving App Review
When you launch Anti Drowse, you're offered a timer that allows you to set the length of your trip and a start button. When your trip length is entered, tap the start button and the app begins to work. Its work consists of a series of loud and distracting noises--bells, horns, women screaming--played periodically. And that's the app. It doesn't offer any other settings or options. I suppose it's not a terrible idea, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.
First off, if you're actually drowsy when driving, I'm not sure these sounds will be helpful. I suspect they're more likely to startle a truly drowsy person, which seems like it might not make things any safer. As it was, I ran the app in the mid-morning in my office, when I wasn't drowsy, and still found the sounds unpleasant and a bit startling.
Besides startling a driver, Anti Drowse has another major problem: it can't run in the background. That means that you can't use other common and helpful apps--such as Maps, iPod, or Phone--while trying to use it. Given that many people will need to use those apps and try to prevent drowsy driving at the same time, this is a major drawback.
The app is also plagued by some bugs. For instance, it's not possible to change the length of your trip once you're tapped the start button without restarting the iPhone. Also, the start button never turns to a stop button, so there's no way to end your trip early.
In a somewhat comical twist, the notes for the app warn that it "is not recommended for use if you are tired." I know that's a legal disclaimer, but what good is an anti-drowsy driving app if its maker says not to use it when drowsy?
While an anti-drowsy driving app is a great idea, Anti Drowse isn't what you should bring along on your next trip.
