Listen And Reply To Emails While Driving Without Taking Your Hands Off Of The Wheel
July 20, 2010
Ever had the temptation to read and reply to an email while driving? Well, you no longer have to worry about giving into that temptation thanks to a new app by HandsFree Software that allows you to listen and reply to an email without ever taking your hands off of the wheel.
Text'n Drive allows you to stay on top of those many important emails that you receive during a long drive without putting your life at risk by reading newly received messages aloud to you, and allowing you to speak and respond without ever touching your iPhone. As long as you have Text'n Drive launched, any new emails that hit your inbox will instantly be read aloud to you. The disembodied voice will read aloud the sender's name, the email's subject and body. Afterwards, you will be allowed to reply by simply telling the app "reply to this message."
Replying is a fairly painless process as well. Simply speak your message as clearly as possible, and when finished, just stop talking. Text'n Drive will realize the message is complete and send it off.
The app works with most email providers, although I was only able to test it with my Google Mail and personal .Mac account. It supports hands-free devices, such as speakerphones, Bluetooth headsets, and built-in car systems. It also allows you to change how often it checks for new email, detects languages, and even allows you to have a customized auto-response message sent when you are finished listening to a new email.
Text'n Drive isn't an end-all solution to your email needs, however. You are unable to use multiple email accounts at once; the voice used sounds mechanical and doesn't allow you to change the speed at which text is read; there is no way to re-listen to messages or re-record a reply; and your reply is actually an audio message, not text.
On top of all of that, Text'n Drive Pro, the full version of the app, is a bit pricey at $19.99. I suppose that's a very small price to pay for safety. You can always give the free lite version of Text'n Drive a try before upgrading to the full version to see if it's the right app for you. The free version only supports emails up to 45 words and won't allow you to reply, but it gives you a good idea of what to expect.
