Ever fancied speaking/singing like a Cylon (original series), a Dalek or even Metal Mickey (it was a big 1980’s weekend tea-time show here in the UK)?

Voice Synth by Qneo can help you do just that, but there is so much more to the app than that. We’ve been playing with this universal app on both iPad and iPhone for the last few weeks and we love it.

If you need a fantastic sounding vocoder with a great UI, myriad range of controls and options, or even if you want to sound like some sort of robotic popstar, we recommend you go and get this app right now.

But if you want to know a bit more about Voice Synth check out the video and a few of our notes below it.

Video Demo

Here is a very comprehensive walk through of Voice Synth from Qneo which tells you all you need to know and we promise everything that is shown in this video demo is easily achievable within minutes of opening the app.

Impressive

As you’ll see from the video, the range of controls, filters and effects is mind-blowing, check out the features section of the Voice Synth site for more detail.

The UI is lovely looking and not just eye candy, it is functional and responsive too. We especially liked the EQ with its swipe-to-set action and live meters, as well as the central Pitch/Scale Shift dial (very HAL).

The controls were a joy to use and fit the feel of the app perfectly. All this for just $4.99/£2.99 at the introductory 50% discount.

Incoming update and much needed features

As much as we enjoyed using Voice Synth, our main gripe with the app was not being able to send audio out to GarageBand or other DAW type app on our iPad, with email being the only way to get recorded audio out of the app currently.

With the upcoming 1.1 update though, much needed ACP (Audio, Copy & Paste) support is being added along with MIDI support and uncompressed WAV audio export. This will give Voice Synth some serious potential for use in recording of your vintage 80’s/futuristic tinged iPad productions.

We are sure that Voice Synth will provide hours of fun for anyone though, even if you are just letting the kids play around with their voices. Our iPad Creative kids loved the Sampler feature and also the Live mode where Voice Synth converts your voice instantaneously (best with headphones but also works well through a hi-fi or amp).

We recommend picking up Voice Synth now while it is carries a 50% discount so that you can start delving into its powerful features and you’ll have it ready for the more useful 1.1 version which is imminent.

App Store Link: Voice Synth

We've made plenty of predictions about what features the new iPad 3 (iPad 2S or 2X?) might bring, so we thought it might be a tad more exciting to predict what new apps Apple might decide to demonstrate alongside the new iPad during the launch event next month.

After a review of the continued success of the iPad, which will no doubt feature a warm and fuzzy video that shows how the iPad is transforming lives across the globe, the focus will then likely move to hardware improvements. As we've said many a time, we think that most attention will be given to the new 3.15MP Retina display.

iPhoto, a showcase for the Retina Display

We think that iPhoto for iPad has been ready for quite some time. Only the launch of iCloud and the iPad 3 with its Retina display has stopped Apple from rolling out iPhoto for iPad already. iPhoto will likely be the first app that Apple demonstrate during the iPad 3 launch event. What better way to show off the eye popping detail of the new display and the quality of the new 5MP camera module?

iMovie 2, a showcase for the new camera

Again, with the focus on the new display and the new camera module, iMovie 2 seems like an obvious candidate for a iPad 3 app demo. Expect iMovie 2 to include the ability to edit dual video tracks. The iPad 3 will also include 1080p video capture with image stabilisation, just like the iPhone 4S.

OnLive, so that's where it went!

Where is OnLive's gaming app? We know that it was submitted to Apple around the same time as the Android version, but almost 3 months later it's still missing. Intriguingly, neither Apple or OnLive are willing to give a reasonable answer as to its whereabouts. While it's possible that either Apple or OnLive have found a major bug that's holding everything up, or that Apple have flat out rejected the app on other grounds, this seems unlikely to us. We think something else happened.

We think OnLive submitted the app just as they said they did, Apple then tested it, and because of the controversial nature of the OnLive gaming service, the final decision as to whether or not the app got the green light had to be made by someone fairly high up in Apple's management team. This same Apple member of management asked the obvious question of OnLive, can this app be made to stream gaming content at 2048 pixels wide (Retina display quality)? The answer was yes, and a deal was made that meant that the OnLive app would be part of the iPad 3 launch event.

Real Racing 3, an old favourite returns

Back in May 2011 EA purchased Firemint, the developers behind the hugely successful Real Racing and Flight Control series. Not long after the purchase, EA declared it had stopping working on the latest iOS instalment of its Need For Speed series. EA simply stated that it was focusing on 'fewer, bigger, better' experiences. Firemint seems to be one of the favoured few developers that get early access to new iOS hardware, we see no reason why this would not be the case this time around. We expect EA (Firemint) to be ushered on stage to show off a spectacular looking Real Racing 3. With EA overseeing the project we should expect to see a garage load of licensed cars and music tracks. Real Racing will become to iOS what Gran Turismo and Forza are to their respective platforms, the definitive driving experience.

So there we have it, 4 apps that we half expect to see demoed alongside the iPad 3 at the launch event. What do you think, are we on the right track with our predictions? Let us know in a comment below.

It's that time again (where did that week go?) when we rummage around SoundCloud and pick three tracks that tickled our ears for one reason or another.

This week we've heard from a few iPad musicians on Twitter and had a number of additions to the iPad Creative SoundCloud group, which we are very happy about, thank you.

We are always on the lookout for more iOS made music so be sure to let us know if you come across anything you think we would like. As a quick reminder, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and, of course, SoundCloud.

So here is this week's trio:

'Mr Brightside Electronic Love Song' by Michaelw

We LOVE this track because it is so interesting and different, plus we are big fans of Vocoders (it's a by-product of growing up in the 80's). Michael Wadlow from Wales here in the UK got his daughter to speak the lyrics from The Killers' Mr Brightside song to make this haunting, beautiful and mysterious track.

He used SynthTronica and SoundTrend's studio.HD to come up with something quite different to his other tracks on SoundCloud. Headphones will help this one sound so much more hypnotic.

'Battle Within' by freesoulsound

We had trouble selecting any one track from freesoulsound (a.k.a. Gerren Grant from Sacramento, California) because he covers so many different styles. We chose this one because we liked the unsettling and experimental feel of the track (and we love Animoog ).

But if you're in the mood for jumping around or maybe just nodding your head a bit more, check out the rest of freesoulsound's tracks on SoundCloud, and try not to get too distracted by the slightly saucy artwork.

'Mélopée' by nOtrO

Keeping on the ambient / minimalist theme (don't worry we've got some great uptempo tracks lined up for next week) here's a track by nOtrO (a.k.a. Sylvian Berthu from France).

Mélopée was created entirely in NanoStudio on Sylvian's iPad, and it builds to a solid rhythm that is quite entrancing.

You're Up

We hope you liked chilling out a little bit with our picks this week, but as always, we want to hear from you and your iOS created sounds, here's how you can get them to us:

• Join our iPad Creative SoundCloud group then click on the 'Share a Track' button on the group page
• If you're on a computer, click 'Send us your sounds' at top of the sidebar --->
• Leave us a link to your track on SoundCloud in the comments below

We're looking forward to hearing you soon.

We think this Brushes iPad painting video from Nikolai Lockertsen is required viewing for anyone looking to sharpen their iPad painting skills. It just doesn't get much better!

Further reading: All Nikolai Lockertsen posts

This is the Zooka Wireless Speaker Bar for iPad, a new Kickstarter project, which has already hit its $25,000 funding target.

So why are we telling you about it if it has already been funded? Well, we like the clever design and thinking that has gone into the Zooka, it looks like a product we would use and it hits our creative buttons.

Sounds good?

But the Zooka also attempts to address one of the few concerns we have about the current iPad models; poor sound output through the built-in speaker. We can't tell how good it will sound from the video, but they have some good expertise behind the project.

We also like the fact that you can use the Zooka as a carry handle for the iPad and the soft silicone will be kind to your desk or any other surface you decide to rest it on.

Other uses

Got a laptop as well? The Zooka should fit over the open lid, there's even a little cutout for your built-in iSight/webcam.

Zooka on a laptop - Image from Zooka Kickstarter page

No Bluetooth on your laptop? Not a problem, there is a 3.5mm jack on the back of the Zooka.

Got other Bluetooth audio devices like the iPhone? The Zooka currently supports Bluetooth V2.1 so you can stream audio to it from most devices (perfect for taking on holiday with you).

As you'll see from the video, the Zooka angles your iPad so you can use it as a typing stand too. It doesn't look like you can use it stood up to watch movies though, like you can with the Smart Cover, which is a shame.

Colourful choices

You can get the Zooka in a range of colours, and they seem to be thinking about adding more colours as they move towards the first Production run in September, from the comments.

Zooka colour range - Image from Zooka Kickstarter Page

The price

Unless you were one of the fortunate first 50 backers (who got the Zooka for $59) you will have to pay $89 for your Zooka if you order it before the Kickstarter Project finishes and $99 for the full retail price after that. International Shipping is $20 on top.

We thought this was a little high to be honest, until we did a Google shopping search for 'portable bluetooth speakers' and, considering the functionality (including the carry handle and laptop fitting), it is not an outrageous price at all, in fact it seems quite reasonable. 

If you have the extra cash though and fancy a limited edition glow in the dark version, that'll set you back $149, but it is cool.

Zooka 'Glow in the dark' version - Image from Zooka Kickstarter page

If you want to know more then you can get full details, updates and pictures over on the Zooka Kickstarter page.

Feel free let us know what you think of the Zooka in the comments below.

We are constantly on the lookout for new iOS made tracks on SoundCloud, so continuing our regular(ish) Tune-in Tuesday spot, here's this weeks trio of picks.

'Nr One' by Kalim Stavros

We've been meaning to feature one of Kalim's SoundCloud tracks for a while now because he creates all of them in GarageBand on his iPad. This is his most recent track, an uptempo 'Funky House' affair which is proving quite popular over on SoundCloud as you'll see by all the comments.

'The track with no name' by Caustic Sunshine

Another musician we have been meaning to include for a long time is Caustic Sunshine, from just down the road in Bournemouth, UK. This beautiful, Animoog based track put together in NanoStudio on the iPad, really took us away from it all when we first heard it. One for those stressful Monday mornings.

Be sure to check out the rest of Caustic Sunshine's tracks, they're not all iPad/iOS tracks but we like them just the same.

'So U Think U Can Satch?' by shred_777

Timothy Kahlil (a.k.a. shred_777) hails from Sydney, Australia and he has some mean guitar licks going on in this Satch-fest, recorded using the amazing tones of AmpKit. We like it a lot!

Over to you

We try and do this as often as possible, each week if we can, so we would love to hear your SoundCloud hosted tracks too if they were made on an iOS device, especially if the iPad was used in some way.

Here's how you can get your tracks to us:

• Join our iPad Creative SoundCloud group then click on the 'Share a Track' button on the group page
• If you're on a computer, click the 'Send us your sounds' link in the sidebar --->
• Leave us a link to your track on SoundCloud in the comments for this post

We're looking forward to hearing you soon.

For those who have lusted after the awesome iCade arcade cabinet but found it to be too expensive and perhaps a little on the large side, the upcoming 8-Bitty by ThinkGeek is just for you. Much smaller and retailing at just $24.99, 8-Bitty looks like a real winner to us. Expect a full review once we get our hands on one, but we can already say that for those that were quick enough to grab the app while it was available, that 8-Bitty looks like the perfect complement to iMAME.

At the end of last year we posted an article that considered the possibility of a future iPad, one that might include a 3D display. After explaining why we felt that Apple might be the first tech company to provide a compelling personal 3D experience, we than considered what a 3D iPad would mean for artists. In short, we described a new art form; something of a cross between painting and sculpting:

"3D Painting: Imagine being able to create a 3D watercolour by gesturing in the space above the iPad display. You might start off with an overall light coloured wash in the top half of the scene to represent the sky. To do this you would paint with your 4 fingers at a distance of about 8" above the iPad display. The further away from the display your fingers are the deeper into the 3D scene your brush paints - effectively, it would be like painting into a 3D mirror image. As you completed your scene with you would paint in the details closer and closer to the viewer, all the time moving closer to the surface of the display. In short, this would be a brand new way of creating art - a cross between sculpting and painting. Good artists would still need a proper understanding of light and shade and certainly a full working knowledge of perspective, but think of some of the glorious artwork they could produce with a full 3D palette."

Interestingly, it seems that we were not alone in considering the impact that a 3D iPad might have on iPad painting. In fact, Mattis Folkestad of Machineboy was already well on his way to establishing an iPad experience that brings 3D painting to the current generation of iPad users.

Deepsketch is a wonderful complement to all the regular painting and illustration apps that are so loved by iPad artists. With Deepsketch and a pair of coloured 3D glasses (it supports practically every type of coloured 3D glasses), you can now paint into the 3rd dimension! With one simple brushstroke you can paint a line that starts just proud of the iPad screen and then descends behind it. Within a few minutes we had a good grasp of the power of Deepsketch and were able to create some impressive 3D scenes. However, our feeble attempts were simply no match for the skills of Nikolai Lockertsen. The images that you see here are all painted by Nikolai using Deepsketch. Please be sure to check out our other posts about Nikolai, you will not want to miss anything that this iPad artists does.

Deepsketch is simple, but extremely effective. Mattis seems eager to add new features on an almost weekly basis, so you'll certainly be getting value for money.

We maintain that 3D will play an important part in the iPad art scene, and until such time as Apple sees fit to step beyond the Retina display, Deepsketch leads the way into an exciting future. We look forward to seeing where Mattis takes Deepsketch.

App Store Link: DeepSketch

Steve Crowther started his blog back in May 2010. Its purpose is to enable his friends and family to follow him on his personal journey of becoming an artist. We have to say that even some of Steve's early work shows that he already possess all the skills needed.

Interestingly, starting in June of last year Steve began to experiment with iPad painting. Often using a perfect combination of the Nomad Brush and ArtRage, Steve is rapidly learning how to apply his traditional painting skills to this new digital canvas. Really, Steve's blog documents two journeys, the journey to becoming an artist and his passage to becoming a skilled iPad artist. Be sure to follow Steve on his journey by bookmarking his blog and following him on Twitter.

Further Reading: Nomad Brush Review

There's something uniquely satisfying about watching an artist perform. As many iPad painting apps now allow the artist to record every brushstroke, it's no surprise that there are literally thousands of iPad painting videos available online.

Some artists, such as Robert Miller, go one step further and craft the video into a piece of artwork in its own right. We have mentioned Robert on several occasions, as we feel that his art, both the final paintings and the videos, are a solid contribution to the large body of work that iPad artists have produced over the last two years.

Further Reading: Robert Miller

If you are new to iPad Creative, it's possible that you have never seen any of Nikolai's iPad paintings. We strongly encourage you to see all our posts featuring Nikolai as he is, in our opinion, the most consistently impressive iPad artist we know. Nikolai's skill with Brushes is rivalled only my his powerful imagination.

Whether he is painting full locations, or 'just' characters, Nikolai's use of light and insane attention to detail is second to none.

Head back here in a couple of days to see some more of Nikolai's artwork, paintings that he created using an app that few artists are even aware of.

Further Reading: Nikolai Lockertsen

We have to admit, this is extremely close to how we once imagined the near future to look. However, the future has a tendency to pick strange and exciting paths that few would have predicted. We think this Corning Incorporated version of the future is just too touch heavy. Not too surprising given Corning's core business.

Siri would seem to hint at much more voice interaction with computers, and Microsoft's Kinect sensor system and A.I. allows computers to interpret subtle gestures without the need for any physical surface. Still, it's an extremely well made concept video that does fire the imagination somewhat.

If like us, you love playing around with the Animoog iPad app and the built-in presets but at the same time know there is so much more it can do, you will love this.

Clueless

We know that some of you live and breathe this stuff, but for those of us with just a passing interest, this is all a mystery.

As awesome as the supplied presets sound to us, we know we could be sculpting our own unique sounds in Animoog but we had no idea where to start, until now.

A helping hand

Provided by Dubspot, a New York based Music Production and DJ School (who now offer online courses too), this video from Instructor Matt Cellitti will show you how to go from completely initialising your sound so that it is a blank canvas, through how to setup and understand the controls, on to seeing how you might gradually shape your sound into something more unique.

Eye opener

This is just part one of a three part tutorial, but it has already opened up the Animoog app for us. We can't wait to see the other two parts when they are released.

A big thank you to Matt and Dubspot for releasing this tutorial for free on YouTube, check out their channel for plenty more tips, tutorials, interviews and discussion on electronic music making.

If you are anywhere near Plymouth in the UK next weekend you might want to check out the Peninsula Arts Contemporary Music Festival, specifically the piTrio (Plymouth iPad Trio).

Put together by Alexis Kirke, a Composer, Poet, Critic and Writer (amongst many other things), the piTrio will be performing a three part audio/visual piece inline with the Festival's theme of Explore, Dream and Discover.

You are invited not only to join the audience but also to bring your own iOS device along and become part of the performance:

...come to the Roland Levinsky Foyer at Plymouth University at 2:15pm on Saturday 11th Feb. All welcome! Bring your iPad or iPhone and technical help will be available so you can put music software on your iPhone / iPad and join in with Alexis Kirke, Oliver Quinland and Jules Burt (the Plymouth iPad Trio - www.pitrio.com). We'll be done by 3:30pm. No musical skills required and all ages can join in. For more info contact support@pitrio.com Part of the Peninsula Arts Contemporary Music Festival 2012.

Check out the video below from Alexis about some of the apps being used in the performance and the thoughts behind it:

The pixel precision that a larger iPad would provide is perhaps hard to imagine for some, we think this video helps. A desk bound iPad (or touch screen iMac?) is surely part of the plan at Cupertino?

Source: Patently Apple