LOS ANGELES — Once upon a time, our imaginary friends were just voices in our heads. Today, they can text us, and prove to our friends that they are real. It is all part of the growing world of invisible apps.
The phrase “invisible apps” means different things to different people. To some, it means a traditional app that does not have a visible icon displayed on the home screen — a simple privacy measure that will keep embarrassing or sensitive apps away from prying eyes.
For others, “invisible apps” are background helper functions that aggregate user actions, and are simply a way to reduce multiple clicks to one click, or to reduce decision fatigue by anticipating the user’s intended actions and outcomes, then automating and streamlining the process.
These helper actions can become remarkably sophisticated, relying on advanced artificial intelligence engines and incorporating real-time data from a mobile device’s growing range of accurate sensors — with some phones having nearly a dozen onboard devices for measuring location, movement, altitude and so much more.
Consider Repostage, which allows users to add a #Repostage hash tag to any of their Instagram photos and automatically receive a printed postcard in the mail. Sure, you could find and use an online printing service and then figure out their app and ordering process — or with one simple signup, just add a hash tag and let the invisible app do the rest of the work for you.
Or FollowUpThen, a free and easy email reminder service that allows users to compose an email and include [any time]@followupthen.com in the “Cc,” “Bcc” or “To” fields to schedule a reminder for you and the recipient; to receive a follow-up regarding the email; or to send an email to your future self, as an aid in contact management and task prioritization.
Another invisible app, Go Invisible, targets those who value the power of privacy.
“We live in a highly connected world. Everything we say, do and see is broadcast across millions of screens,” says the publisher. “Go Invisible challenges the existing channels of digital communication and provides a safe way to share the important messages in life.”
It does this by encrypting text messages and setting automatic expirations for them, so for example, Sally could send a suggestive sext and image to Billy, which will automatically and irretrievably erase itself after a preset time, say, five seconds — before Billy can smear it all over the Internet for all to see.
The Go Invisible app not only works with text messages, but with Facebook and Twitter as well, with an encrypted telephony offering under development for more private phone calls.
There are countless ways that invisible apps can be used, which naturally means adult entertainment applications are not far behind...
Consider the live cam market, which is hugely popular in part because of its interactivity and ability for customers to carry on conversations and to build relationships — a much more vibrant dynamic than is simple porn consumption. Loneliness is as powerful a motivator as horniness, so that discussion option is much sought after — and for some folks, other people’s perception of their loneliness, or their ability to attract a friend or lover and maintain a relationship, is also important.
Enter a pair of apps seeking to solve this problem: Invisible Boyfriend and Invisible Girlfriend.
According to the publisher, Invisible Boyfriend gives girls the ability to design and build a believable social partner who is everything they want, and who is always available to talk, whenever they want — advising girls to “Get what you deserve. Build a better Boyfriend.”
The app offers “believable social proof,” by allowing users to have text conversations, share photos, and tell a believable story about their new boyfriend. Users can create their own boyfriend, give him a name, choose his age and photo and create his personality. The result is real texting and real-time, interactive proof of a “relationship” — with the motives for doing so left up to the user.
Guys get a similar deal. Invisible Girlfriend provides “real-world and social proof that you’re in a relationship — even if you’re not — so you can get back to living life on your own terms.”
Both services include text chatting, voicemails, handwritten notes, photos, and a personalized story for $24.99 per month, covering 100 text messages, 10 voicemails and one handwritten note. A $14.99 plan offers just the text messaging.
It’s doubtless that someone will come out with a saucier version of this service, which could prove to be revolutionary to the mobile porn market — but regardless of the individual applications, it is clear that the use of invisible apps is just beginning, and will impact the way we interact with our devices and with the world around us — making our phones an even more indispensible part of our daily (sex) lives.