Instead of making a Do It Yourself (DIY) portable sound system by pairing a smartphone and wireless Bluetooth speaker to play tunes on a playlist, a new Wi-Fi-based method syncs handsets for creating one giant portable speaker. iOS and Android mobile users of iPhones, iPads, and Google phones can now use the free AmpMe app to blast rock, rap, or country music by hosting or joining a "party."
AmpMe host devices use a 4-digit Party Code on their touchscreen to wirelessly zip music to other phones that have installed the app. Tunes are perfectly synced.
The app does not produce surround sound as no device-to-device channel separation exists. Instead, AmpMe CEO Luc Archambault called it "3D sound," according to Wired. That is because the same stereo output blasts from each handset or tablet.
The music's bass quality is inferior to an average Bluetooth speaker. However, app users can still pump up the volume.
In a recent demo the only problems occurred when the devices had bad connectivity. An app user's Wi-Fi connection or carrier could be factors.
The first version of the app only works with SoundCloud and devices running on the Android or iOS platforms. However, Archambault said that more supported services will be added in coming months, while a new feature would sync local files.
AmpMe uses a unique method for device-to-device syncing. It does not utilize a wireless Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connection, but instead transmits a high-frequency audio "fingerprint" to sync the loaded SoundCloud song. Thus, there is no echo effect.
AmpMe is available now on the Apple App Store and Google Play, according to The Verge.