ToneBox. Make Music On Your Windows Mobile Phone

Software for making music on Windows Mobile devices is rare – ToneBox is hopefully the first step in changing this, bringing a basic sequencer to the platform that looks good and is easy to use.

There simply aren’t enough music-making apps for Windows Mobile, so it’s always good to get hold of a new one – and ToneBox on the face of it looks pretty good.

Is it good enough though to kick-start a new trend of music apps for the Windows Phone platform?

Before downloading, check that your Windows Mobile device is running 6.0 or 6.1, and that you have all of the pre-requisite software installed.

Installing ToneBox is simple, and can be done by following the download link, saving the CAB file to your Windows Phone (or onto your PC for transfer to your mobile device via USB or Bluetooth) and then running the file to begin the installation.

Available free of charge from www.freewarepocketpc.net, ToneBox requires .NET Compact Framework 3.5 from Microsoft - this should be downloaded and installed beforehand - as well as Flash 7 Player for Windows Mobile, available from Adobe.

Running ToneBox presents the user with a basic screen of black hemispheres, resembling a bubble wrap popping app. Measuring 9x12, there are 108 bubbles to switch on or off - this can be done by pressing them with your finger or stylus; these hemispheres represent a different note covering 9 octaves.

Each activated bubble is coloured a pale grey and lights up as each “note” is played. The results are pleasing both visually and audibly - ToneBox is a fun app that can brighten up a few moments of the day or provide inspiration for a deeper musical experience.

There’s nothing complicated about this app – previous reviews of handheld synthesizers and sequencers have demonstrated that there have been some awful attempts to replicate the full desktop experience on Windows Mobile, something that probably shouldn’t be attempted and certainly not with a stylus as the method of interaction due to the level of detail required in such an app.

ToneBox is in direct contrast to these older apps – it is extremely easy to use and compelling, feeling not too far removed from a puzzle game. While not as feature-packed as a “serious” music-making app, there is hopefully enough here to prompt the developer to investigate other ways of bringing the ability to make music with Windows Mobile, or at least to prompt someone else to contribute to this under-subscribed niche.

As free Windows Phone apps go, this is certainly worth picking up for a little musical interlude when you have a few moments spare.