Microsoft Is Currently Testing 5 Intriguing New Apps for iPhone, iPad, and Android Devices

Microsoft’s mobile app development division has been busy in the lab, it seems. The Garage, as the division is known, has had a productive couple of weeks — launching several new applications.  And today, Microsoft announced that it currently has five new mobile apps and browser extensions — some for iOS and Android — that are currently in beta testing, according to PhoneArena.

One of the apps, for example, is Project Copenhagen — and it’s being developed as a way for users to easily share files to “anyone with Gmail,” according to The Garage’s website.

A similar browser extension app, dubbed Project Oceana, hopes to be a quick way of accessing an Outlook inbox from a mobile browser, MS PowerUser reported.

Hearing AI is a project that hopes to “visualize the world of sound.” It’s an app that visualizes the intensity and types of sounds in a user’s environment in order to “gauge the ambiance of a certain space,” according to Microsoft. To clarify, the app will provide users with notifications about how the sound in their environment changes. It also can be used to transcribe verbal conversations — and use different typography to visualize the loudness of speech, Microsoft announced.

Write Ideas, another of the apps being developed, is a prewriting tool designed to help students get a head start on their writing assignments. The app uses prompts and questions  to “ease students through their writing assignments.” The app also allows students to use voice commands, doodles, and standard text to make writing a more comfortable and creative experience.

Finally, Project Santorini is a photo application that will hopefully provide users with a fresh way to revisit old memories. The app uses a fluid interface and metadata embedded within photos to navigate between pictures taken in the same location, and during similar times.

These probably aren’t the final names for the apps — so be sure to keep an eye out for name changes if or when the apps get closer to a general rollout.

It’s worth noting that these applications aren’t in public beta — they are by invitation only. So if you want to test out these apps for yourself, you’ll have to sign up for the beta on The Garage’s website.

Do these new apps sound like something you’d like to try, or not? Let us know in the comments below!