Japan’s creepiest iPhone App has its eyes on the West

Tokyo, Japan – HourFace from MotionPortrait, one of Tokyo’s hottest iPhone dev studios, has topped the charts in Japan since it launched in January and is now updated and better than ever. Using MotionPortrait’s cutting-edge avatar-builder technology, HourFace analyzes a still photo and turns it into a living, breathing 3D movie that ages right there on the iPhone screen.

Don’t just take our word, or the screenshots’, for it – these movies totally rock and will be the center of attention, whoever you apply the wrinkly brush to. Amaze and shock your friends – turn them into creaking old wrecks right in front of their eyes. Discover what you might look like 50 years from now – all in 3D! Just be careful not to pick on anyone too sensitive about their looks, ‘K?

Just fire up HourFace, use the iPhone’s camera to take a snap of a friend (or use one from your photo library) and wait for the magic to kick in while the dedicated servers get to work. Powered by MotionPortrait technology, HourFace ages your friends and family AND generates a 3D interactive movie for you to poke, prod and be amazed by. Find out what’s been keeping Japanese iPhone users in stitches for weeks!

In use, HourFace is simplicity itself – turn the iPhone upside down and the tilt sensor makes the avatar younger; flip it up the right way to head straight back to wrinkly city; hit the share button to fire off a photo snapshot by email. Some say the blinking, wheezing oldsters are kinda creepy, but we think they’re sweet (if you like zombie gramps, that is) – check them out for yourself and use the sharing features to let the world know what you’ll look like in your nineties!

Features:
* Create a 3D face from your photos or the iPhone camera
* Aging face adds decades to anyone
* Anti-aging face tightens the skin and turns back the clock
* Turn the face side to side by dragging the screen
* Save a 3D face in the library
* Send a wrinkly snapshot by email
* Full screen mode with a single tap
* Reverse aging by flipping the iPhone upside down
* Pause the aging when the iPhone is horizontal
* Secret Easter Eggs!

How to take a good photo: The advanced face-recognition technology is cutting-edge but delicate and needs a good photo to work with. Here’s what you’ll need to look out for:

* The subject should be facing straight ahead with head held straight
* His or her forehead must be visible
* Bright natural light is best – shadows only get in the way

What’s new in version 1.3:
* Before uploading a photo, the app performs a quick test to see if a face exists in the photo
* New Easter Egg (wink) for the anti-aged face

Supported Languages:
* US English, French, German and Japanese

Device Requirements:
* Device must have a camera to use the camera functions, otherwise library photos work just fine
* iPhone and iPod touch
* Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later
* 3.8 MB

Pricing and Availability:
HourFace 1.3 is $2.99 USD (2.39 Euro / £1.79 / 350 yen) and available worldwide exclusively through the App Store in the Entertainment category.

HourFace 1.3
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Developer MotionPortrait is one of Japan’s hottest new iPhone dev studios, with several smash hits already under its belt. Find out more at the MotionPortrait website. Copyright (C) 2009-2010 MotionPortrait Inc. All Rights Reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, iPhone and iPod are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries.