Blabberize.com

Blabberize.com

A Review

Blabberize is a website that allows users to take a photo, "cut" a spot for a mouth, and make the photo "speak" by using a vocal recording. First, the user must upload a photo. Then he or she has to cut out a spot where the mouth is so that when the picture talks, it looks like the mouth is opening and closing. Finally, the user can either record their voice, upload a track, or use their cell phone to add the vocal aspect. (The vocal part can be no longer than 30 seconds). Once it's complete, the project can be viewed and sent. Like it says on the website's homepage, it takes about 30 seconds to make a creation. 

The website is fun to use and it's funny to see the final project. However, it's not too user-friendly. It was difficult for me to figure out how to get started and begin to make a project. Also, cutting out the spot for the mouth was difficult for me; I can only imagine how difficult it would be if a young student had to use it. I think it's an okay program for a teacher to use. He or she could use a historical figure, an animal, or another character to relay information in an entertaining, yet educational way. Essentially, this could be used for any subject, depending on what character is used. I think if students were going to use it, they would have to be in middle school. I think it is too difficult to use for younger students and too simple for older students. Middle school students can make informative projects with this application. However, with such a short amount of time allotted for the speaking part, it can be tough to make a thorough presentation. Also, I believe teachers will have to give some instruction on how to completely use the program. 

The best aspect of this application is the fact that the user can use any character's face for the project. There are many options for what to use, such as: cartoon characters, an animal, a president, or even the user's own face. The possibilities are endless! It can be a fun and effective activity for students to get their ideas across, which is why it's inspirational to users. Since there are so many possible faces to be used, and the fact that the user's own voice can be used to say whatever he or she wants, is a really great thing for students to experience. Students are also more likely to pay attention and be interested in the information being relayed if it's relayed in a unique and entertaining way, just like with this program. It would be best for students to use this individually. This is because only one character can be used at a time, so only one student should be working on each individual project. Overall I think it's a good activity, but not the best. It might get old after a while and students may lose interest in it. Additionally, only a certain amount of information can be relayed in the 30 second time allowance. However, it is definitely a good program for teachers to try out with their classes.

User-friendliness: low

Image/Audio quality: high

Educational level: neutral

Entertainment level: high

Burnout likelihood: likely 

Click here to use Blabberize!