The 3D animated avatars took their first real step out of Messages yesterday as Apple rolled out an update to its Clips video app.
Users can now use Animoji and Memoji to make short movies and slideshows in the Clips app. The new addition essentially allows you to paste the virtual version of your face atop of your actual head, with the camera replicating your facial expressions as you film.
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With Memoji, users can design 3D animated versions of their own face. The feature uses the TrueDepth camera on the iPad Pro or any phone beyond the iPhone X to track and mimic facial expressions live on screen.
Related: Animoji and Memoji
Any Memoji’s you’ve generated in Messages as well as all of the classic Animojis will automatically appear in Clips, allowing you to layer your favourite avatar with filters, animated text, music, stickers and more.
You can even switch between Animojis once a video is done, so there’s no need to stick with the shark emoji if the owl is calling your name.
Image: Apple
Apple has also updated its animated stickers and regular emojis so that they now follow movement with the front-facing camera. Users will no longer need worry about virtual sunglasses slipping off or speech bubbles drifting away from their face as they turn to the side.
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Initially released in 2018, Memoji’s custom faces were a refreshing alternative to the default unicorns and lip syncing poop emojis that Animoji had become known for. Despite this, the feature hasn’t strayed far from the Messages app since its inception.
Clips isn’t Apple’s most popular default video app. It has an average of just over three stars and one ninth of the reviews of fellow default four star editing app iMovie.
Perhaps the addition of Animoji and Memoji will have more users flocking to the app to make musical slideshows and quirky shorts with themselves as the star… sort of.
The new Animoji and Memoji features are available with the latest Clips update and require an iPhone or iPad Pro with a TrueDepth camera to work.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
