Pretending to be stuck in traffic during a mobile phone call could become much easier using software that generates fake background noise.
SoundCover, developed by a Romanian phone software company called Simeda, can add artificial traffic and road works to a call at the press of a button. It can mimic a thunderstorm, the dentists drill or even a circus during a call.
Different backgrounds can also be assigned to different phone numbers so that they automatically kick in when a certain person calls. The software can even create the sound of another phone ringing to provide a handy excuse for cutting short a call.
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鈥淭o the person on the other end it sounds like a genuine background,鈥� Simeda鈥檚 CEO Liviu Tofan told New Scientist. 鈥淲e think some people will use it for fun and some people make good excuses.鈥�
The trick involves blending the outgoing voice audio with another looped audio track. Tofan says this is only possible with the latest version of the Symbian mobile phone operating system.
Currently, SoundCover only works on Nokia series 60 phones, although Simeda is developing the software for other Symbian phones. A greater range of backgrounds is also in development. The software costs 14.95 euros and can be downloaded from the company鈥檚 web site.