Zoobe Pets

As college kids with smart phones, we’re always looking for the latest app to waste time on. Look no further!

Zoobe Pets is a German application that allows you to send recorded messages via dancing cartoon characters. I was introduced to it last summer when my friend Becky came to stay with me from Germany. Every few minutes would send me a message via Zoobe Pets and while it was extremely annoying at first, I got hooked.

The first screen is where you choose your cartoon character. You can pick from a bear, cat, dog, bunny, or skunk depending on your personality. Next, you choose a background such as a field of flowers, a colorful sunset, a tranquil lake, or a picture of your own uploaded through Facebook . The third step allows you to choose what kind of personality your character has. This is my favorite part. The options are sexy, cute, flirtatious, angry, excited, surprised and sassy.

Oh, it gets better.

You then have the opportunity to record your voice. You can say whatever you want in 30 seconds and save it. After your message is recorded, your animal will say present your message in whatever tone you like.

The short videos can be sent via text, email, or social networking. I usually send them to my friends when they need something ridiculous to smile at. Because let’s be real, German dancing cartoons aren’t the norm.

Sometimes you have to send the video twice before it can be opened, and even then it looks like spam. But if you let your friends know what they’re in for, they won’t worry about spam and you’ll be their new favorite person.

Sometimes the instructions are confusing because of the language barrier, but it’s not terribly complicated. These videos can be saved a reopened whenever you like. I have an entire file on my phone of these five second clips from Becky, and they never fail to crack me up on my worst days.

The download takes about thirty seconds and uses up minimal space on your phone. It’s available for both iPhone and Android users, which is a definite plus.

College is stressful. This is a really simple and free way to make people laugh. Don’t get upset if perchance you get addicted to these adorable characters and what you make them say. Limit your use to avoid addiction, and have fun.