Do you want to see and talk to your friends, but not hear them? Well, Yahoo has a new solution, dubbed Livetext.
As the name implies, the app will let you text your friends and see them reacting to your messages on the screen. But Livetext does not include an audio component, so you can only communicate via typed messages, or perhaps hand signals.
"While texting is quick and easy, you often miss the meaning of a message, have to explain your reaction ('LOL'), or wait hours before getting a response," Arjun Sethi, senior director of product management at Yahoo, said in a blog post. "And to actually talk on the phone, you not only have to be available, but you also have to be in a place where you can chat."
So if you're in study hall or in the quiet car of a commuter train, you can still have a video chat with friends—or just stare into their eyes.
"Whether you're watching Avicii DJ at the Creamfields Festival, at Venice Beach or taking in the view from the Eiffel Tower, you can spontaneously connect with the people you care about and invite them to experience moments with you," Sethi wrote. "Your friend's goofy look or giant smile, even her eye roll or silent sigh, suddenly become a part of your conversation."
Yahoo has been testing Livetext in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Ireland for the past few weeks, and it will roll out tomorrow in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Germany, and France via the the App Store and Google Play.