Glitchr: Retro Makes a Nostalgic Return

Glitchr

Who doesn’t love a stroll down memory lane? Supriya Joshi reviews Glitchr, the app which takes you back in time.

Nostalgia has become a great marketing tool lately. Things that were once considered obsolete are making a return, and how. From refurbished gaming consoles to even cellphones, people are steadily buying into the attraction of the yesteryears.

Amongst the many apps that replicate various old-timey effects, emerges another, called Glitchr.

So Simple!
The app features one of the most basic interfaces I have seen yet, but that’s not a bad thing. It is, after all, replicating the simplicity of technology that have long passed. When you launch the app, you are greeted with a bare-bones black and white screen that prompts you to either pick a photo to ‘glitch’ from your gallery, or take a photo. The user interface itself is very reminiscent of the Gameboy consoles we used to spend hours on in our childhood days.

Is that a photo, or a VHS tape screenshot?
The app really does well in recreating visual effects from media we are all so used to from our childhood. This particular photo was processed with the VHS filter, and it looks exactly like I have hit pause on an old home video. Adding the date of when the photo was made adds a nice touch. Photograph/Supriya Joshi

All Glitched Out
Once you have picked out a photograph you would like to work with, the app gives you 10 filters, each replicating an old-timey visual. These filters are VHS, Glitch Art, 3D, Triangulate, JPEG, ASCII, GB Camera, Gameboy, NES and Spectrum.

Do You Really Need it?
Glitchr is a very unique app, and it throws new results every time you use it. Personally, I am a sucker for nostalgia, so I really enjoyed using this app. However, for today’s generation, who would not even know what a VHS is, would this app really be relevant? Or would it get drowned in the sea of the hundreds of other filter apps available today? Either way, Glitchr provides what it promises and more.