IJP, which has made some beautiful battery meter apps like Energy Notch and Energy Ring that accentuate your screen's notch or selfie camera punch area, is out with another app that ups the aesthetic factor while minimizing space and maximizing functionality: Media Bar.

Media Bar allows you to not only track and control the progress of any media without having to pull down the notification shade from whatever screen you're on — including the lock screen — but also program up to three contextual controls. It's officially in the beta stages of life yet, so we're expecting more promise and less perfection at this moment.

Users will be required to turn on accessibility services for the app (that can be done by hitting the toggle at the top-right corner) before it starts working.

Three invisible context buttons can be programmed to control playback of any music or video currently playing, skip forwards or backwards in the queue, or even launch an app. Users can also tailor the aesthetics of the progress bar including its position, how it populates, and colors — including adaptive colors based on the app's icon or the album art.

Tap and swipe pickup can be a bit iffy, especially as you try to avoid triggering the notification shade or a return to home. But there's at least some convenience on offer here.

Some "trial" features like the adaptive bar coloring, extending the time-skip interval beyond 3 seconds, and others require a donation to the developer, IJP — tiers start from $2.38. The ads also go away with a contribution.

If you're interested in trying out Media Bar, you can grab it from the Play Store or APK Mirror.

Media Bar Developer: IJP
Price: Free
3.8
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