Grooves – Privacy Policy
Effective date: 21 May 2026
Developer: Elliot Nicklin (trading as Elliot Nicklin Music)
1. Overview Grooves is an iPad and iPhone Vinyl Playback and metadata retrieval app that shows lyrics and plays the digitised audio out from the device or via wireless playback devices. Your privacy matters: the app is designed to function without collecting personal data.
2. Data We Do Not Collect No accounts or sign-ins – you can use the app without creating an account.
No analytics or advertising – we do not use analytics SDKs, ad networks, or profiling cookies. No personal identifiers – we do not collect names, email addresses, location data, or device identifiers.
3. Data Stored on Your Device The app saves your listening history locally.
This data stays under your control. You can delete it at any time in app or by removing the app or its iCloud container.
4. iCloud Synchronisation (Optional) If you choose to enable iCloud: Your templates and related settings are stored in your private iCloud account and synchronized across your Apple devices.Data stored in iCloud is governed by Apple’s Privacy Policy, not by Co-Composer.
5. Children’s Privacy: Grooves is intended for general audiences and is not marketed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from children.
6. Your Choices: Delete local data: remove the app from your device.Delete iCloud data: disable iCloud for Grooves in iOS/macOS Settings and remove its data from iCloud Drive.
7. Changes to This Policy If we make significant changes, we will update this document and revise the “Effective date” above. You are encouraged to review this policy periodically.
8. Contact If you have any privacy-related questions, please contact:
Elliot Nicklin
Email: hello@elliotnicklin.com
FAQ
What’s the point?
Honestly?... I built Grooves because I wanted to listen to records on my noise-cancelling AirPods while my husband played PlayStation in the same room as the turntable.
That may not be the most romantic origin story in hi-fi history, but it turns out to be quite useful.
Grooves is for those moments when you want the ritual and sound of vinyl, but through the listening setup that actually works for your home, your ears, your neighbours, or your sofa.
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Why can’t I just AirPlay from one device?
Because iOS does not allow an external audio input to be monitored and AirPlayed in the same simple, low-latency way you might expect.
Grooves works around this by using a second iPhone or iPad as a receiver. Your primary device listens to the turntable, then sends the audio to the secondary device. That secondary device can then play the audio as native system sound, including to AirPlay and multi-room speakers.
You can also connect Bluetooth headphones to the secondary device, which means your listening range can extend as far as your local network allows.
It is slightly odd. It is also quite handy.
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The song was recognised, but the release is wrong. Why?
Grooves uses Shazam to recognise the song and fetch basic metadata, but Shazam may identify a single, compilation, soundtrack, remaster, or other release instead of the exact record on your turntable.
That is why Grooves includes an Also On section, powered by Discogs. It shows other releases that feature the currently playing song.
Tap a release to use that artwork and metadata for the rest of your listening session. Grooves will keep using your selected release until it detects that the current song probably does not belong to it, then it returns to automatic recognition.
You can also clear your manual selection at any time by stopping and starting a new session.
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Why would you digitise an analogue signal?
Because convenience and ritual do not have to be enemies.
Grooves is not trying to turn vinyl into streaming. It is trying to let you enjoy your records in more of the places and situations where you already listen to music.
Records still give you the artwork, the sequencing, the mastering, the physical ritual, and the pleasure of choosing something on purpose. Grooves simply lets that experience reach AirPods, Bluetooth headphones, AirPlay speakers, and multi-room setups.
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How do I connect my turntable to my iPhone or iPad?
iOS supports many class-compliant USB audio devices.
Some newer record players include a built-in USB output for digitising and archiving records. In many cases, this can also be used as a live audio input for Grooves.
You can also use a dedicated USB phono preamp or a higher-quality USB audio interface connected to your turntable.
In short:
turntable → USB phono preamp/interface → iPhone or iPad → Grooves
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Why not just read the liner notes?
You absolutely should.
Liner notes are part of the joy of records: the credits, the writing, the photography, the design, the thank-yous, the strange tiny print you need to hold under a lamp.
Grooves is not trying to replace that. It is trying to help you follow the threads.
Who produced this? What else did the drummer play on? Which label released it? Where else does this song appear? What other projects connect these people?
Grooves helps join the dots between records, credits, collaborators, and scenes, so listening can become a little more curious without becoming homework.