Comparison

Theremin vs Retro Synth

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Theremin

This music app allows users to create tones by touching the screen. Moving a finger changes the sound, offering an intuitive and adjustable musical experience.

Highlights
  • Touch-based sound creation
  • Dynamic sound alteration
  • Personalizable adjustments
  • Easy to play interface
Features
Read full description

Theremin Pro You touch the screen and a tone resounds. Move your finger and the sound changes. Easy to play and to adjust for your personal wishes.

About

Retro Synth

Create authentic retro music with this vintage-inspired synthesizer app. Explore sound design with tone controls and vibrato, or upgrade for premium waveforms and studio effects. Designed for instant musical creativity, it offers a portable music-making experience.

Highlights
  • Authentic vintage sound recreation
  • Tone control for sound shaping
  • Vibrato effect for musical expression
  • Zero latency real-time response
  • Premium waveforms (Sine, Sawtooth, Triangle)
  • Studio effects (Reverb, Delay)
  • MIDI export
Features
Read full description

Play a real pocket stylophone — then plug it straight into GarageBand. Retro Synth · Syntophone turns your device into a vintage touch-keyboard synthesizer, and now works as an AUv3 instrument inside GarageBand, Logic Pro, and AUM. Slide your finger across the keys and a warm, authentic square-wave synth comes to life. Learn built-in songs with light-up "follow the key" tutorials, record your ideas, and drop the instrument into your favorite music app — all from one tiny synth. Like the original, it plays one note at a time: one stylus, one note. Curious about Pro? Tap any locked sound and hear it free for 30 seconds. FREE FEATURES (Included at no cost): • Authentic Vintage Sound: faithfully recreates that iconic square-wave tone with modern precision. • Song Mode: learn songs with light-up "follow the key" tutorials, hold-to-repeat for repeated notes, and a star rating when you finish (2 songs free). • My Recordings: a full library to play back, rename, share, and delete your takes. • Metronome: a sample-accurate click with adjustable BPM and an accented downbeat to keep you in time. • AUv3 Instrument: use Syntophone as a plug-in inside GarageBand, Logic Pro, AUM and other AUv3 hosts. • Sound Controls: shape your tone from thin and bright to thick and warm, and add expression with vibrato. • Real-time Response: instant, zero-latency audio as you play. • Clean, minimalist design inspired by vintage hardware. SYNTOPHONE PRO (subscription): Upgrade to unlock the full studio: • Premium Waveforms: Sine, Sawtooth, and Triangle. • Studio Effects: high-quality Reverb and Delay. • Pro Sound Panel: a second detuned oscillator for a fatter analog tone, hands-on delay time & feedback controls, and live MIDI output — play GarageBand and other synth apps as a virtual MIDI keyboard. • 12 more built-in songs to learn. • MIDI Export: save and share your recordings as .mid files. WHY SYNTOPHONE? No setup, no menus to fight — open the app and make music immediately. Then, when you're ready, it becomes a plug-in in your studio. Note: The app includes an auto-renewable subscription (Syntophone Pro) for premium features. For Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Theremin2 screens
Retro Synth4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Theremin at none against Retro Synth's 3. Theremin also leads on iOS requirement (8.0 vs 17.0). Retro Synth's advantage is rating (4.2 vs 3.9). On price, ratings volume, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Retro Synth sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Theremin asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Retro Synth holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.9. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 11 and 5 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Theremin versus Retro Synth: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThereminRetro Synth
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (11 ratings)4.2 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings11 — better5
Update frequency—Every 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS8.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size16 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJochen FalckKerem ERSU

Customer experience

Theremin

All ratings11 ratings
Positive72.7%
Neutral9.1%
Negative18.2%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Retro Synth

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%

In-app purchases

None

Theremin

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Retro Synth

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription$3.991 Month
  • Annual Subscription$24.991 Year
One-time1
  • Remove ads$2.99

Questions

Is Theremin free?
Theremin is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Retro Synth free?
Retro Synth is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Theremin or Retro Synth?
Retro Synth is rated higher. Theremin averages 3.9 out of 5 from 11 ratings, while Retro Synth averages 4.2 from 5 ratings.
Do Theremin or Retro Synth have ads?
Neither Theremin nor Retro Synth shows ads.

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