Comparison

RPN vs Meshtastic

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

Head to head
About

RPN

This app simulates a vintage programmable calculator from the mid-70s, offering enhanced features beyond the original. It allows users to run existing programs, manage virtual cards, and utilize advanced functions for scientific and engineering tasks.

Highlights
  • Virtual program and data cards
  • Virtual paper tape printer
  • Database-driven card manager
  • Create, label, and organize unlimited cards
  • Share cards via email, AirDrop, Dropbox
  • Editable program listings
  • Enhanced features for more program steps and registers
Features
Read full description

A dream calculator of the mid-70's, priced at $2,500 in today's dollars (2025), right on your iPhone! RPN-67 SD is the iPhone version of RPN-67 Pro, the first complete simulation of Hewlett-Packard's legendary HP-67 programmable calculator for the iPad. Produced from 1976 to 1982, the HP-67 was a huge success among scientists, engineers and other professionals. Thousands of programs were written for it. Now you can run them right on your iPhone, with more ease and faster than ever before. To get you started quickly, run the built-in program cards, or choose from the large number of programs available as free downloads from our website. What users said: “This version permits you to use your virtual HP-67 just as you could the original – hand-held and highly portable. Congratulations to the developer for providing such an excellent and aesthetically pleasing software product." "This was my first scientific calculator in real life. It is great to have the simulator on my iPhone. The special features added make it into a HP-41 or 42S! It comes packaged with some great samples. Am having great fun with it." Features: • Virtual program and data cards • Virtual paper tape printer supports all HP-97 printer modes • Powerful database-driven card manager • Create, label, and organize a virtually unlimited number of cards • Use iTunes to effortlessly save entire card collections on your Mac/PC • Sharing: e-mail, AirDrop, Dropbox, copy, paste, print • Editable listing shows labels, targets of branches, and errors • E-mail listings and let the recipient paste the text right into RPN-67 • Print listings on any AirPrint-compatible printer • Program listing on paper tape shows subroutine nesting • Edit paper tape • E-mail paper tape, or print it via AirPrint • Cut/copy/paste displayed value or program steps • Paste existing HP-67 listings into RPN-67 SD and run them • "Live" display of stack, memory registers, flags • Show and edit program instructions • Fast: 1.5 seconds vs. 6 minutes (program HM-05, determinant of 5x5 matrix) • Low-battery indicator (iPhone charge 10% or less) • Optional high-contrast mode for working in bright ambient light • Compatible with RPN-67 Pro and RPN-97 Pro While RPN-67 SD works like a real HP-67, changing a simple setting will turn the app into a super-charged HP-67: • Up to 999 program steps, 8 subroutine levels, 6 additional flags (F4...F9) • 100 additional registers • 100 additional labels • 100 built-in constants and conversions • More than 150 additional powerful operations and functions Plus: • 15 commands to print and manipulate any range of extended registers • Unrestricted register arithmetic • Exchange x with any register • Complex numbers, hyperbolic functions • Non-volatile memory - stack, registers, program, flags, paper tape • Status indicators for prefix keys (f, g, h, STO, RCL, etc.) • Display showing thousands separators (optional) • Text output on simulated paper tape in 10 colors, even simple plotting • Stack-of-stack: push/pop the entire stack on internal stack (4 levels) • Single-step into subroutines (optional) • Powerful debugging aids, including 10 breakpoints with counters • Keycodes translated to command names while entering or single-stepping a program • Change the duration of the PAUSE command • Compress constants in programs into a single step (reversible) RPN-67 SD comes with more than 130 programs pre-installed, including HP Standard Pac, HP Business Decisions Pac, HP Math Pac I, HP Stat Pac I, and HP Surveying Pac I. The simulator has been verified to correctly run the examples given in HP Civil Engineering Pac I, HP Clinical Lab Pac, HP E.E. Pac I, HP Games Pac I, HP M.E. Pac I, HP Navigation Pac I, as well as large number of programs published in Users' Library Solutions. For more information and free program downloads visit the RPN-67 website: cuveesoft.ch/rpn67

About

Meshtastic

This app enables off-grid, decentralized communication via a low-power mesh network. Send text messages in areas lacking cellular or WiFi service.

Highlights
  • Off-grid communication
  • Decentralized mesh network
  • Low-power LoRa radio support
  • Text messaging
  • No cellular/WiFi required
Features
Read full description

Meshtastic® is an open source, off-grid, decentralized, mesh network built to run on low-power Lora radios letting you send text messages in areas without reliable cellular or WiFi service.

Screenshots

RPN4 screens
Meshtastic4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: RPN at 93% against Meshtastic's 45%. RPN also leads on rating (4.6 vs 4.2) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.5). Meshtastic's advantage is price (Free vs $3.99) and update cadence (every 10 days vs every 3 months). On ads and in-app purchases 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

Meshtastic is free to download; RPN costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

RPN holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Meshtastic has 803 ratings behind it against 17, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 93% of RPN's written reviews are positive against 45% of Meshtastic's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

RPN ships an update every 3 months, Meshtastic every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
RPN versus Meshtastic: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRPNMeshtastic
Price$3.99Free — better
Rating4.6 (17 ratings) — better4.2 (803 ratings)
Positive reviews92.9% of reviews — better45.2% of reviews
Number of ratings17803 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS12.0 — better17.5
Further details — not scored
Size63 MB76 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperCuVee SoftwareMeshtastic LLC

Customer experience

RPN

All ratings17 ratings
Positive94.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.9%
Written reviews14 reviews
Positive92.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.1%

Meshtastic

All ratings803 ratings
Positive76.8%
Neutral6.2%
Negative16.9%
Written reviews405 reviews
Positive45.2%
Neutral14.8%
Negative40.0%

Bugs and requests

RPN

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Meshtastic

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Canned messages configuration issues
  • Location sharing and traceroute functions not working
  • Settings screen bugs and crashes
  • Inconsistent behavior when switching between devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Offline maps support
  • Ability to customize notifications
  • More sorting and filtering options for nodes
  • Apple Watch and Shortcuts integration
  • Improved documentation and user guidance

In-app purchases

None

RPN

No in-app purchases

None

Meshtastic

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is RPN free?
RPN costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Meshtastic free?
Meshtastic is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, RPN or Meshtastic?
RPN is rated higher. RPN averages 4.6 out of 5 from 17 ratings, while Meshtastic averages 4.2 from 803 ratings.
Do RPN or Meshtastic have ads?
Neither RPN nor Meshtastic shows ads.
Which is updated more often, RPN or Meshtastic?
RPN ships an update every 3 months, and Meshtastic every 10 days. Most recently, RPN was updated on September 21, 2026 and Meshtastic on September 24, 2026.

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