Space by Tinybop vs Smithsonian
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Space by Tinybop
Explore our solar system and visit each planet up close. Discover their surfaces, characteristics, and orbits through interactive play. Test atmospheres, gravity, and observe planetary spins and seasons.
- Visit 8 planets and the sun
- Study planet surfaces up close
- Discover planet characteristics
- Test atmospheres and gravity with meteorites
- Compare planet sizes and masses
- Observe planetary orbits and moon phases
- Explore Mars with rovers and chopper
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Travel into space and visit tiny Mercury, fierce Venus, friendly Earth, dusty Mars, stormy Jupiter, elegant Saturn, hazy Uranus, and mysterious Neptune. Perfect for future astronomers everywhere. "Space should more accurately be called "Hands On With the Solar System." — Children's Technology Review *** KAPi Best App for Older Children *** *** Children's Technology Review Editor's Choice *** Hurl meteorites through the atmosphere. Spin around the sun and zoom onto its surface. Jump into a whirling space storm. Boldly go where no kid has gone before in 3, 2, 1…. liftoff! Space is No.8 in Tinybop’s award-winning Explorer’s Library. Kids can discover new worlds in other Explorer’s Library apps, including The Human Body, Plants, Simple Machines, The Earth, Weather, Homes, and Skyscrapers. FEATURES + Visit 8 planets and the sun! + Study the surface of each planet and the sun up close. + Discover the characteristics of each planet with a helpful snowman. + Throw meteorites at each planet to test their atmospheres and gravity. + See how big and massive each planet and the sun are by comparing them side-by-side. + Play with and observe each planet’s orbit around the sun. + Follow the moon’s orbit to discover the phases of the moon. + See how quickly or slowly each planet spins on its axis and how long each day is. + Peek inside each planet’s rocky crust or gassy outer layer. + Move the Earth’s axis to see how it affects seasons. + Explore Mars’ rocky surface with NASA’s Curiosity, Pathfinder rovers. + Fly the Ingenuity Chopper on Mars. + Experience wild weather and more on Venus. + Find out why Mercury has so many craters. + See what Saturn’s rings are made of and make them spin. + Discover diamonds on Neptune and Uranus. + Interactive text labels in 50+ languages teach vocabulary. + FREE Space Handbook has technology tips and basic info for teachers and parents. + Original artwork by Jessie Sattler. + Original sound design. + Open-ended activities with no rules. Curiosity and creativity are rewarded. + Multi-user system. + Fun for all ages. + No third-party advertising. FREE handbook Our expert-reviewed handbook is full of facts, interaction hints, and discussion questions to support learning in this app, in the classroom, or at home. Download in your app or at: http://tinybop.com/handbooks. Privacy Policy We take your and your child’s privacy very seriously. We do not collect or share personal information about your child, nor do we allow any third-party advertising. When the camera, microphone, and other services are used within an app, your information is neither collected nor distributed outside of the app. Read our complete privacy policy at tinybop.com. Tinybop, Inc. is a Brooklyn-based studio of designers, engineers, and artists. We make toys for tomorrow. We’re all over the internet. Visit us: www.tinybop.com Follow us: twitter.com/tinybop Like us: facebook.com/tinybop Peek behind the scenes: instagram.com/tinybop We love hearing your stories! If you have ideas, or something isn’t working as you expect it to, please contact us: hi@tinybop.com. Psst! It's not Tiny Bop, or Tiny Bob, or Tiny Pop. It's Tinybop. :)
Smithsonian
Explore a prehistoric world by digging for fossils and uncovering facts about dinosaurs. Earn coins to unlock new tools and learn about over 15 dinosaur species through interactive scenes and quizzes. Develop literacy and critical thinking skills with engaging educational content.
- Dig for fossils with virtual tools
- Learn facts about 15+ dinosaur species
- Unlock dinosaur cards with information
- Interactive prehistoric world exploration
- Earn coins for better digging tools
- Prehistoric quiz to test knowledge
- Phonetic spelling for vocabulary building
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Welcome to Digging for Dinosaurs – a gorgeous interactive app brought to you by The ©Smithsonian and PlayDate Digital! This is a must-have app for dino explorers of any age, where you can dig up fossils and open up a prehistoric world filled with facts, pterosaurs, giant sea reptiles and every kind of prehistoric dinosaur! EXPLORE every layer of a vibrant and prehistoric world with virtual fossil hunter tools! LEARN fun and surprising facts about Dinosaurs! DISCOVER the reptiles that flew, swam and stalked the Earth! Explore the different time periods when Dinosaurs dominated the land, air, and sea, through guided play, puzzles and digging up fossils and facts. The more you dig, the more you will discover! Earning coins let’s you select new more powerful tools to dig up our prehistoric past. Each new dig is an opportunity for budding paleontologists to crack rocks, brush away dirt, assemble fossils and uncover new dinosaurs and new dinosaur facts! Each dinosaur discovery is rewarded with interactive scenes packed with learning moments and interesting information. Collect all the creature cards and then come back for more! Think you know your dinosaurs facts? Test your knowledge with a Prehistoric Quiz, earn more dino coins, and keep digging with even better fossil hunting tools! We’ll see you at the dig site! Features: • Learn about more than 15 dinosaur species including Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops, and the Velociraptor! • Unlock dinosaur cards, packed with interesting info about each prehistoric creature you dig up! • Explore a prehistoric and interactive world that fills with more dinosaurs as you discover them! • Dig up fossils, test your dino knowledge, and collect creature cards! • Earn dino coins to unlock better digging tools—without spending any additional ‘real’ money! • Phonetic spelling helps you sound out and learn exciting new words • Engaging educational content and beautiful illustrations based on the original Dinosaurs book! • Learn about all the different Dinosaur ages! There is something for kids at every level in Digging For Dinosaurs - from cracking rocks and digging up fossils to brushing up on the latest Dino knowledge! Learning goals: • Dinosaur knowledge: Learn the names of dinosaurs, what they ate and how they lived. • Literacy Skills: practiced through reading and creative play about dinosaurs! • Vocabulary: Learn new words with phonetic spelling and pronunciation. • Critical thinking: learn what life was like for all the different types of dinosaurs in all their different environments and ages! ABOUT THE SMITHSONIAN The ©Smithsonian is the world’s largest museum and research complex, dedicated to public education, national service, and scholarship in the arts, ©Smithsonian sciences, and history. The name of the ©Smithsonian Institution and the sunburst logo are registered trademarks of the ©Smithsonian Institution. For more information, please visit www.si.edu ABOUT PLAYDATE DIGITAL PlayDate Digital Inc. is a publisher of high-quality, interactive, mobile educational software for children. PlayDate Digital's products nurture children's emerging literacy and creativity skills by turning digital screens into engaging experiences. PlayDate Digital content is built in partnership with some of the world's most trusted global brands for kids. Visit us: playdatedigital.com Like us: facebook.com/playdatedigital Follow us: @playdatedigital Watch all our app trailers: youtube.com/PlayDateDigital1 HAVE QUESTIONS? We'd love to hear from you! Your questions suggestions and comments are always welcome. Contact us 24/7 at info@playdatedigital.com
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Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Smithsonian at 5.0 against Space by Tinybop's 4.3. Smithsonian also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 67%). Space by Tinybop's advantage is ratings volume (72 vs 6). On price, update cadence, 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
Space by Tinybop costs $3.99 and Smithsonian $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Smithsonian holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Space by Tinybop has 72 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 67% of Space by Tinybop's written reviews are positive against 100% of Smithsonian's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Space by Tinybop | Smithsonian |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $3.99 | $3.99 |
| Rating | 4.3 (72 ratings) | 5.0 (6 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 72 — better | 6 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 13.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 255 MB | 440 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Tinybop Inc. | PlayDate Digital Inc. |
Customer experience
Space by Tinybop
Smithsonian
In-app purchases
Space by Tinybop
No in-app purchases
Smithsonian
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Space by Tinybop free?
Is Smithsonian free?
Which has better reviews, Space by Tinybop or Smithsonian?
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