Comparison

phyphox vs World History

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

Head to head
About

phyphox

Unlock your phone's sensors for scientific exploration. Conduct pre-built experiments or create your own using accelerometers, magnetometers, and more. Analyze and export data in various formats for further study.

Highlights
  • Pre-defined experiments
  • Data export (CSV, TSV, Excel)
  • Web-based remote control
  • Custom experiment editor
  • Access to phone sensors
  • Advanced analysis functions
Features
Read full description

Did you know that you are carrying a 3D magnetometer? That you can use your phone as a pendulum to measure earth's local gravitational acceleration? That you can turn your phone into a sonar? phyphox gives you access to the sensors of your phone either directly or through ready-to-play experiments which analyze your data and let you export raw data along with the results for further analysis. You can even define your own experiments on phyphox.org and share them with colleagues, students and friends. Selected Features: • A selection of pre-defined experiments. Just press play to start. • Export your data to a range of widely used formats • Remote-control your experiment through a web interface from any PC on the same network as your phone. No need to install anything on those PCs - all you need is a modern web browser. • Define your own experiments by selecting sensor inputs, defining analysis steps and creating views as an interface using our web-editor (http://phyphox.org/editor). The analysis consists of just adding two values or using advanced methods like Fourier transforms and crosscorrelation. We offer a whole toolbox of analysis functions. Sensors supported: • Accelerometer • Magnetometer • Gyroscope • Pressure • Microphone • Proximity • GPS • Camera • LiDAR/ToF *some sensors are not present on every phone. Export formats • CSV (Comma separated values) • TSV (Tab-separated values) • Excel (if you need other formats, please let us know) This app has been developed at the 2nd Institute of Physics A at the RWTH Aachen University.

About

World History

Features
Read full description

World history in one app: from the first humans to the present day, on every continent. For school, university and everyone who wants to understand how things connect. EPOCHS 25 epochs from prehistory to the present, including dedicated epochs for the pre-Columbian Americas, Oceania and the Pacific, African kingdoms, Southeast Asia, the Byzantine Empire, the Vikings, Russia and Eastern Europe, the great Asian empires, the Ottoman Empire and Latin America. Each epoch with "At a glance", an overview, four thematic sections (rule and politics, society and everyday life, culture, religion and knowledge, economy and technology), key events by century, important people, terms and consequences. CROSS-CUTTING THEMES Eight threads through the millennia: religions and worldviews, science and technology, war and peace, trade and globalisation, rule and democracy, women in history, migration and encounters between cultures, art, writing and education. TIMELINE More than 500 events in chronological order, filterable by epoch, region, theme and milestones, with century markers. REGIONS History by continent: Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, the Americas, Oceania. GLOSSARY More than 150 terms explained briefly, alphabetical with a letter bar and links to events and people. QUIZ AND GAMES More than 1,000 questions with explanations: 10 questions per epoch or 20 mixed. Plus game modes: – Duel by link: friends play the same questions, then you see who did better (no account) – Duel on one device for 2–4 players – Daily challenge with streaks – Sort the timeline, guess the year, who am I? – Flashcards for terms and people, review your mistakes Best scores are saved, mastered epochs are marked. Keyboard shortcuts on iPad with a keyboard. SEARCH AND BOOKMARKS Full-text search across all content, bookmarks for epochs, events and people. FREE Free and supported by ads. Works offline, no sign-up, no in-app purchases. Light and dark mode. In nine languages: English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Japanese and Chinese. AT A GLANCE 25 epochs · 8 themes · 644 events · 326 people · 200 terms · 1,300 quiz questions

Screenshots

phyphox4 screens
World History4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: phyphox at none against World History's shown. phyphox also leads on iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.0). World History's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 3 months). On price, in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

phyphox ships an update every 3 months, World History every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
phyphox versus World History: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterphyphoxWorld History
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (282 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews78.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings282 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB30 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRWTH Aachen UniversityJosef Gallab

Bugs and requests

phyphox

Reported bugs

21 issues
  • App crashes on older devices
  • Barometer not working on iOS 17.4
  • Network error: Generic error
  • Sound measurement curve disappears
  • App crashes frequently
Show 16 more
  • Cannot be opened on iPhone 6
  • Light sensor not implemented
  • Recording stops when phone is locked or app is minimized
  • Green lines on screen and faded to black after using barometer sensor
  • WLAN not working after using the app
  • Pressure no longer displayed on iOS 17.5
  • Barometer not working on iOS 17.4
  • Latest version cannot be opened on iPhone 6
  • Sound chronometer reset button not working
  • iPad destroyed after update
  • App displays Russian language by default
  • Experiments not working on iPhone 7
  • Magnetometer not working after update on iPhone 5s
  • GPS shows 0 satellites with 6m accuracy
  • App claims iPhone 11 is comparable to a low-cost tablet
  • App crashes every time

Requested features

33 requests
  • Add infrasound detector
  • More units of measurement (G-force, PSI, feet)
  • NFC/RFID support
  • In-app bug report feature
  • Allow other sensors via USB-C
Show 28 more
  • Ability to plug in external sensors
  • Slo-mo recording with timestamps
  • Add attitude sensor (roll, pitch, yaw)
  • Integration with Apple Shortcuts
  • Ability to record audio/dB simultaneously with other sensors
  • Adjustable sampling frequency for all sensors
  • Dark mode option
  • Experiment editor integrated into the app
  • More documentation for the editor
  • Ability to form averages
  • Support for older iPhones (iPhone 6)
  • Add GPS satellite count display
  • Add speedometer functionality
  • Add Lux measurement using light sensor/camera
  • Ability to play recorded audio
  • Limit input for sound analyzers (dB/Hz range)
  • Wi-Fi and RF module access for EMF analysis
  • iWatch integration
  • Improve audio generator capability
  • Allow background/screen locked recording
  • Add light sensor functionality
  • Change units of measurement
  • Add more precise measurements for static cases
  • Add FFT and spectral generation for accelerometer
  • Support for older devices
  • Improve UI/UX for new users
  • Add support for more languages
  • Add a donate option

World History

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

phyphox

No in-app purchases

None

World History

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is phyphox free?
phyphox is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is World History free?
World History is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do phyphox or World History have ads?
World History shows ads; phyphox does not.
Which is updated more often, phyphox or World History?
phyphox ships an update every 3 months, and World History every 9 days. Most recently, phyphox was updated on November 1, 2026 and World History on October 26, 2026.

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