Shinkansen smartEX App vs Loop for Flight Crew
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Shinkansen smartEX App
Easily reserve Shinkansen seats, hotels, and activities. Enjoy discounts for early bookings and flexible changes. Access station and train service information, and use QR tickets or designated IC cards for seamless travel.
- Reserve Shinkansen seats
- Book hotels and activities
- Early booking discounts
- Free reservation changes
- Select seats from map
- QR-Ticket and IC card boarding
- Fingerprint authentication login
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▼With the EX app, you can: - Reserve Shinkansen seats through the app easily - Discount for early booking - Reserve Shinkansen seats up to 1 year in advance - You can make as many changes as you need, free of charge, before getting on the train - Reserve a set of Shinkansen seats and hotel rooms! - Reserve activities, hotels and car rentals! - Select any seat from the seat map (*reserved seats only) - Information on services available in stations and trains - You can log in quickly by using fingerprint authentication. (only for compatible models) ▼ Main features - Membership registration - Purchase ticket/Reserve seats (time designation, train name designation, easy free seat reservation)) - Confirm reservation - Change and refund reservation (reducing the number of persons) - Display purchase history and receipt - Check, change member information - Display QR-Ticket for boarding - Designate or register IC card for boarding - Service status information (Link) ▼ Notes - Membership registration is required to use this app. For registration, personal information is required, such as member name, date of birth, and a valid credit card, etc. - Ticket purchase (reservation) payment will be taken from the credit card registered on the account. -- You need to register or designate IC card for public transportation (*) to travel ticketless with IC card. (*) Kitaca, PASMO, Suica, manaca, TOICA, PiTaPa, ICOCA, Hayakaken, nimoca, SUGOCA - You need the pickup code to pick up tickets from ticket vending machines, etc., at main stations of Tokaido Sanyo Kyushu Shinkansen, such as Tokyo, Kyoto, Shin-Osaka, Hiroshima, Hakata, Kumamoto etc. - Please do not use this app to make a seat reservation for Japan Rail Pass. - This service is available only in English. - For more details on this service, please see the website. *The email address below is for inquiries about application specifications. Please note that we cannnot answer inquiries about the service.
Loop for Flight Crew
Share your travel schedule with loved ones. This app displays flights, layovers, and show times on a calendar, offering real-time tracking and alerts for departures, arrivals, and delays. It provides clear updates on your location and estimated arrival time, all without requiring an account for recipients.
- Calendar display of flights and layovers
- Real-time flight tracking
- Departure and arrival alerts
- Delay and cancellation notifications
- Shareable links for family and friends
- Local and home time display
- Countdown widget
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Loop starts with a screenshot of your trip. Your flights, layovers and show times land on a calendar. Add reserve, standby and commutes, and that's your month. Create links to share with family and friends. It's free for them, and nobody needs an account. They get flight tracking, alerts when you push, land, run late or get cancelled, and plain answers to where you are, what you're doing, how much longer, what's next and when you're home. All in their time, with yours beside it. Every link is yours. Turn one off and it's gone from their phone. Loop tracks the flight, not you. It never asks for your location. For you: local and home time side by side, a widget that counts down to the next thing, and the trip on a map. Loop isn't an official schedule and won't update schedule changes for you. If your schedule changes, upload the new one, or Loop will continue to use the outdated schedule. Check your airline's schedule for official times. Loop for crew is offered as a monthly or yearly subscription with a 14-day free trial. Family links are always free. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://loopcal.net/privacy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Loop for Flight Crew at 100% against Shinkansen smartEX App's 17%. Loop for Flight Crew also leads on rating (5.0 vs 1.7) and update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 months). Shinkansen smartEX App's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ratings volume (576 vs 4). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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
Both are free to download. Loop for Flight Crew sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Shinkansen smartEX App asks for nothing beyond the download.
Loop for Flight Crew holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 1.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Shinkansen smartEX App has 576 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 17% of Shinkansen smartEX App's written reviews are positive against 100% of Loop for Flight Crew's.
Shinkansen smartEX App ships an update every 2 months, Loop for Flight Crew every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Shinkansen smartEX App | Loop for Flight Crew |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.7 (576 ratings) | 5.0 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 16.8% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 576 — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | #125 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 51 MB | 11 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Central Japan Railway Company | DENNIS MARSHALL JINKS III |
Customer experience
Shinkansen smartEX App
Loop for Flight Crew
In-app purchases
Shinkansen smartEX App
No in-app purchases
Loop for Flight Crew
- Loop Monthly14 Days trial$9.991 Month
- Loop Yearly14 Days trial$99.001 Year
Questions
Is Shinkansen smartEX App free?
Is Loop for Flight Crew free?
Which has better reviews, Shinkansen smartEX App or Loop for Flight Crew?
Do Shinkansen smartEX App or Loop for Flight Crew have ads?
Which is updated more often, Shinkansen smartEX App or Loop for Flight Crew?
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