Howard Hughes Tones vs Cephas
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Howard Hughes Tones
This application provides access to musical tones for Psalms and Canticles composed by Howard Hughes, SM. It offers a way to experience these specific liturgical musical arrangements.
- Plays liturgical musical tones
- Features Psalms and Canticles
- Composed by Howard Hughes, SM
- Available on iOS devices
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This app plays the Tones for the Psalms and Canticles by Howard Hughes, SM.
Cephas
Explore the New Testament chronologically with daily Catholic readings, historical context, and curated Christian art. Delve into the story of the Church's inheritance and the voices of its commentators. This app offers a contemplative reading experience for serious Christian study.
- Linear New Testament narrative
- Daily Catholic liturgical readings
- Paired Christian art masterpieces
- Historical context and timelines
- Modules on Church inheritance (saints, apparitions)
- Commentary from Church Doctors and historians
- Art commentary essays
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The New Testament is the most important story in human history. But it's difficult to piece together from the snippets included in daily and weekly readings. Cephas changes that. It tells the New Testament story in a linear way — from the Annunciation to the death of Saint John the Evangelist — with the seriousness and depth that the history deserves. Every day, Cephas presents the readings from the Catholic liturgical calendar - the same readings heard at Mass that morning, and in Catholic parishes on every continent. The Sunday Gospel, the daily readings of Lent and Advent, the proper feasts and the ordinary days. The full liturgical year, faithful to the Lectionary, available to read at your own pace. In addition to the daily reader, Cephas offers Christians the deeper story. The Story of the New Testament. One hundred and forty-four moments, from the world Christ was born into through the Acts of the Apostles, organized into ten movements. Each moment is paired with a great work of Christian art — Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Ghirlandaio, Mantegna, the masters who interpreted the Gospel for the centuries that followed. Each moment is tied to its place on the map, its date in history, and the figures who lived it. The Inheritance. The story did not end with the New Testament. Cephas's Inheritance modules tell what came after - the saints, the apparitions, and the devotions that carried the Gospel across two thousand years. Three modules are included at launch: Saint Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio), Our Lady of Guadalupe, and The Sacred Heart Devotion. Each is roughly an hour and a half of serious reading, with curated public-domain art and the careful attention these subjects deserve. New modules will be added periodically. Voices and the Witness. For readers who want to go deeper, the optional Voices and Witness layer adds the Doctors of the Church and the great Christian commentators beside each moment: Athanasius on the Temptation, Aquinas on the Eucharist, Newman on the conversion of Saint Paul. The Witness adds non-Christian historical sources - Tacitus, Josephus, Pliny the Younger - that attest to the New Testament's events from outside the Christian tradition. Art Commentary. One hundred and thirty-one homily-style essays on the great paintings of the New Testament. Not museum captions, but reflections on what each painting sees in the Gospel. One purchase, yours for life. No subscription. Family Sharing included. Apple manages your purchases. Cephas is built for the Christian reader who wants to read New Testament seriously, with the art, the voices, and the inheritance the Church has carried for centuries. Hand-curated editorial work, public-domain art with verified provenance, and a quiet reader designed for contemplation rather than scroll. The Faith has a story. Cephas was built for you to learn that story through text, art, and historical context. No celebrity narrators and no music swells; just the work itself.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Cephas at 100% against Howard Hughes Tones's 0%. Cephas also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.3). Howard Hughes Tones's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 8) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, ratings volume, ads and monetization model 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. Cephas sells 8 one-off in-app purchases. Howard Hughes Tones asks for nothing beyond the download.
Cephas holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 2 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of Howard Hughes Tones's written reviews are positive against 100% of Cephas's.
| Parameter | Howard Hughes Tones | Cephas |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (3 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | — | Daily |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 129 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | DOMINICANS, PROVINCE OF ST. ALBERT THE GREAT, U.S.A. | JEFFREY DANIEL LESSARD |
Customer experience
Howard Hughes Tones
Cephas
In-app purchases
Howard Hughes Tones
No in-app purchases
Cephas
- Padre Pio$4.99
- Our Lady of Guadalupe$4.99
- The Sacred Heart Devotion$4.99
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- Art Discount$9.99
- Art Commentary Discount$9.99
- Voices and Witness$14.99
- Art Commentary$14.99
- Voices and Witness + Art Bundle$24.99
Questions
Is Howard Hughes Tones free?
Is Cephas free?
Which has better reviews, Howard Hughes Tones or Cephas?
Do Howard Hughes Tones or Cephas have ads?
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