Comparison

Hackney Virtual School vs smart_r

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

Head to head
About

Hackney Virtual School

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The Hackney Virtual School App is a platform that embodies everything that Hackney Virtual School offers. Foster Carers and children who are looked after are provided with instant access to updates and information where and when they need it.Β From training opportunities, to trips away and apprenticeship offers, this app ensures users never miss a chance to grow, develop and flourish. Ensuring users are kept up to date, regular news of upcoming events are made to the app, often accompanied by push notifications, to guarantee immediate notice of the issues and events surrounding Hackney Virtual School, and beyond! Users will also have access to contact information of Virtual School Staff when they need it most, with interactive buttons to call or email the staff or organisations contained within a dedicated Staff Directory. Users can also access age-appropriate information about the Online World, with live feeds of Online Safety News within the App. This will ensure that all adult users are kept abreast of the changing online environment and what to be aware of to ensure the children in their care are able to stay safer online. How It Works: Adult users and looked after children over 16 select their appropriate role and create an account. Available roles are Foster Carer, Social Worker, School Staff or Looked after Children 16+. This gives them access to age and role appropriate in App content.Β  They’ll receive targeted push notifications from the virtual school when relevant news is uploaded for them to read, or when opportunities for training or apprenticeships are announced. This information will also be retained in their App for future reference when it’s convenient and necessary. Targeted news items will also be added into the app by the virtual school team, making long scrolls in message groups a thing of the past.

About

smart_r

Features
Read full description

smart_r is a fun, interactive GCSE Maths revision app built for UK secondary school students in Year 10 and 11. Designed to make revision feel like a game, smart_r helps students stay. Privacy policy: https://smartr.education/privacy-policy/ Terms of use: https://smartr.education/terms/

Screenshots

Hackney Virtual School4 screens
smart_r4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Hackney Virtual School at none against smart_r's 10. smart_r's advantage is update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 6 months) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. smart_r sells 10 one-off in-app purchases. Hackney Virtual School asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Hackney Virtual School ships an update every 6 months, smart_r every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences Β· 3 level
Hackney Virtual School versus smart_r: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHackney Virtual Schoolsmart_r
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 4 weeks β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo β€” betterYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.015.6 β€” better
Further details β€” not scored
Size15 MB48 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperIneqe Group LtdSMART-R TECHNOLOGY LIMITED

In-app purchases

None

Hackney Virtual School

No in-app purchases

10 purchases

smart_r

One-time10
  • all topic discount 4Free
  • all topic discount 3$0.99
  • geometry topic$2.99
Show 7 more
  • number topic$2.99
  • probability topic$2.99
  • ratio topic$2.99
  • stats topic$2.99
  • all topic discount 2$3.99
  • all topic discount 1$6.99
  • all topics$10.00

Questions

Is Hackney Virtual School free?
Hackney Virtual School is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is smart_r free?
smart_r is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Hackney Virtual School or smart_r have ads?
Neither Hackney Virtual School nor smart_r shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Hackney Virtual School or smart_r?
Hackney Virtual School ships an update every 6 months, and smart_r every 4 weeks. Most recently, Hackney Virtual School was updated on November 7, 2026 and smart_r on October 30, 2026.

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