Comparison

Pencil vs Self Study CS

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

Head to head
About

Pencil

Access summaries, shorts, and e-books across various genres. Engage with a global community of readers and writers, track your reading progress, and discover new ideas from independent authors.

Highlights
  • Book summaries and shorts
  • E-books from independent authors
  • 25+ sub-genres
  • Reading activity tracker
  • Global reader and writer community
  • Short content creation
Features
Read full description

Read Pencil select summaries, shorts, e-books and connect with a global community of future thought leaders Read big ideas from the best books across 25+ sub-genres such as self-help, business & management, philosophy, politics, society and culture. Indulge in books across multiple genres and languages written by independent authors from around the world. Read short stories, poems and a variety of other form of short content written by a diverse community of writers on Pencil (thepencilapp.com) Set and achieve your reading goals with a unique reading activity tracker. Connect and share with a safe, inclusive and diverse community of readers and writers There is something for everyone at Pencil. Download now to read more, read better and lead a better life. Join our community on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter: Instagram: http://instagram.com/thepencilapp Facebook: https://facebook.com/thepencilapp Twitter: https://twitter.com/thepencilapp Website: https://thepencilapp.com/ Questions? Suggestions? Simply write to connect@thepencilapp.com Terms of Service: https://thepencilapp.com/terms.php Privacy Policy: https://thepencilapp.com/privacy-policy.php

About

Self Study CS

Features
Read full description

The best way to self-learn Computer Science — hundreds of CS topics, offline, beautifully formatted for iPhone and iPad.Self-Study CS is a focused reader for the open CS Self-Learning guide: hundreds of computer-science topics in Markdown, optimized for long reading sessions on iPhone and iPad. WHAT YOU GET • Offline catalog — Explore bundled chapters by topic; switch between English (.en.md) and Chinese primary files when both exist. • Reader built for technical text — Comfortable light, dark, and sepia themes, adjustable text size and line spacing, and a table of contents for quick jumps. • Pick up where you left off — Continue reading and per-chapter scroll progress. • Bookmarks — Save chapters and open them from one place. MY GUIDES Create your own course-style notes with optional sections inspired by the bundled template. Content is stored locally on your device in a private database—not on our servers.

Screenshots

Pencil4 screens
Self Study CS4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Pencil at none against Self Study CS's shown. Pencil also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.0). Self Study CS's advantage is update cadence (daily vs fortnightly). 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

Pencil ships an update fortnightly, Self Study CS daily. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Pencil versus Self Study CS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPencilSelf Study CS
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews57.1% of reviews—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyDaily — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size44 MB15 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperONE POINT SIX TECHNOLOGIES PRIVATE LIMITEDAPPS BAY LIMITED

In-app purchases

None

Pencil

No in-app purchases

None

Self Study CS

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pencil free?
Pencil is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Self Study CS free?
Self Study CS is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Pencil or Self Study CS have ads?
Self Study CS shows ads; Pencil does not.
Which is updated more often, Pencil or Self Study CS?
Pencil ships an update fortnightly, and Self Study CS daily. Most recently, Pencil was updated on October 1, 2026 and Self Study CS on October 7, 2026.

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