Pencil vs Self Study CS
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- Book summaries and shorts
- E-books from independent authors
- 25+ sub-genres
- Reading activity tracker
- Global reader and writer community
- Short content creation
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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
Self Study CS
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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
Verdict
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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Pencil ships an update fortnightly, Self Study CS daily. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Pencil | Self Study CS |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 57.1% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 1 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Daily — better |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 44 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | ONE POINT SIX TECHNOLOGIES PRIVATE LIMITED | APPS BAY LIMITED |
In-app purchases
Pencil
No in-app purchases
Self Study CS
No in-app purchases









