Comparison

now>press>play vs Amber Animator

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

Head to head
About

now>press>play

Features
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A now>press>play Experience is normally delivered by a primary school teacher to a class, as part of classroom lessons. Our library of Experiences covers a wide array of curriculum topics, teaching the central learning objectives and providing rich follow-on activities for afterwards. This app forms part of a school’s access package or free trial to now>press>play services. HOW IT WORKS In a now>press>play Experience every child is given a pair of wireless headphones. Immersed in sound, they become the main character in a story, meeting people, discovering places and solving problems on an educational adventure they’ll never forget. From climbing through layers of rainforest canopy in the Amazon, to fighting a woolly mammoth in the Stone Age, these audio-only adventures are uniquely designed to stimulate children’s imaginations. now>press>play can be used as a whole class activity or with smaller groups for intervention work. Through a child-centred approach to learning, they extend children’s life experiences and are a fun and inclusive way to engage children in the curriculum. CONTENT There are currently 80 curriculum-based Experiences for EYFS, Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 (i.e. 3 to 11 years old) covering a broad range of subjects across literacy, maths, history, geography, science, PSHE/SEL, religious education and foreign languages. The app gives you access to all our immersive audio adventures in one place, along with their follow-on resources: every Experience includes SATs-style Reading Comprehensions, Writing Opportunities, Quizzes, Storyboards and Discussion Questions, making it simple to plan and deliver quality lessons. WHAT EACH SCHOOL GETS Access to 80 immersive audio Experiences for EYFS, KS1 and KS2 Topics include Maths, Science, History, Geography, PSHE, RE, MFL, and Literacy Follow-on resources for each Experience: Glossary, Storyboard, Quiz, Reading Comprehension, Writing Opportunities, and post-Experience Discussion Questions ‘How It Works’ guides to get the best out of now>press>play for your class Opportunity to access all now>press>play content offline for use in various settings REVIEWS 'now>press>play is an experience the children will never forget; it brings to life for them the topic work, in a way which quite frankly I could never have achieved, in such a direct and engaging manner.' Year 6 Teacher, West Drayton Primary School ‘I was blown away by how the pupils in Year 5 responded to this magnificent Experience. They were plunged into the middle of World War 2, and embraced and internalised every second without question! It has had such an incredible impact on their learning. This is a resource we will continue to utilise at every opportunity.’ Year 5 Teacher, Marshfield School RATINGS & AWARDS ***** 4.9/5 EdTech Impact rating ERA 2020 Winner Bett Awards 2019 Winner

About

Amber Animator

Features
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Bring your imagination to life with Amber Animator; the intuitive, professional stop-motion animation studio designed for young creators, classrooms, and curious minds! Whether you’re crafting claymations, brick films, paper cutouts, or toy adventures, Amber Animator gives you tactile, broadcast-quality animation tools in a clean, child-friendly workspace with ZERO ads and 100% offline privacy. WHY KIDS, PARENTS & EDUCATORS LOVE AMBER ANIMATOR: CARTOON STICKERS & VECTOR STAMP STUDIO • Bring scenes to life with expressive vector art stamps (BOOM!, ZAP!, Fire, Crowns, Hearts, Trophies, Magic Sparkles, and more!). • Drag, pinch to resize, and twist stamps directly on the cinema stage. • Timeline span bars: choose exactly how many frames stickers stay on screen. DIRECT ON-CANVAS TEXT, TITLES & DIALOGUE • Add dialogue, comic sound effects, and cinema opening credits right on screen. • Child-friendly curated typography pills (Comic Pop, Marker Fun, Action Hero, and more). • Custom colors, comic-book box outlines, quick-tilt angles, and instant tap-outside dismissal. LIVE MULTI-FRAME ONION SKINNING • See 1, 2, or 3 translucent ghost frames of your previous shots. • Line up movements with millimeter precision for buttery-smooth playback. • Adjustable opacity slider tailored for clay, toy figures, and hand-drawn props. 3-TRACK FOLEY STUDIO WITH MOVABLE AUDIO TRACKS • Multi-layer sound mixer: record live voiceover, add cartoon sound effects, and drop in background music. • Draggable audio timeline: effortlessly slide sound clips along the timeline to sync with exact frames. • 13 built-in high-quality sound effects (Boing, Pop, Whoosh, Zap, Magic Sparkle, Footsteps, and more!). POWERFUL MULTI-TRACK PLAYBACK & TIMELINE • Multi-track timeline lanes for video frames, title text, cartoon stickers, and audio. • Variable frame rates: Animate at 1 to 24 FPS (Frames Per Second) or standard 12 FPS cinema twos. • Frame management: Duplicate, delete, reorder, or scrub through long sequences with zero lag. • Auto-loop playback to test animation cycles on the fly. 100% PRIVATE, SAFE & COPPA COMPLIANT • Made for Kids & School STEAM / Media Arts Classrooms. • No user accounts, no logins, no cloud sync, and NO third-party trackers. • Works completely offline in Airplane Mode — safe for school iPads. 4K CINEMA EXPORT & SHARING • Export crisp MP4 / H.264 video up to 4K Ultra HD resolution. • Instant sharing to Photos, AirDrop, Files, or Google Classroom / Seesaw. • Clean exports with zero watermarks on Pro unlock. DIRECTOR AWARDS & TROPHY CABINET • Unlock 16 fun rosettes and achievement badges as you master the 12 principles of animation! FREE VERSION FEATURES: • Complete stop-motion camera with single-frame onion skinning. • Live timeline playback up to 12 FPS. • On-canvas text, stickers, and voiceover recording. • Standard HD video export. • Up to 3 active animation projects. PRO STUDIO UPGRADE (One-Time Purchase — No Subscriptions!): • Unlimited animation projects. • Multi-frame onion skinning (up to 3 ghost frames). • Full 3-track movable audio mixer with all 13 cartoon Foley sound effects. • 4K Cinema export resolution and 24 FPS high-speed animation. • Supports Apple Family Sharing; unlock once for the entire household. Start directing your animated masterpiece today with Amber Animator!

Screenshots

now>press>play4 screens
Amber Animator3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: now>press>play at none against Amber Animator's 1. Amber Animator's advantage is update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Amber Animator sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. now>press>play asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

now>press>play ships an update every 2 months, Amber Animator every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 4 level
now>press>play versus Amber Animator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameternow>press>playAmber Animator
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size27 MB4 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developernow>press>playSethi De Clercq

In-app purchases

None

now>press>play

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Amber Animator

One-time1
  • Pro Studio Full Unlock$4.99

Questions

Is now>press>play free?
now>press>play is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Amber Animator free?
Amber Animator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do now>press>play or Amber Animator have ads?
Neither now>press>play nor Amber Animator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, now>press>play or Amber Animator?
now>press>play ships an update every 2 months, and Amber Animator every 3 weeks. Most recently, now>press>play was updated on November 7, 2026 and Amber Animator on November 10, 2026.

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