Comparison

Thangs vs iDotMatrix

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

Head to head
About

Thangs

Explore the largest 3D model search engine with over 15 million models. Discover new creators and connect with a growing community for CAD, 3D printing, AR, and VR applications. Find or upload tens of thousands of models weekly across various 3D formats.

Highlights
  • Largest 3D search engine
  • Over 15 million 3D models
  • Discover 3D creators
  • Support for 30+ 3D formats
  • Filters for 3D printing
  • Connect with creators
Features
Read full description

Whether a 3D printing enthusiast, CAD engineer, or AR VR consumer - Thangs is the first stop on your 3D journey: * Search: Largest 3D search engine on the planet, with over 15M models * Discover: Fastest growing community of 3D creators, with thousands of new models uploaded every week * Connect: Find your next favorite creator, follow them and be notified every time they upload new models With support for over 30 3D formats, Thangs users uploads tens of thousands of 3D models a week that span CAD, 3D printing, AR and VR use cases. If it isn’t on Thangs, use Thangs to search over 13M models across all major platforms. Powerful filters allow 3D printers to see only models which are available for 3D printing or additive manufacturing. Metaverse, Omniverse, or 3D printing in real life - Thangs exists to connect 3D creators with 3D consumers.

About

iDotMatrix

Design custom images and animations for dot matrix screens. Create GIFs, DIY pictures, and import videos. Set alarms, lighting effects, reminders, and display music rhythms.

Highlights
  • Design dot matrix pictures
  • Create GIF animations
  • DIY custom images
  • Import videos for display
  • Set alarms and reminders
  • Display music rhythms
  • Scoreboard and stopwatch functions
Features
Read full description

iDotMatrix is a creative software for designing various pictures and animations for dot matrix screens. In addition to the beautiful pictures and gif animations built into the app, users can also use this software to create gif animations, DIY pictures, DIY dot matrix pictures, and more. Import the video you want to display on the dot matrix screen, set various alarm clocks, lighting effects, set alarm clocks and schedule reminders, and display music rhythms on the screen, which can be used as a scoreboard, stopwatch, and more. iDotMatrix 是一款为点阵屏设计各种图片,动画的创造性软件,app除了内置精美的图片和gif动画外,用户还可以使用该软件随心所欲创造gif动画,DIY图片,DIY点阵图片,还可以导入您想在点阵屏显示的视频,设置各类闹钟、灯光效果,设置闹钟和日程提醒,在屏上展示音乐律动,可以作为记分板、秒表、使用。

Screenshots

Thangs4 screens
iDotMatrix4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: iDotMatrix at free against Thangs's free with in-app purchases. iDotMatrix also leads on review sentiment (35% vs 24%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 16.4). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 3.0 for Thangs against 2.9 for iDotMatrix. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 117 and 79 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 24% of Thangs's written reviews are positive against 35% of iDotMatrix's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Thangs ships an update weekly, iDotMatrix every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on August 26, 2026 and September 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Thangs versus iDotMatrix: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThangsiDotMatrix
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (117 ratings) — better2.9 (79 ratings)
Positive reviews23.8% of reviews34.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings117 — better79
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS16.412.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size46 MB97 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperPhysna, IncShenzhen Heaton Technology Co., Ltd.

Customer experience

Thangs

All ratings117 ratings
Positive46.2%
Neutral5.1%
Negative48.7%
Written reviews84 reviews
Positive23.8%
Neutral9.5%
Negative66.7%

iDotMatrix

All ratings79 ratings
Positive38.0%
Neutral16.5%
Negative45.6%
Written reviews113 reviews
Positive34.5%
Neutral18.6%
Negative46.9%

User reviews

Thangs

From 117 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Efficient 3D model search across multiple platforms
  • 👍 Intuitive and clean user interface
  • 💡 Image-based search functionality
  • 🔄 Seamless syncing with website account
  • 📱 Easy browsing on mobile devices

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App stuck on splash/loading screen (critical)
  • 🖼️ Images fail to load or display
  • 🔐 Login functionality broken with 2FA
  • ⚠️ Frequent app crashes
  • 🔗 Paywall blocking most content

iDotMatrix

From 79 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Affordable pixel display
  • 👍 Customizable animations and designs
  • 🎨 Variety of preset content
  • 👍 Easy to use app interface

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches after updates
  • 🔧 Limited color and editing options in the app
  • 🔍 Lack of search functionality in the content library
  • 🕰️ Inconsistent or limited clock/time display features

Bugs and requests

Thangs

Reported bugs

12 issues
  • App freezes on splash screen and never loads
  • Image preview loading failures
  • 2FA login code submission button hidden behind keyboard
  • Email/password login not functional
  • App crashes within minutes of use
Show 7 more
  • Scrolling broken on search results
  • Touch input unresponsive on right side of screen
  • Blank pages on iPad
  • App incompatible with latest iOS versions
  • Duplicate content in news feed
  • Search results missing known models from Thingiverse
  • Inconsistent app behavior between landscape and portrait modes

Requested features

10 requests
  • Direct download functionality from mobile app
  • Dark mode option
  • Ability to view liked models on mobile
  • Zoom functionality for model images
  • Save to collections feature
Show 5 more
  • AR (augmented reality) model viewing
  • Improved search result relevance
  • Back button navigation
  • Landscape/portrait mode consistency
  • Remove redirect pages for direct downloads

iDotMatrix

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App crashes on startup after updates
  • Issues with connecting the device to the app
  • Problems with saving and loading custom designs
  • Energy saving mode not working as expected

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more color options, including darker shades
  • Implement a search tool in the content library
  • Allow more customization of the clock and time display
  • Improve animation import and playback features
  • Add support for importing GIFs and videos directly

In-app purchases

None

Thangs

No in-app purchases

None

iDotMatrix

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Thangs free?
Thangs is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is iDotMatrix free?
iDotMatrix is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Thangs or iDotMatrix?
Thangs is rated higher. Thangs averages 3.0 out of 5 from 117 ratings, while iDotMatrix averages 2.9 from 79 ratings.
Do Thangs or iDotMatrix have ads?
Neither Thangs nor iDotMatrix shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Thangs or iDotMatrix?
Thangs ships an update weekly, and iDotMatrix every 2 weeks. Most recently, Thangs was updated on August 26, 2026 and iDotMatrix on September 12, 2026.

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