iAltair vs Touch Lua +
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
iAltair
Experience vintage computing with a simulation of the MITS Altair 8800. Explore old software like CP/M 2 and run programs such as Eliza using built-in BASIC. This self-contained system offers a unique glimpse into early computing history.
- MITS Altair 8800 simulation
- CP/M 2 operating system support
- Built-in BASIC interpreter
- Run Eliza program
- Self-contained system
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iAltair pretends to be a MITS Altair 8800 computer. It allows you to get the feeling of really old software such as the CP/M 2 operating system. The system is fully self contained and does not allow you to remotely add any code but you can try out Basic to run Eliza.
Touch Lua +
Learn and practice programming with Lua, a powerful yet lightweight scripting language. This app offers a robust editor, built-in tutorials, and support for graphics, audio, and databases through optional libraries.
- Lua programming environment
- Built-in help and tutorials
- Powerful editor with syntax highlighting
- Support for graphics and audio libraries
- Multi-program functionality
- Sample programs included
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Program with Lua, a simple and modern programming language. Lua’s syntax is simple as BASIC but Lua is faster and more powerful. Which make it just perfect for iPhone platform. *** This is the iPad version of TouchLua Free App *** What is Lua? Lua is a powerful, fast, lightweight, embeddable scripting language. Touch Lua + Features: + Two modes: program/console (command line) + Built in help: Tutorials (hands on), Wiki, Reference + Multi program + Powerful editor + Syntax highlighting + Support graphics, audio, and database through Extension Libraries (paid and free) + Sample programs provided Use Touch Lua +: + Learn programming + Learn modern scripting + Apply your programming skills + Rapid prototyping + Use it as advanced calculator Available through In-App Purchase: Draw Library: Empowers you to create complex graphics from simple graphic objects Features: + Draw simple graphic objects: lines, rectangles, circles, text, ... + Draw at the super speed of your device + Make animations + Define your colors with alpha channel (32bit color with transparency) + Select your drawn text font face and size + Enables you to run included Graphic Sample Programs Audio Library: enables to play music and sound effects. Features: + Play one music track at once + Play multiple sound effects synchronously + Create and play your own sounds and save them as files Turtle Library Logo like graphic commands designed to encourage logical thinking Examples are provided for absolute Beginners TouchLua+ includes other free libraries + Lua File System + Lua Database + Lua Matrix To start learning Lua choose Console from main menu then select Tutorials (first aid kit icon). Now read & apply and you will learn Lua basic’s in no time! Kindly Note: Touch Lua uses Lua 5.2 standard, so if you hit into undefined function see the alternative for it from the reference. some examples: unpack() now is table.unpack(), loadstring() is now load() Make sure to take a look at the free App’s from Hawwash-Soft
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: iAltair at 4.8 against Touch Lua +'s 3.7. iAltair also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3) and ratings volume (22 vs 3). Touch Lua +'s advantage is update cadence (every 5 months vs every 11 months) and iOS requirement (7.0 vs 15.4). On price, review sentiment and ads 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. Touch Lua + sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. iAltair asks for nothing beyond the download.
iAltair holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iAltair has 22 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 75% and 75% positive.
iAltair ships an update every 11 months, Touch Lua + every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 26, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | iAltair | Touch Lua + |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (22 ratings) — better | 3.7 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews | 75.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 22 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 11 months | Every 5 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.4 | 7.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 10 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Peter Schorn | Ahmad Hawwash |
Customer experience
iAltair
Touch Lua +
In-app purchases
iAltair
No in-app purchases
Touch Lua +
- Audio Library$0.99
- Turtle Library$0.99
- Draw Library$4.99









