Uzu, An Interactive Light Show vs Cosmic Top
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show
Explore a generative design playground that combines math, physics, and art. Create dynamic light shows with interactive particle systems, customizable animations, and drawing modes. Experience endless possibilities for visual creation and interaction.
- Generative particle system
- Real-time animation modes
- Interactive 3D manipulation
- Drawing mode
- Microphone input response
- Customizable presets
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"This is doodling for digital natives . . . mind blowing." — Wired Magazine "Uzu for iPad is endlessly complicated, simply fun." — Ars Technica Uzu is a generative design playground — a math-physics-art toy for anyone who ever loved spirographs, fireworks, planetariums, lava lamps, light painting, kaleidoscopes, or graphing calculators. Touch the screen and watch thousands of particles swirl, spiral, and bloom in real time. Change the entire feel by simply changing how many fingers you use. Relax. Play. Meditate. Create wallpapers. Or lose yourself for an hour tweaking symmetry, animation modes, and effects. Uzu is endlessly deep and simply fun. Now completely rebuilt with a native Metal engine and a beautiful SwiftUI interface — smoother, richer, and more powerful than ever. FEATURES • Fully dynamic generative particle system • 21 animation modes for each touch count (0 through 10) • Rotational, translational, and reflective symmetry • 122 factory presets plus unlimited user presets • 10 visual effects: Glow, Warp, Kaleidoscope, Sparkle, Feedback, Color, Gradient, Pixelate, Scanlines, and Vignette • Export and import presets — save, share, and back up your creations • Fast preset switching, shake to hide the menu, adjustable quality settings • Freeze mode, microphone reactivity, and thousands of possible combinations • Create stunning backgrounds for iPhone and iPad ACCLAIM • Winner of Apple's "App of the Week" • Apple Rewind: Best Generative Art and Sound App • Reached #1 on the App Store • Featured in Apple's "App Store Essentials Hall of Fame" • Seen in the "Year of the iPad" video at the iPad keynote • Featured as an Apple Staff Favorite SUPPORT Questions or stories? We'd love to hear from you. jason@colordodge.com www.colordodge.com
Cosmic Top
Experience a 3D audiovisual physics simulation of a spinning, wobbling, and morphing top. Interact with it using multi-touch gestures and explore an ever-changing cosmos of sight and sound. Record and share your creations.
- 3D audiovisual physics simulation
- Multi-touch controls
- Gyroscope integration
- Unlimited shapes and sounds
- Record and share creations
- Customizable effects
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The toy top that buzzes with sci-fi sounds and glows with limitless, colorful shapes... Best of iPhone Entertainment in the US and 8 other countries - App Store Rewind 2011 Cosmic Top is a toy, a 3D audiovisual physics simulation of a spinning, wobbling, and morphing top. The top floats among stars and takes on unlimited colorful shapes and sci-fi sounds which glow and hum in stereo from your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. Swipe to spin it, pinch to zoom it, or hold to brake it. If you rotate your device, you can see and hear the top from all sides. Record your own spin and tumble sounds and then hear both tracks played back in sync with the motion of the top. Create and share video of your favorite top action. Edit echo effects, color flow, and spin inertia of each top style. Best of all, with a touch of the cosmic button, a new cosmos of sight and sound will be created for you to explore. "Cosmic Top is the first sheer toy I’ve downloaded for my iPad, and I love it… This app is highly recommended." - 5/5 Outstanding! - John Martellaro, the Mac Observer "Cosmic Top is about as much fun as you can imagine on an iPad." - 5/5 - Phillip T. Stephens, iPad Envy "I have to say Cosmic Top is definitely a game changer… Pick it up and have yourself a little fun and impress your friends." - 5/5 - App Safari "Seriously Buy This App!" - iJailBreak FEATURES - Realistic physics simulation via Euler's equations for rotating bodies - Simple and intuitive multi-touch control with each touch adding to the motion - Uses Three-axis gyro - Unlimited shapes and sounds generated from randomized mathematical functions providing lots of replay value - Fun for both young and old In no time, the magic of its gyroscopic and kaleidoscopic wheeling, whirring, and whirling will hypnotize you. We hope you enjoy it. "When you get it spinning really fast, the sounds get crazy excellent!" - Billy P. Sassafras, 10-Year-Old App Enthusiast "Wow! It's like, full of stars. The audiovisual experience is psychedelic… cool…" - Dr. David Bowman, Hip Fictional Character "It is neat to watch the polhode roll without slipping on the herpolhode." - Louis Poinsot, French Mechanics Nerd We read all your reviews and are committed to improve the experience of Cosmic Top with free updates. Thanks for all the great comments and suggestions.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Uzu, An Interactive Light Show at every 2 months against Cosmic Top's every 6 months. Uzu, An Interactive Light Show also leads on chart position (#177 vs unranked) and review sentiment (91% vs 83%). Cosmic Top's advantage is price ($1.99 vs $3.99) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 17.6). On rating, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show costs $3.99 and Cosmic Top $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 265 and 282 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 91% of Uzu, An Interactive Light Show's written reviews are positive against 83% of Cosmic Top's.
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show ships an update every 2 months, Cosmic Top every 6 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.
| Parameter | Uzu, An Interactive Light Show | Cosmic Top |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $3.99 | $1.99 — better |
| Rating | 4.8 (265 ratings) — better | 4.6 (282 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 91.1% of reviews — better | 82.9% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 265 | 282 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #177 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 11.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 16 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Colordodge Labs | Cool Bear Studios LLC |
Customer experience
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show
Cosmic Top
User reviews
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show
From 265 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Mesmerizing visuals
- 🎨 Endless creative possibilities
- 💡 Great for relaxation and meditation
- 🎨 Impressive color and pattern generation
- 👍 Fun and engaging for all ages
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes and stability issues on some devices
- 🔧 Limited customization options
- 🔧 Lack of music/sound integration
- 🔧 Outdated UI on newer iPads
Cosmic Top
From 282 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🌟 Mesmerizing visuals
- 🎨 Vibrant colors
- 🎢 Hypnotic and relaxing
- 🎮 Fun and engaging
- 🎨 Unique and creative
Room to improve
- 🔊 Annoying sounds
- 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
- 🔍 Limited customization options
- 💰 Expensive for the content provided
Bugs and requests
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show
Reported bugs
3 issues- Crashes on iOS 4.2 and newer
- Menu controls not working on iPad Pro
- Screenshot feature not functioning properly
Requested features
5 requests- Add music/sound reactive features
- Implement full-screen mode without UI
- Introduce more advanced preset options
- Add ability to save and share custom presets
- Optimize performance for latest iPad models
Cosmic Top
Reported bugs
2 issues- Crashes on certain iOS versions
- Compatibility issues with newer devices
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to create custom tops
- Integration with music playback
- Full-screen support for larger displays
- Saving and sharing of animations
In-app purchases
Uzu, An Interactive Light Show
No in-app purchases
Cosmic Top
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Uzu, An Interactive Light Show free?
Is Cosmic Top free?
Which has better reviews, Uzu, An Interactive Light Show or Cosmic Top?
Do Uzu, An Interactive Light Show or Cosmic Top have ads?
Which is updated more often, Uzu, An Interactive Light Show or Cosmic Top?
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