Cotter AL Abacus vs Phonogram Sounds
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Cotter AL Abacus
This educational tool uses a unique double-sided abacus to teach arithmetic concepts through visualization and quantity recognition. It helps learners develop mental strategies for faster mastery of basic math skills.
- Double-sided abacus design
- Grouped in fives and tens
- Focuses on quantity recognition
- Develops mental math strategies
- Supports visual learning
- Includes sample lessons
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Cotter AL Abacus, used with the RightStart™ Mathematics program, now available on your iPhone and iPad! This abacus will teach, not calculate like the Japanese and Chinese abacus, while using subitizing (quantity recognition) and visual strategies to support learning and understanding. Perfect for visual learners! This unique double-sided abacus is grouped in fives and tens for quick recognition of quantities. The second side of the abacus focuses on trading to the thousands. Learn the facts easily by: * visualizing quantities, * minimizing counting, and * developing mental strategies. Those learning arithmetic with the Cotter AL Abacus have a better understanding of basic concepts and need less time to master arithmetic. Although children do enjoy using the abacus, it does not become a crutch. Stan, age 5, was asked how much is 11 plus 6. He replied, “17!” When he was asked how he knew, he replied with a grin, “I’ve got the abacus in my mind.” App has links to sample addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division lessons as well as detailed use information.
Phonogram Sounds
This interactive app provides clear audio pronunciations for letter sounds and combinations, featuring all 72 basic phonograms from a popular language arts curriculum. It's designed to support reading and spelling development for learners of all ages.
- Hear correct pronunciation of sounds
- Clear enunciation of letters and combinations
- Includes all 72 basic phonograms
- Supports reading and spelling skills
- Interactive learning experience
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Touch a button and hear the correct pronunciation! *Check that your sound is turned on!* This interactive program features clear enunciation of the sounds of the letters and letter combinations (also known as phonograms). Contains all 72 of the basic phonograms as taught in the All About Reading and All About Spelling language arts curriculum. All About Reading is a multisensory, mastery-based program that starts with essential pre-reading skills and continues on to teach all five key components of reading. All About Spelling teaches encoding skills, spelling rules, and multisensory strategies to help your student become a proficient speller for life. Our lightly scripted “open and go” lesson plans and mastery-based approach leave no gaps and make this curriculum a favorite of homeschool families everywhere. Suitable for all ages and learning styles!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Phonogram Sounds at Free against Cotter AL Abacus's $1.99. Phonogram Sounds also leads on rating (4.0 vs 3.5) and review sentiment (70% vs 47%). Cotter AL Abacus's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). On update cadence, ads, 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
Phonogram Sounds is free to download; Cotter AL Abacus costs $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Phonogram Sounds holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Phonogram Sounds has 84 ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 47% of Cotter AL Abacus's written reviews are positive against 70% of Phonogram Sounds's.
Cotter AL Abacus ships an update every 9 months, Phonogram Sounds every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Cotter AL Abacus | Phonogram Sounds |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 3.5 (6 ratings) | 4.0 (84 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 47.1% of reviews | 69.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 6 | 84 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | Every 6 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 76 MB | 27 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Activities for Learning inc. | All About Learning Press, Inc. |
Customer experience
Cotter AL Abacus
Phonogram Sounds
Bugs and requests
Cotter AL Abacus
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Phonogram Sounds
Reported bugs
7 issues- R says /er/ instead of /r/
- Sound not working
- App crashes
- No sound when tapping phonograms
- Sound only works with ringer on
Show 2 moreShow fewer
- List of phonograms cut off on iPad
- App is stick, no audio, no movement
Requested features
9 requests- Videos showing lip/tongue placement
- Interactive game app
- App for building words/movable tiles
- Level-based sound availability
- Enlarging tapped tile
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Adding missing phonograms (Level 6, Spalding)
- Adding more sounds for /i/, /e/, /x/, /ou/, /ei/, /oe/, /wor/, /ear/
- Spelling lists for review
- All About Reading app with word reading
In-app purchases
Cotter AL Abacus
No in-app purchases
Phonogram Sounds
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Cotter AL Abacus free?
Is Phonogram Sounds free?
Which has better reviews, Cotter AL Abacus or Phonogram Sounds?
Do Cotter AL Abacus or Phonogram Sounds have ads?
Which is updated more often, Cotter AL Abacus or Phonogram Sounds?
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