Comparison

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 vs Critical Thinking Activities

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

Head to head
About

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2

This app teaches early readers the essential sounds of lowercase letters, a foundational skill for reading success. It uses science-backed phonics, engaging visuals, and multi-sensory learning to help children decode words and build a strong reading foundation.

Highlights
  • Master lowercase letter sounds
  • Science of Reading based
  • Engaging phonetic visuals
  • Multi-sensory learning
  • Repetition and rhythm
  • Distraction-free environment
Features
Read full description

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 - Learn Letter Sounds the Right Way! Science-Backed Phonics for Early Reading Success! Unlock your child's reading journey with ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2! Built on the foundational Science of Reading, this engaging app focuses on the crucial alphabetic principle, teaching your child the essential sounds of lowercase letters – the key to unlocking reading success. Give your child the fundamental tools they need to become a confident reader. Just as numbers form the basis of math, understanding letter sounds is the cornerstone of reading. By mastering these sounds, your child gains the power to decode words and build a strong reading foundation. ABC Magic Phonics 2 directly addresses the alphabetic principle – the understanding that letters represent sounds and that these sounds can be blended together to form words. Grounded in the Science of Reading, our app prioritizes teaching letter sounds, the most effective way to initiate reading skills. *Master Letter Sounds: Learn the primary sounds of all lowercase letters – the building blocks of 95% of printed text. *Scientifically Sound: Based on the Science of Reading, focusing on the proven method of teaching letter sounds first. *Engaging Visuals: Each letter is paired with four phonetic photo images that clearly represent its sound. *Multi-Sensory Learning: Combines visual (colored letters, photos), auditory (letter sounds, photo names), and kinesthetic (touching to hear) learning. *Repetition & Rhythm: The app's design incorporates repetition and rhythm to aid memorization of letter sounds. *Lowercase Focus: Smartly prioritizes lowercase letters, which make up the vast majority of written words. *Distraction-Free Learning: All unnecessary elements are removed, allowing your child to concentrate on letter-sound associations. *Builds on Prior Learning: A natural progression for children who may have used previous apps in the series. *Prepares for Future Reading: Lays a solid foundation for more advanced phonics skills and reading fluency. Give your child a smart start! Unlike traditional methods, ABC Magic Phonics 2 focuses on lowercase letters first. Why? Because 95% of the words in books and periodicals are in lowercase. By prioritizing these essential letters, you're maximizing your child's learning efficiency. Children actively engage by touching letters to hear their sounds and touching photos to hear their names. This auditory reinforcement, combined with clear visual associations, makes learning fun and effective. Young learners will enjoy repeating the sounds they hear, solidifying their understanding. Created by a team of experienced educators using accelerated learning techniques and Montessori principles, ABC Magic Phonics 2 has been rigorously tested and loved by preschool children. Help us make learning even better! Please share your feedback and suggestions as we continue to improve ABC Magic Phonics 2. Give your child the magic of phonics! Download ABC Magic Phonics 2 today and set them on the path to reading success!

About

Critical Thinking Activities

Read full description

Critical Thinking Activities is a collection of challenges designed to help build critical thinking skills. The app presents 10 different activities. In each activity the problems are randomly generated so the app provides hours of engaging learning opportunities.. The activities include the following: 1. Hundreds Chart Patterns 2. What's the Rule? 3. Find a Match 4. Cube Patterns 5. Dot Designs 6. Isometric Designs 7. Design Patterns 8. Reflections 9. Sum Patterns 10. Number Line The app uses speech and sound effects to present the activities and to make the learning experience more exciting. As students work on the problem solving activities, a score is kept that tracks progress. By tapping the scoreboard icon teachers or parents can see a record of the students successes.

Screenshots

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 24 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 at Free against Critical Thinking Activities's $1.99. ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 also leads on update cadence (every 12 months vs every 26 months). Critical Thinking Activities's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1). On 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

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 is free to download; Critical Thinking Activities costs $1.99 up front. ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Critical Thinking Activities asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 ships an update every 12 months, Critical Thinking Activities every 26 months. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and September 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 versus Critical Thinking Activities: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterABC MAGIC PHONICS 2Critical Thinking Activities
PriceFree — better$1.99
Rating4.3 (707 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews72.2% of reviews—
Number of ratings707 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 12 months — betterEvery 26 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPad, Mac
Requires iOS12.0 — better13.2
Further details — not scored
Size109 MB20 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPRESCHOOL UNIVERSITYVentura Educational Systems

Bugs and requests

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App crashes immediately when tapping on letters
  • App crashes upon opening and selecting content

Requested features

3 requests
  • Display both uppercase and lowercase letters
  • Correct the color of the letter 'h' to red
  • Ensure letter pronunciation audio is clear and functional

Critical Thinking Activities

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2

One-time1
  • Full Version$1.99
None

Critical Thinking Activities

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 free?
ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Critical Thinking Activities free?
Critical Thinking Activities costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 or Critical Thinking Activities have ads?
Neither ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 nor Critical Thinking Activities shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 or Critical Thinking Activities?
ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 ships an update every 12 months, and Critical Thinking Activities every 26 months. Most recently, ABC MAGIC PHONICS 2 was updated on September 26, 2026 and Critical Thinking Activities on September 14, 2026.

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