Flashnote Derby vs NinGenius Piano
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Flashnote Derby
This app transforms music note learning into an engaging game for young musicians. It offers various ways to practice and play, with customizable drills to suit any student's level. Track progress and make learning fun, whether at home or in lessons.
- Gamified note recognition races
- Practice mode with no timer
- Play notes on instrument or MIDI
- On-screen piano keyboard input
- Customizable clefs and note ranges
- Multiple engaging themes
- Teacher tools for assignments and progress tracking
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Flashnote Derby is a fun, effective way for kids to learn to read music through fast-paced note flashcard games. Perfect for piano, guitar, band, orchestra, and general music students, this teacher-created app turns note recognition into an engaging game that works equally well at home or in music lessons. ———— Learn to Read Music — Fast Each race is a fast-paced challenge: identify notes correctly as you learn to read music faster and speed your horse toward the finish line. Missed or slow answers allow the other horse to catch up. After each round, students can review the notes they missed— turning every race into a meaningful learning opportunity. ———— New! Practice Mode (No Timer, No Stress) Students can now choose a relaxed 'practice mode' with unlimited time for each note. Perfect for beginners, this mode builds accuracy and confidence before racing competitively. ———— Multiple Ways to Answer Players can answer flashcards in a variety of ways: • Play the note on any instrument. Flashnote Derby listens and recognizes what you play (including transposing instruments). • Use a MIDI instrument • Tap on-screen letter names • Or play notes on the on-screen piano keyboard ———— Fully Customizable for Any Student Tailor each drill to match your student’s level: • Treble, bass, alto, or tenor clef • Select specific note ranges or individual notes • Add sharps, flats, or full key signatures • Adjust time limits (or remove them entirely in Practice Mode) • Expand difficulty all the way up to five-and-a-half ledger lines above and below the staff. As skills grow, you can increase the challenge. Higher difficulty earns higher scores—keeping students motivated. ———— Multiple themes keep practice fresh In addition to the classic horse race, students can take flight with the whimsical Pretty Pegasus course, blast through an arcade-style space challenge in Ecliptic Encounter, or switch to the seasonal Reindeer Race during the holidays. ———— Built for Teachers, Loved by Students Flashnote Derby is designed to fit easily into lessons: • Quick to set up and perfect for a 1–2 minute warm-up • Send homework assignments directly to students • Track progress automatically • See which notes need more review Teachers see real improvement. Students stay engaged. Parents appreciate the progress. ———— Why Flashnote Derby Works Many students struggle because drilling note names feels boring and difficult. Flashnote Derby turns this essential skill into a game—one they’ll want to keep playing. A little daily practice adds up quickly, and students learn to read music with confidence. ———— Get on the road to confident music reading today! Download Flashnote Derby and help your young musician master notes with joy—not frustration.
NinGenius Piano
Master piano essentials with this app that focuses on notes, fingerings, rhythms, and theory. It uses gamified challenges with timers and belt tests to motivate students and improve their speed and accuracy in music notation.
- Note recognition
- Fingerings practice
- Rhythm training
- Music theory lessons
- Gamified challenges
- Progress tracking via belt tests
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The only music mastery app for piano featuring NOTES, FINGERINGS, RHYTHMS & THEORY. For a single student only. Let our ninja master test and motivate your student to conquer the essentials of music notation, including key signatures and accidentals. Your student will work like never before to master their note names and fingerings under the pressure of frenzied music and a timer moving closer to zero! They will want to play over and over to make it to the next belt test, increasing their speed and accuracy as they master every essential music fundamental. Your remediation troubles are over!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: NinGenius Piano at 4.6 against Flashnote Derby's 3.8. NinGenius Piano also leads on price ($0.99 vs $4.99) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 16.6). Flashnote Derby's advantage is chart position (#28 vs unranked). On review sentiment, ratings volume, update cadence 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
Flashnote Derby costs $4.99 and NinGenius Piano $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
NinGenius Piano holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.8. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 105 and 91 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 69% of Flashnote Derby's written reviews are positive against 67% of NinGenius Piano's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Flashnote Derby ships an update every 6 months, NinGenius Piano every 11 months. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 13, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Flashnote Derby | NinGenius Piano |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | $0.99 — better |
| Rating | 3.8 (105 ratings) | 4.6 (91 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 69.1% of reviews — better | 66.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 105 — better | 91 |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months — better | Every 11 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #28 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 16.6 | 10.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 110 MB | 359 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Luke Bartolomeo | Ningenius Studios LLC |
Customer experience
Flashnote Derby
NinGenius Piano
Bugs and requests
Flashnote Derby
Reported bugs
15 issues- App crashes on launch or during use
- White screen on startup that auto-closes
- Note recognition fails, particularly for E note
- Low instrument octave recognition issues
- Data and student names lost after updates
Show 10 moreShow fewer
- Settings menu disappears or becomes inaccessible
- Speed selection buttons unresponsive
- Email preset sending feature non-functional
- Password reset system broken
- Master device cloning feature not working
- Audio detection marks answers before notes are played
- Incorrect display scaling on iPad and tablets
- Slider controls difficult to use on mobile devices
- App incompatible with Safari and some browsers
- Family sharing not recognized despite being enabled
Requested features
16 requests- Restore previous speed options (Walk, Trot, Canter, Gallop)
- Option to customize number of test notes (return 10/20 options)
- Remove or tone down negative feedback sounds
- Add more theme options (animals, seasonal themes)
- Untimed mode without racing element
Show 11 moreShow fewer
- Two-octave keyboard display for better note differentiation
- Support for sharps and flats
- Alto and tenor clef options
- Female jockey character option
- Combined treble and bass clef exercises
- Better search visibility in app stores
- Family sharing support improvements
- External audio interface compatibility
- Improved mobile responsiveness for sliders and controls
- Better instructional videos with audio/visual note examples
- Personalized high scores for multiple users
NinGenius Piano
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Flashnote Derby
No in-app purchases
NinGenius Piano
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Flashnote Derby free?
Is NinGenius Piano free?
Which has better reviews, Flashnote Derby or NinGenius Piano?
Do Flashnote Derby or NinGenius Piano have ads?
Which is updated more often, Flashnote Derby or NinGenius Piano?
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