SOS Remote vs Blockly for Dash & Dot robots
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SOS Remote
Control a Science On a Sphere® system with your mobile device. Adjust sphere orientation, manage datasets, and enhance presentations with interactive features. Ideal for educational settings.
- Adjust sphere orientation
- Control dataset playback
- Load presentation playlists
- Search and browse data catalog
- View dataset descriptions
- Create presentation playlists
- Draw on and zoom datasets
- Dynamically adjust dataset layers
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SOS Remote is a universal app for the iPhone*, iPod Touch*, and iPad that is used to control a Science On a Sphere® (SOS) system. SOS is a room sized, global display system that uses computers and video projectors to display planetary data onto a six-foot diameter sphere, analogous to an animated globe. SOS is used as an educational tool to help illustrate Earth System science to people of all ages in a way that is intuitive and captivating. The SOS Remote app affords greater interaction capabilities and ease of use compared to previous SOS controllers such as the Wii Remote. With this app, you can: • Adjust the orientation of the sphere in an intuitive way • Control playback of datasets • Load any presentation playlist stored on the SOS computer • Quickly search and browse the entire SOS Data Catalog and select datasets at random to load on the sphere • View a dataset's description and presenter notes while giving an SOS presentation • Quickly create a presentation playlist directly from the iPad • Draw on and zoom into a dataset loaded on the sphere • Dynamically turn on/off dataset layers and pips and adjust their transparency • Split the sphere into 2-4 vertical slices to replicate a portion of the dataset around the sphere • Perform full alignment of the sphere using an intuitive three step process * Note: The iPhone/iPod Touch support only a subset of the features described above. The iPad supports all features. Requirements: • In order to functionally use the SOS Remote app, you must have a Science On a Sphere® (SOS) installation • Wi-Fi or Bluetooth access to the SOS computer that is being controlled • SOS Software Version 5.5.0
Blockly for Dash & Dot robots
Learn coding fundamentals through interactive play with robots. This app uses a visual drag-and-drop interface to create programs for Dash and Dot robots, offering challenges and creative freedom for young learners.
- Visual drag-and-drop coding
- Robot programming challenges
- Create custom robot behaviors
- Learn coding concepts (sequencing, loops, variables)
- Bluetooth connectivity to robots
- Playful storylines and puzzles
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PLEASE NOTE: This app requires a Wonder Workshop robot (Dash or Dot) to play. To find out more, please visit our website: https://www.makewonder.com. This app is FREE to play. Blockly is a visual drag-and-drop programming tool developed by Google that allows children to snap together commands like puzzle pieces. This app includes dozes of coding challenges for kids to tackle. They can also invent their own creations using Blockly to program Dash & Dot! Learn concepts like sequencing, events, loops, algorithms, operations, and variables through self-directed play and guided challenges. A series of puzzles teach the concepts of coding through playful storylines, allowing kids to learn and explore all on their own. Kids can confidently embark on their own coding adventures with their newfound knowledge, a dash of creativity, and robot buddy - Dash. For ages 6 and up. As seen on the New York Times, USA TODAY, WIRED, Engadget, BBC, and more. “Thoroughly absorbing.” - New York Times “Both kids begged me to take out the robots and start playing with them again.” - Business Insider “Wonder Workshop's notion that kids need to learn twenty-first century skills (and can have fun doing it) flips the industry paradigm on its head, putting kids first.” - James Oppenheim "They are designed to encourage kids to explore and be curious while also learning problem solving." - VentureBeat HOW TO PLAY - Connect Dash and/or Dot to the Blockly app using Bluetooth Smart/4 - Start with a sample project or start your own projects from scratch - Navigate Dash through a maze or around the room, using object detection to avoid walls - Dash knows when it's being picked up and moved. Program Dash to sound the alarm when there is a disturbance! - Program Dash to do synchronized dance moves with lights, motion, and sounds If you have any questions or suggestions, we would love to hear from you! Contact us at any time at https://help.makewonder.com. ABOUT WONDER WORKSHOP Wonder Workshop, an award-winning creator of educational toys and applications for children, was founded in 2012 by three parents on a mission to make learning to code meaningful and fun for children. Through open-ended play and learning experiences, we hope to instill a sense of wonder while helping kids develop their creative problem solving skills. We play test with children throughout our product and app development process to make sure our experiences are frustration free and fun. Wonder Workshop takes children's privacy very seriously. Our apps do not include any third-party advertising or collect any personal information. For more details, please see our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. Privacy Policy: https://www.makewonder.com/privacy Terms of Service: https://www.makewonder.com/TOS Make Wonder: https://www.makewonder.com/make-wonder
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: SOS Remote at 100% against Blockly for Dash & Dot robots's 53%. SOS Remote also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.3). Blockly for Dash & Dot robots's advantage is ratings volume (172 vs 3) and update cadence (every 2 months vs every 8 months). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
SOS Remote holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Blockly for Dash & Dot robots has 172 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of SOS Remote's written reviews are positive against 53% of Blockly for Dash & Dot robots's.
SOS Remote ships an update every 8 months, Blockly for Dash & Dot robots every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SOS Remote | Blockly for Dash & Dot robots |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better | 4.3 (172 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 53.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 172 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 8 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 18.6 | 12.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 4 MB | 142 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | NOAA Science On a Sphere | MORAVIA Consulting, spol. s r.o. |
Customer experience
SOS Remote
Blockly for Dash & Dot robots
In-app purchases
SOS Remote
No in-app purchases
Blockly for Dash & Dot robots
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is SOS Remote free?
Is Blockly for Dash & Dot robots free?
Which has better reviews, SOS Remote or Blockly for Dash & Dot robots?
Do SOS Remote or Blockly for Dash & Dot robots have ads?
Which is updated more often, SOS Remote or Blockly for Dash & Dot robots?
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