OKN Strips vs HemiStim
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
OKN Strips
This diagnostic and therapeutic app aids in evaluating neurological, otological, and ophthalmological disorders. It features moving strips to elicit nystagmus, a red desaturation test, and an Amsler grid for comprehensive eye examinations.
- Optokinetic Nystagmus (OKN) elicitation
- Red Desaturation test
- Amsler Grid for eye testing
- Adjustable strip speed, color, and width
- Reverse strip direction
- Toolbar hide/show functionality
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Top selling diagnostic and therapeutic app for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch! OKN Strips can be used to elicit Optokinetic Nystagmus (OKN) for evaluation of neurological, otological or opthalmological disorders, includes a Red Desaturation mode and now has an Amsler grid for additional eye testing. OKN Strips: Tap the screen to cycle through speeds of the moving strips. Tap the strips icon in the bottom toolbar to toggle the color of the strips between Red and Black. Pinch or Zoom with two fingers to change the width of the strips. Swipe against the direction the strips are moving to reverse their direction. Tap the screen with two fingers to hide or show the bottom toolbar. On the right side of the bottom toolbar there's icons to open the Red Desaturation and Amsler Grid. Red Desaturation: Use the colored circle to perform a red desaturation test. Amsler Grid: Use the Amsler grid to perform eye tests. The buttons on the bottom toolbar change color combinations of the grid.
HemiStim
This app offers visual stimulation for specific brain lobes, aiding in hemispheric connectivity. It utilizes color patterns and eye-tracking exercises for targeted left or right brain stimulation, controllable via simple taps and swipes. Therapy sessions are automatically tracked and can be emailed to clinicians.
- Visual stimulation of frontal, parietal, occipital, temporal lobes
- Hemispheric brain stimulation
- Color pattern selection
- Eye tracking for saccadic and pursuit movements
- Adjustable blink rate and timer
- Automatic therapy session tracking
- Clinician-patient email communication
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Hemistim can be used as a visual stimulation of areas of the frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal lobes hemispherically. It is a specific brain stimulation which is rarely used in conjunction with other treatments but can be used as a portion of a home-based program or an office-based program. Such usage may lead to improved hemispheric connectivity specific, targeted areas of the brain and its connections to the parietal/temporal or frontal cortices. Hemistim provides a visual stimulation through utilizing color patterns and eye tracking that can be used for specific left or right visual exercise. The stimulus is recognized and interpreted by the contralateral (opposite) occipital lobe. Pursuit and saccadic eye movements are created by targeting on the moving object. Pursuit away from and saccade towards the alternating squares are initiated by the ipsilateral (same side) parietal and frontal cortex, respectively. This gives the doctor the ability to work the frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal lobes hemispherically. HemStim is easy to use. Swipe left or right to select a different colored pattern. Multiple patterns are available. Tap a pattern to make it begin blinking. The pattern will blink until the timer stops it. Double tapping the pattern will also make it stop. The blink rate and timer can be changed using the sliders. Target motion is controlled by the tapping the small target to the right of the speed control. Choose among no motion, saccade, and pursuit by successive taps on the small target. Exterior motion is indicated by purple arrows on the target and interior motion by white arrows. The new Saccades screen only displays target motion. Drag the purple target with one finger to set the direction and length of its motion. Tap the screen once simultaneously with two fingers to switch between saccades, a dashed line, and pursuits, a solid line. Tap the screen once with one finger to start the saccades or pursuits. Double tap the screen with one finger to stop the target motion. HemiStim automatically tracks therapy sessions, recording all pertinent information about each one. Maintain close communication between clinician and patient via email.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: OKN Strips at 4.6 against HemiStim's 2.4. OKN Strips also leads on price ($3.99 vs $9.99) and ratings volume (579 vs 5). On ads, in-app purchases, monetization model 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
OKN Strips costs $3.99 and HemiStim $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
OKN Strips holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 2.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: OKN Strips has 579 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 62% of OKN Strips's written reviews are positive against 38% of HemiStim's.
OKN Strips ships an update every 3 months, HemiStim every 8 months. Both last shipped on October 19, 2026.
| Parameter | OKN Strips | HemiStim |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $3.99 — better | $9.99 |
| Rating | 4.6 (579 ratings) — better | 2.4 (5 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 61.5% of reviews — better | 37.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 579 — better | 5 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months — better | Every 8 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #74 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 7 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Thomas Alvarez | Linsay Associates, LLC |
Customer experience
OKN Strips
HemiStim
Bugs and requests
OKN Strips
Reported bugs
3 issues- Red desaturation test color doesn't change
- Red-Black inversion doesn't work on grid test
- Cannot go back to menu from OKN strips without restarting app
Requested features
8 requests- Recording feature
- Adjustable speed and style
- Change direction of movement (left/right, up/down)
- Options for smooth pursuit, saccades, VOR
- Horizontal stripes option
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- More peer-reviewed studies
- Make technology better known
- Slower speed option
HemiStim
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
OKN Strips
No in-app purchases
HemiStim
No in-app purchases







