The Fourth Dimension vs Mandel Draw
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Fourth Dimension
Explore a complex mathematical concept through an interactive 3D experience. This app uses a unique touch interface to help you visualize and understand the fourth dimension in an engaging and accessible way.
- Interactive 3D touch interface
- Explains the fourth dimension
- Accessible language for all
- 30-page interactive book
- Visual and hands-on learning
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The Fourth Dimension is a 30-page interactive book that explains a single mathematical idea in language that anyone can understand. Instead of static images or canned videos, this app employs a unique 3D touch interface that lets you literally grasp the concept of the fourth dimension with your own hands. “Not only can you blow your own mind over and over again, you can also enjoy watching your friends’ minds being blown in front of you.” — Cult of Mac “One of the coolest apps I've ever used... The Fourth Dimension is to boring learning apps what Carl Sagan's Cosmos was to staid science documentaries.” — BuzzFeed “The app is very cool, and it's unlike pretty much anything we've seen in the App Store.” — The Verge “This is one of my most favorite iOS apps ever.” — George Musser, contributing editor for Scientific American and author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to String Theory (App Store user reviews follow.) “Blew my mind. I generally don't use 'learning' apps as they're mostly gimmicks. This one, though, truly made me think. I hope this developer comes out with more outstanding apps such as this one. Bravo!” — Iceitic “Astounding. That some people care passionately enough about tesseracts to go create a fantastic app for others to understand them is incredible. The app is extremely well designed, wittily written, and executed with love. That alone is worth buying it, besides the fact that I learned what the hell a tesseract was.” — Duncan MacMichael “Fantastic! This is what someone really smart, and who really knows how to teach well, can do with a tablet. And the authors are funny, too, which is a neat bonus.” — DNY “Fantastic app. I work at a leading UK university. If only all our material was this well written and presented. Definitely worth buying and then spending a bit of time with over a day or two to get your head around the fourth dimension. Great app!” — JulesFM “Great job! This app does the best job explaining the 4th dimension. Why learn it in some boring classroom when here you can have an interactive and visual explanation.” — Aco Strklalj Over 250,000 people have blown their minds with this app.
Mandel Draw
Explore the infinite beauty of fractals with this intuitive drawing app. Generate Mandelbrot and Julia sets with numerous functions and color palettes. Enjoy simple touch controls for navigation and advanced settings for high-resolution output and iCloud syncing.
- Mandelbrot and Julia set generation
- 80+ fractal functions
- 20+ color palettes
- Intuitive touch controls (drag, pinch, tap)
- High-resolution output
- iCloud Sync for favorites and palettes
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Mandel Draw is an application that allows you to enjoy fractals, Mandelbrot sets and filled Julia sets, in a fast and comfortable way. The app allows you to draw an infinite number of fractal images from up to 80 different functions, 20+α color palettes, and freely configurable Julia parameters. Operation is simple. Drag to move, pinch to zoom in and out. Double- and triple-tap operations are also available. Convenient settings are also available. - Use DF64 operation: Double the float operation to make it possible to zoom in more. (Disabled in the Appendix 1,2) - Select render version: Two types of rendering methods can be selected. - Display coordinates and magnification: The current coordinates and magnification will be displayed on the screen. - Output detailed information: Add detailed information to the text when sharing. - High-resolution output: Outputs at 4 times the vertical and horizontal resolution when sharing. - iCloud Sync: Share favorites and My Palette with another iPhone or iPad. In addition, all functions are available when unlocked with in-app purchase. 1) All functions are selectable 2) All palettes can be selected 3) Up to 2000 favorites can be saved 4) Maximum number of My Palettes that can be saved is now 30. Now, please enjoy the wonderful and mysterious world of fractals. What is a fractal? Simply put, a fractal is a self-similar figure that does not lose its complexity no matter how much it is enlarged. (Though computers have their limitations.) There are various fractal shapes, such as the Koch curve, Sierpinski's gasket, and Menger's sponge. The Mandelbrot set and the filled Julia set are fractals drawn computationally on the complex plane.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Mandel Draw at Free against The Fourth Dimension's $2.99. Mandel Draw also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 4 months). The Fourth Dimension's advantage is review sentiment (94% vs 53%) and in-app purchases (none vs 1). On ads, 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
Mandel Draw is free to download; The Fourth Dimension costs $2.99 up front. Mandel Draw sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. The Fourth Dimension asks for nothing beyond the download.
The Fourth Dimension holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: The Fourth Dimension has 1.9K ratings behind it against 147, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 94% of The Fourth Dimension's written reviews are positive against 53% of Mandel Draw's.
The Fourth Dimension ships an update every 4 months, Mandel Draw weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 26, 2026 and September 27, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Fourth Dimension | Mandel Draw |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.8 (1.9K ratings) — better | 4.5 (147 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 94.2% of reviews — better | 53.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1.9K — better | 147 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 22 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Lunar Skydiving LLC | Kouji Mori |
Customer experience
The Fourth Dimension
Mandel Draw
In-app purchases
The Fourth Dimension
No in-app purchases
Mandel Draw
- Unlock$1.99
Questions
Is The Fourth Dimension free?
Is Mandel Draw free?
Which has better reviews, The Fourth Dimension or Mandel Draw?
Do The Fourth Dimension or Mandel Draw have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Fourth Dimension or Mandel Draw?
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