Sensory Light Box vs Flip
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Sensory Light Box
This app uses abstract animations and sounds to teach basic touch skills and awareness through interactive scenes. It's designed to encourage exploration and can be customized for various needs and ages, including those with special educational needs or young children.
- Abstract animation and sound
- Basic touch skills introduction
- 30 customizable scenes
- Calm and energetic options
- Automatic touch-free play
- Switch control compatibility
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Light Box uses abstract animation and sound to introduce basic touch skills and awareness. Light Box has become a popular choice for parents of babies and young toddlers but was originally made for teenagers with autism and a range of complex needs. Sounds and graphics are appropriate for any age-group. Light Box naturally encourages exploration of touch gestures through 30 scenes which range from calm & immersive to loud & energetic. Numerous options are provided to customise visuals and simplify controls. Reviews from purchasers: "Cause and Effect Sensory Light Box is a multifaceted app to use when teaching cause and effect, targeting, and visual attention. Great for use with low vision kids or as a "chill out " app for the overly stressed kid or adult....." "My son is ASD and loves this app so much. Already has a favourite setting. Highly recommended, not just for SEN kids." "My 18 month old loves it! Great for young ones. Lots of different lights and sounds. Easy to use. :) " "My almost-5-year-old, blind and autistic, is still trying to figure out how touching the tablet works. This app had him refining his touch and laughing and interacting almost immediately! What a great find!" "Really pleased with this - great auditory and visual feedback. Used with different people and all find something they like. Well worth the money." "My DS/Autistic son loves this app. it is calming and soothing and keeps him well engaged. I would recommend this app for long waits and crowded places." Light Box also provides automatic (touch free) play to enable switch control for basic cause and effect. For more information on setting up your Bluetooth switch or keyboard click the Developer Website link and scroll down.
Flip
Explore a wide range of facial expressions by customizing eyebrows, eyes, and mouths. This app offers various hairstyles and eyewear options, making it a fun tool for learning about emotions. It's designed for children aged 5 and up, including those with low vision, autism, or language delays.
- Customizable facial features (eyebrows, eyes, mouth)
- Variety of hairstyles
- Eyewear options
- Hundreds of expression combinations
- Designed for low-vision users
- Beneficial for autism and language delays
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The Flip-Over Faces app is where a child can casually explore facial expressions within a fun and versatile context. You can generate hundreds of facial expressions by changing eyebrow position, eye direction, and mouth type. In addition multiple hair styles and eyewear options are available. This app is especially designed for students with low-vision and a cognitive level of aged 5 years of age and older. Students with autism and language delays may also benefit from this app. Sighted students and adults are invited to enjoy the app as well!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Flip at Free against Sensory Light Box's $3.99. Flip also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.3). Sensory Light Box's advantage is chart position (#199 vs unranked) and ratings volume (9 vs 1). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases 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
Flip is free to download; Sensory Light Box costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Flip holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sensory Light Box has 9 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Sensory Light Box ships an update every 4 months, Flip every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Sensory Light Box | Flip |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $3.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.3 (9 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 78.1% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 9 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months — better | Every 7 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #199 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 9.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 66 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cognable | American Printing House for the Blind (APH) |
Customer experience
Sensory Light Box
Flip
In-app purchases
Sensory Light Box
No in-app purchases
Flip
No in-app purchases
