1st Calc vs Math Tablet
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
1st Calc
This app provides a visual abacus-style bead frame to help primary school children learn numbers up to 100. It supports addition and subtraction practice, making math more engaging and helping to prevent learning disabilities.
- Abacus-style bead frame
- Learn numbers up to 100
- Addition and subtraction practice
- Customizable bead colors
- Optional live cam background
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„1st Calc“ is an Abacus-style bead frame, that helps primary school children to discover numbers up to 100. It provides them with a visual tool to play with numbers and lets them solve addition and subtraction problems. It is based on the latest math-teaching knowledge and its use contributes significantly to avoid any mathematical disabilities at an early stage and counteract this. „1st Calc“ is an invaluable tool harvesting the children's motivation to use the iPad or iPhone and makes up with a more fun learning experience. FEATURES · Selectable range of numbers: 0 - 20 or 0 - 100 · Bead frame for children · Choose between 4 different colors · Optional live cam view as background We will provide you with further updates. "1st Calc" will then be able to generate addition and subtraction problems, to guide the child through the solution process and to control and diagnose the child's input.
Math Tablet
This app visually demonstrates the relationship between parts and a whole, aiding children in understanding addition and subtraction. It offers interactive tools for exploring place value up to 1000 and includes guided investigations for elementary math concepts.
- Part-whole model visualization
- Interactive counters
- Place value exploration (up to 1000)
- Cover and work-out missing number problems
- 44 guided investigations
- Mathematical language feedback
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Two parts make a whole. Addition and subtraction are built on this relationship – and Math Tablet makes it visible. Children put counters on the two halves of a tray; the whole is at the top, the parts below. Every action on the material changes the numbers straight away. The idea goes back to the "Rechentablett" by Gerster and Schultz. The first app appeared in 2012; this new edition is an open environment for exploring elementary math with the part-whole model. LESS IS MORE At first the tray looks like the original: counters to 20, numbers visible, nothing else. Adults switch on everything else in Settings – or an investigation brings it along. WITH ALL YOUR FINGERS • Tap to put down a counter, with several fingers several at once • Drag counters to the other side – several at the same time • Drag out to take away, shake to clear the tray COVER AND WORK IT OUT A shutter covers one side, and numbers can be covered too. To uncover, children first enter how many they think are hidden. Every tray becomes a missing number problem. PLACE VALUE TO 1000 Up to 100 and 1000 the material grows out of the counters: ten ones move together and become a ten strip, ten tens a hundred frame. Tap a ten to open it again. "Arrange" lays out hundreds, tens and ones side by side as in a place value chart. 44 INVESTIGATIONS For Grades 1 to 4: find all number bonds, work out hidden parts, change calculations and explain what stays the same, make ten or a hundred, quick looks. Many investigations end with a question that asks for reasoning. The overview highlights what suits the chosen number range. NO POINTS, NO STARS Feedback describes in mathematical language what has changed on the material ("5 + 3 = 8 has become 4 + 4 = 8."). It never gives away a solution or a discovery. FOR SCHOOL • Sentence frames read aloud: "The whole is 8. The parts are 5 and 3." • Number sentences with boxes for covered numbers, fact families • Lock the whole, roll, surprise • Link and QR code for a prepared tray on every device in the class • Settings behind an adult lock (press and hold for 3 seconds) • English and German PRIVACY • No ads • No tracking • No in-app purchases • No sign-in • No internet connection needed • All data stays on the device Developed by Christian Urff, mathematics educator and developer of virtual manipulatives for elementary math.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Math Tablet at 4.3 against 1st Calc's 3.3. 1st Calc's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 60%). On price, 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
1st Calc costs $0.99 and Math Tablet $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Math Tablet holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 4 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 100% of 1st Calc's written reviews are positive against 60% of Math Tablet's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
1st Calc ships an update every 50 months, Math Tablet every 45 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | 1st Calc | Math Tablet |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $0.99 | $0.99 |
| Rating | 3.3 (3 ratings) | 4.3 (4 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 60.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 4 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 50 months | Every 45 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 9 MB | 84 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | medienwerkstatt | Christian Urff |
Customer experience
1st Calc
Math Tablet
In-app purchases
1st Calc
No in-app purchases
Math Tablet
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is 1st Calc free?
Is Math Tablet free?
Which has better reviews, 1st Calc or Math Tablet?
Do 1st Calc or Math Tablet have ads?
Which is updated more often, 1st Calc or Math Tablet?
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