Comparison

Cajón Drum vs Playset

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Cajón Drum

This app simulates a Peruvian cajón box drum and a full drum kit, offering a variety of sounds and dynamic responses. It allows for multitouch playing, adjustable reverb, and different wood textures to customize your sound.

Highlights
  • Multiple cajón and drum sounds
  • Selectable dynamic response
  • Polyphonic and multitouch playback
  • Adjustable variation and reverb
  • Choice of wood textures
  • Simulated egg shaker
Read full description

Cajón Drum is a musical instrument that gives you the best of a drum kit and a Peruvian cajón box drum, all in the palm of your hand. FEATURES • ten different cajón and drum sounds that musically morph across the screen • selectable dynamic response: tap softly and sound is soft, tap harder and the sound increases in volume • fully polyphonic and multitouch: tapping doesn't kill the previous note, and holding the last note down won't kill the next • selectable variation setting adds subtle changes to each note • selectable reverb adds some room to your sound • choose between five different kinds of wood to change the mood • it even simulates the egg shaker in your rolled-up pant leg trick: great for holding an eighth note pattern, now even more realistic with with up and down sounds INSTRUCTIONS 1. Hold lengthwise with the musical notes at the top and the info button on the bottom right. 2. Tap near the top of the screen for kick drum sounds and near the bottom for snare drum sounds. Tap throughout the middle for a smooth mix of both. 3. Tap the musical notes for shaker sounds. Are you left handed? You can set the shaker position to be on the left or on the right side. 4. Choose your own favorite kick and snare sounds. Mix and match. 5. Dynamics, variation, and reverb can be switched on and off.

About

Playset

Create music instantly with this intuitive groovebox sequencer. Build songs layer by layer with drums, bass, and synths, then mix and arrange them in a timeline. Share your projects and explore demo songs.

Highlights
  • Multi-touch drum & synth sequencer
  • 50 original sample kits
  • Mixer with FX
  • Patterns & Timeline module
  • MIDI & Audio Unit AUv3 support
  • AudioBus & Ableton Link support
Read full description

Playset is Fingerlab's intuitive groovebox sequencer for iPad — designed for instant fun and live music making. Start with the drums, add a sneaky bass line, dress it with a fat lead and you've got your song. Adjust the mix, add some FX, arrange your patterns in the timeline and you're done. From the team behind DM1, Apple Design Award winner 2012. Playset is a premium app — no in-app purchases, no ads. Buy it once, it's entirely yours. Features: • Multi-touch drum & synth sequencer • 50 original sample kits (drum kits, bass & leads) • Mixer with mute, level, pitch, pan & custom kit per track • 2 FX per instrument (Reverb, Delay, Distortion, Chorus, Compressor and more) • Patterns & Timeline module • Fast bounce — master or separated tracks, mono or stereo • Share & import projects • Gallery with demo songs • Full MIDI & MIDI Mapping support • AudioBus & Ableton Link support • Audio Unit AUv3 support • Audio background mode Questions or feedback? We'd love to hear from you: contact@fingerlab.net Have fun! The Fingerlab Team

Screenshots

Cajón Drum4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Playset at 92% against Cajón Drum's 0%. Cajón Drum's advantage is price ($0.99 vs $9.99) and device support (3 vs 1). On update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Cajón Drum costs $0.99 and Playset $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Cajón Drum ships an update every 3 months, Playset every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Cajón Drum versus Playset: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCajón DrumPlayset
Price$0.99 — better$9.99
Rating—4.2 (12 ratings) — better
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews91.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings—12 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPad
Requires iOS8.0 — better13.4
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB157 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDavid AshtonFingerlab

Customer experience

Cajón Drum

Written reviews5 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative80.0%

Playset

All ratings12 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral16.7%
Negative8.3%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive91.7%
Neutral8.3%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Cajón Drum

No in-app purchases

None

Playset

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Cajón Drum free?
Cajón Drum costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Playset free?
Playset costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Cajón Drum or Playset have ads?
Neither Cajón Drum nor Playset shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Cajón Drum or Playset?
Cajón Drum ships an update every 3 months, and Playset every 2 months. Most recently, Cajón Drum was updated on October 19, 2026 and Playset on September 24, 2026.

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