Comparison

SPEAKplay! vs Expressare

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

Head to head
About

SPEAKplay!

This app uses gesture-based games to help young children and new users of communication devices develop essential motor skills for navigating touchscreens. It focuses on directed touch, drag and drop, and swipe gestures to improve operational competence and enable earlier access to mobile content.

Highlights
  • Gesture-based games
  • Directed and Sustained Touch training
  • Drag and Drop skill development
  • Vertical and Horizontal Swipe practice
  • Progressive difficulty levels
  • Auditory and visual feedback
Features
Read full description

SPEAKplay!™ is an evidence-based therapy app to introduce mobile interfaces to prospective users of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). SPEAKplay! offers a series of gesture-based games that directly target the difficulties in learning complex and multi-step motor skills to access content on mobile AAC devices. The intended outcome of engaging with these games is to enhance motor functioning of the young child or first time AAC user to maximize operational competence in navigating touchscreen-based content. With better gesture and operating skills, children can get started earlier on mobile devices and benefit from AAC applications to the full extent. Training with SPEAKplay! focuses on the critical gestures of (1) Directed and Sustained Touch, (2) Drag and Drop, and (3) Vertical and Horizontal Swipe. The gestures are introduced through a series of fun and engaging games, including “Pop the Bubbles” (for Targeted Touch), “Fly the Rocket” (for Targeted and Sustained Touch), and “Feed the Dino” (for Horizontal and Vertical Swipes as well as Drag and Drop). In the “Pop the Bubbles” game the user is faced with multicolored bubbles that emerge from a bathtub on the bottom. When the bubbles are tapped or “popped” by the user, they disappear from the screen with an auditory “bubble pop” cue. The task for the user is to “pop” all the bubbles till the “You win!” screen appears. To increase the game’s difficulty, the size and number of bubbles available to “pop” can be modified. The “Fly the Rocket” game teaches its users to respond to a visual stimulus, the movements of the stars. The stars either pulse, shake or flash, signaling the user that they need to be touched to fly the rocket through space. With each star that is pressed the rocket moves closer to the moon, and once it reaches the moon the user wins the game. Three levels of difficulty involve four, six, or eight stars to be tapped. Randomization of the sequence in which the stars appear makes the game different each time and unpredictable. The “Feed the Dino” game teaches the user to press and hold onto a dinosaur and move it around to collect food and bones scattered across the screen. To reward and encourage the user to keep playing, the dinosaur dances for a moment as bones are collected before continuing. Once all the food and bones are gathered, the user drags the dinosaur to its home to complete the game and reach the win screen. The game has two modes, one with a free moving dino and one with a path that the dino must follow. This path can be adjusted to be shorter or longer to change the difficulty for completion. SPEAKplay! is a research-based application and complements intervention provided through SPEAKall!® and SPEAKmore!®. The SPEAK application suite has received strong recognition in the AAC industry as documented by prestigious awards including among others: ● 2025 European Academy of Childhood Disability (EACD) Technology & Innovation Award, First Place ● 2018 Anna Kennedy Online Autism Charity, Autism Hero Award – First Place, Entrepreneurial Category ● 2017 Milken Family Foundation Grand Prize and Overall Winner, Milken-Penn GSE Education Business Plan Competition ● 2017 ChanceLight Behavioral Health and Education Prize, Milken-Penn GSE Education Business Plan Competition ● 2017 Edison Innovation Award – Gold, Language Learning Products Thank you for your continued support and please continue to send us your feedback and ideas! (www.speakabilities.com) Product Features: ● Gamification elements to keep the user engaged and motivated ● 
Active training of motor capabilities needed for operating AAC apps ● Different levels of difficulty to adjust for learner growth ● Easy programming through intuitive admin mode ● Manage multiple learners on a single device ● Direct access to SPEAK Abilities YouTube Channel ● Haptic feedback when moving Dino character ● Compatibility with both iPhone and iPad

About

Expressare

Features
Read full description

Expressare is an Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) app designed to help people with speech difficulties communicate in a simple, fast, and accessible way. With an intuitive interface organized into categories, users can select words and actions that are converted into speech, making everyday communication easier. Expressare works fully offline, ensuring access to communication anytime, without the need for an internet connection. Available categories: • Actions • Play • Feelings • Boy • Food & Drink Each category was designed to represent common daily situations, helping users communicate with more independence and clarity. The app is suitable for individuals with conditions such as Autism, Cerebral Palsy, or other communication challenges. Key benefits: • Fast and practical communication • Simple and accessible interface • Fully offline usage • Increased user independence Expressare was built with a focus on inclusion, empathy, and usability, providing a natural and effective communication support tool.

Screenshots

SPEAKplay!4 screens
Expressare3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is iOS requirement: SPEAKplay! at 15.6 against Expressare's 18.6. On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Scorecard1 real difference · 9 level
SPEAKplay! versus Expressare: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSPEAKplay!Expressare
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 days—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.6 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB12 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperSPEAK Abilities, LLPRodrigo Cont

In-app purchases

None

SPEAKplay!

No in-app purchases

None

Expressare

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SPEAKplay! free?
SPEAKplay! is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Expressare free?
Expressare is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do SPEAKplay! or Expressare have ads?
Neither SPEAKplay! nor Expressare shows ads.

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