Retro Synth vs DropPad
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Retro Synth
Create authentic retro music with this vintage-inspired synthesizer app. Explore sound design with tone controls and vibrato, or upgrade for premium waveforms and studio effects. Designed for instant musical creativity, it offers a portable music-making experience.
- Authentic vintage sound recreation
- Tone control for sound shaping
- Vibrato effect for musical expression
- Zero latency real-time response
- Premium waveforms (Sine, Sawtooth, Triangle)
- Studio effects (Reverb, Delay)
- MIDI export
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Play a real pocket stylophone — then plug it straight into GarageBand. Retro Synth · Syntophone turns your device into a vintage touch-keyboard synthesizer, and now works as an AUv3 instrument inside GarageBand, Logic Pro, and AUM. Slide your finger across the keys and a warm, authentic square-wave synth comes to life. Learn built-in songs with light-up "follow the key" tutorials, record your ideas, and drop the instrument into your favorite music app — all from one tiny synth. Like the original, it plays one note at a time: one stylus, one note. Curious about Pro? Tap any locked sound and hear it free for 30 seconds. FREE FEATURES (Included at no cost): • Authentic Vintage Sound: faithfully recreates that iconic square-wave tone with modern precision. • Song Mode: learn songs with light-up "follow the key" tutorials, hold-to-repeat for repeated notes, and a star rating when you finish (2 songs free). • My Recordings: a full library to play back, rename, share, and delete your takes. • Metronome: a sample-accurate click with adjustable BPM and an accented downbeat to keep you in time. • AUv3 Instrument: use Syntophone as a plug-in inside GarageBand, Logic Pro, AUM and other AUv3 hosts. • Sound Controls: shape your tone from thin and bright to thick and warm, and add expression with vibrato. • Real-time Response: instant, zero-latency audio as you play. • Clean, minimalist design inspired by vintage hardware. SYNTOPHONE PRO (subscription): Upgrade to unlock the full studio: • Premium Waveforms: Sine, Sawtooth, and Triangle. • Studio Effects: high-quality Reverb and Delay. • Pro Sound Panel: a second detuned oscillator for a fatter analog tone, hands-on delay time & feedback controls, and live MIDI output — play GarageBand and other synth apps as a virtual MIDI keyboard. • 12 more built-in songs to learn. • MIDI Export: save and share your recordings as .mid files. WHY SYNTOPHONE? No setup, no menus to fight — open the app and make music immediately. Then, when you're ready, it becomes a plug-in in your studio. Note: The app includes an auto-renewable subscription (Syntophone Pro) for premium features. For Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
DropPad
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DropPad は、スマートフォンで本格的なフィンガードラミングができる低遅延・高レスポンスのパッドサンプラーです。 ビートメイクやアイデアスケッチ、指ドラ練習まで、いつでもどこでも直感的に演奏できます。 特長 - 低遅延サンプラーで快適な演奏 タップした瞬間に鳴る気持ちよさにこだわりました。 - 連打に強い「重ね鳴らし」対応 同じパッドを連続で叩いても音が途切れにくく、マシンガン連打もOK。 - PLAY / EDIT 切り替えで誤操作を防止 演奏中にうっかり設定を触ってしまう事故を減らします。 - 音源を自由に割り当て 端末内の音声ファイル(WAV/MP3/OGG)を選んで、各パッドへ簡単にセット。 - 録音してそのままパッドに配置(サンプリング) マイクから録ってすぐ鳴らせます(WAV形式で保存)。 - 3×3 / 4×4 グリッド切り替え 9パッド/16パッドを用途に応じて変更可能。 - バンク切り替え Bank A/B/C…のように複数セットを切り替えて演奏できます。 - 自動保存 音源割り当てや色変更などの編集は即座に保存され、次回起動時に復元されます。 こんな人におすすめ - ビートメーカー / フィンガードラマー - 外出先でサクッとリズムを作りたい人 - 指ドラの練習用に軽いサンプラーが欲しい人 権限について - 録音機能を使う場合、マイク権限が必要です。 - 音源を読み込む場合、ファイル/メディアへのアクセス権限が必要になることがあります。
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: DropPad at none against Retro Synth's 3. DropPad also leads on update cadence (daily vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). On price, ads 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
Both are free to download. Retro Synth sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. DropPad asks for nothing beyond the download.
Retro Synth ships an update every 2 months, DropPad daily. Both last shipped on November 9, 2026.
| Parameter | Retro Synth | DropPad |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.2 (5 ratings) — better | — |
| Number of ratings | 5 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Daily — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 14 MB | 37 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Kerem ERSU | Ark-Networks |
In-app purchases
Retro Synth
- Monthly Subscription$3.991 Month
- Annual Subscription$24.991 Year
- Remove ads$2.99
DropPad
No in-app purchases









